What is Presstitute? A simple google search would tell you that I was not the one who came up with that term, it was said to be coined by Gerald Celente (www.urbandictionar.com). The term refers to “a journalist or media source whose news coverage is considered to be inappropriately influenced by business interests, political motives, etc.” (www.dictionary.com) who are “neglecting their fundamental duty of reporting news impartially.” (www.urbandictionary.com)

The IFJ (International Federation of Journalists) declared this as their first principle that Journalists must observe: “Respect for truth and for the right of the public to truth is the first duty of the journalist”. (http://www.ifj.org/about-ifj/ifj-co…) Using this principle, it is clear each journalist has the duty to present to the people all side of the story. However I also believe that Filipino Journalists’ opinions should also be heard and that is their right as a citizen of this country. There are times that their opinions can affect their way of reporting and the news articles that they write, but the real problem is not them letting their opinions affect their job but them forgetting that their duty is to reveal the truth and not one-sided truth; and reporting one side and disregarding the other clearly shows bias. Remember the issue about President Duterte’s remarks about VP Leni’s knees? Instead of focusing as well on the slow progress of the housing projects for the Yolanda victims, it seems that the people’s attention was shifted only to the President’s remarks. How many articles and news reports are there when it comes to “EJK” and compare it to the number of reports when it comes to the number of those who surrendered, compare it to the number of reports about the major rehabilitation centers, and compare it to the number of reports where “EJK” here in Philippines is clearly defined. You cannot blame the people for calling you biased and ‘presstitutes’ if they see that you are not fully informing them, if they see that you are making everything against Duterte, and if they see that you are strong when it’s about attacking Duterte but soft when the reports are about his political enemies.

Moving forward, how about the CEO/owners of these media outlets, could they use their position to affect the news reports? I think it is naive to think that they cannot influence what news reports come out and what must not; who to attack and who must not be touched. Can you honestly say that Rapplers alleged connection with CIA through the Omidyar Network does not influence them to attack President Duterte, who has been vocal in opposing USA’s use of their power to dictate us? How about the Chairman of Benguet Mining Corp. who is related to the CEO of Inquirer, can you really say they don’t influence the news at all? How about the other CEO/owner of other media outlets who are allied to Duterte’s political enemies, can we be sure that they are not using their powers to malign the President in favor of their allies?

Now, for those who refuse to believe that there are members of the press who can be paid, let me give you some examples. There are Private companies who will sometimes call for a press conference, and they will give “Presskit” to them with money inside. The press will now “review” the company but the real goal is to make the company look good. This is also the case when it comes to the press conference of some actors/actress who are promoting their movie or musicians promoting their new albums. These became normal for them but it must now be revealed and changed because they are also practicing it when it comes to politics which is already affecting our country. There is already a corruption in our press and if we want to change corruption in the government, it’s essential that we stop corruption here because they can deceive the people by painting bad and corrupt politicians as a hero, martyr, or a saint. To make matters worse, where do you think they would get back the money they used for the press?

It’s also saddening that like some of our local media, some international media have also decided to attack President Duterte and paint him as the villain without even understanding the drug problem in our country. So where do you think they got their scoop? These presstitutes are now focused on destroying the President while they make it look like Senator De Lima and VP Leni as the victims and the heroes. They seem to have forgotten, or they don’t just care, that our country has real problems when it comes to drugs; if any senator, not just Senator De Lima, will be tagged as a protector of drug lords, it is the duty of any President to have him/her investigated immediately. We also had a slow progress in providing homes for the Yolanda victims and if any vice president, not just VP Leni, was tasked to provide solution, then it is expected that she works with the current administration and not focus on her political party’s agenda.

Narcopolitics is one of the biggest problems in our country. Shouldn’t we be happy that finally there is a president who is brave enough to stop the Narcopoliticians? But our battle might fail all because of the presstitutes who are destroying the President who don’t care that they are also destroying the chance of our country and the Filipino people. This is why, for me, Presstitutes are worse than Prostitutes because while the latter sells their body, the former sells the future of our country and the lives of the Filipinos.

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