Hearing the President

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor GUILLERMO TEJIDA III Desk Editor PATRICK PANGILINAN Busines Editor NIDA A. BUENAFE Sports Editor RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

In his address to the media during the annual conference of the Philippine Press Institute held at the Traders Hotel in Manila early this week, President Benigno Aquino III picked on the warts of some practitioners, particularly on what he called their crab mentality and tendency to pull down their own country. The President also appealed to the media to report on the good things happening and help the country in its effort to lure tourists over.

As expected, the President's speech drew a good deal of criticism from many of those present who claimed that the administration should give them more positive things and accomplishments to write about and not attempt to tell them what to write. Some even accused him of being the one with the crab mentality instead.

Among the things that the President focused on was what he called the tendency of the media to give greater focus on negative things and downplaying the positive, giving as example the treatment of stories where accomplishments of the police, for instance, were barely covered, while lapses are sensationalized.

Of course some of those who reacted were within their rights in saying that, as a public official, President Aquino should not be onion-skinned. He should be able to absorb criticisms, and not react and hit back, as he appears to have done.

However, when we come down to it, the President was also within his rights to air his feelings to the group that represented media entities from all over the country. He probably believed that he would have the opportunity and be given the courtesy of being heard, as he had been hearing from them all, except this one time, when their own organization had invited him to talk to them.

We do not often agree with the President's words and actions, but we do believe in allowing the guy to have his say. Let us take as well as we can give. Let it not be said that we, too, as just as “onion-skinned.”*