You are on page 1of 13

History

Of
Journalism
in the
Philippines
Early Years
The history of journalism in the Philippines goes back to the 16th century, the same period
when England and Europe were starting on the proliferation of community newspapers.

1637,Tomas Pinpin (Father of Filipino printing), launched the first Philippine newsletter
called "Successos Felices" (Fortunate Events). The publication was written in Spanish and
contained a 14-page report on current events.

1799, following Pinpin's debut in printing, he again came up with his Hojas Volantes or
"flying sheets". It was titled "Aviso Al Publico" (Notices to the Public), which served the
Spaniards and had a role comparative to a "town crier.

The first Philippine newspaper was established in August 8, 1811. Del Superior Govierno
was published with the Spanish Governor General himself as editor and launched by Gov.
Fernandez del Forqueras. Its intended readers were the local Spaniards and therefore the
content was primarily news from Spain. Unfortunately, the paper only came up with 15 issues
within its years of operation from 1811 to 1832.

The first daily newspaper, La Esperanza (1846), also catered to the Spanish elite. It dealt
with non-controversial subjects such as religion, science, and history. The paper, edited
by Felipe Lacorte and Evaristo Calderon, lasted only for three years. However, it gave way
to the birth of other dailies such as "La Estrella" in 1847 and "Diario de Manila" in 1848

Diario's existence was significant because it monopolized the market a year
after its launch and became the government's daily organ in 1852. It was
renamed to "Boletin Oficial de Filipinas" which later ceased circulation by
Royal Order in 1860. The best edited newspaper, Diario de Manila, was
suppressed by the Governor General after 38 years of publication, allegedly for
inciting the Filipinos to rebel against the Spaniards.The paper reappeared with
Felipe del Pan as its editor and encountered another official decree that led
to its permanent closure on February 19, 1898.

Meanwhile, the first local publication was El Ilocano which started in 1893
while the first publication for and by women, El Hogar was published in 1893.

1862, a Tagalog publisher, Mariano Sevilla, founded El Catolico Filipino. It
was considered the first Philippine religious newspaper, unexpectedly not
managed by the Church. It was also a paper which seriously dealt with the
problems of Filipinos.

Another first in the history is El Porvenir Filipino founded in 1865. It was
the newspaper that pioneered in two-edition dailies. Later it was followed by
Revista Mercantil which came out the same year.


The year 1887 marked the beginning of a more opinionated journalism in the
Philippines. It officially begun on April 1, 1887 with the birth of La Opinion.
According to historians, "it was the first paper to defy the friars and
campaigned for the ouster of the religious

The history of the free press in the Philippines has its roots in
nationalistic newspapers published in Europe and in the Philippines during the
Spanish colonial rule. The aim was to raise the level of consciousness with
respect to oppressive conditions prevailing in the country then. These
newspapers were mainly published and written by the so-called ilustrados.

February 19, 1889 La Solidaridad came out as the "mouthpiece of the
revolution." It operated with its policies "to work peacefully for social and
economic reforms, to expose the real plight of the Philippines and to champion
liberalism and democracy." The staff of the paper was comprised of known
personas like Jose Rizal, Marcelo H. del Pilar, Mariano Ponce, Andres
Bonifacio, Pio Valenzuela and Graciano Lopez-Jaena. The later became the
founding editor until he was succeeded by del Pilar on October 31, 1889. The
paper ceased publication on November 15, 1895 which was then followed by the
death of its second and last editor in the early 1896.






From the reformists' newspapers, the secret society of rebels or better known as
the Katipunan also came up with their own publication. They established "Ang
Kalayaan" (Liberty) on January 1, 1896. It was edited by Pio Valenzuela, Emilio
Jacinto and Andres Bonifacio. Unfortunately, it only came out with one issue when
a Katipunero betrayed the secrecy of the paper. Nevertheless, its existence
increased the membership of the society to 30,000

Kalayaan served as the official organ of the revolutionaries. La Independencia
(1898), was the most widely read newspaper of the revolution. La Independencia
was founded on September 3 by Gen. Antonio Luna and Fernando Ma. Guerrero. Other
newspapers were La Libertad (June 20,1898), and El Heraldo de Iloilo (January 1,
1898).
American Colonial Period
The use of the power of the pen by the early heroes proved the feasibility of
using non-violent strategies for social and political reforms, a lesson well
imbibed by Filipino journalists even today.

The American regime saw the introduction of new newspapers published mostly by
American journalists:The Manila Times (1898), The Bounding Billow and Official
Gazette (1898), Manila Daily Bulletin(1900),the "oldest existing newspaper",
established by Carson Taylor in February 1, 1900. The paper started out as a
shipping journal and later widened its scope in 1912., and the Philippine
Free Press (1908). Some of these publications are still with us today. In 1920,
The Philippine Herald, a pro-Filipino newspaper, came out.

Other nationalistic newspapers during the period did not last long due to American
suppression. Among these were El Nuevo Dia (The New Day) published in Cebu
and El Renacimiento. But the most popular among the masa was the Tagalog
newspaper Sakdal which attacked regressive taxes, big government, and abusive
capitalists and landlords issues which remain relevant today.

Two other foreign owners had the Manila Times before Alejandro Roces, Sr. acquired
it in 1927. Roces already running the TVT (Taliba-La Vanguardia-Tribune) chain at
that time then realized the unnecessary owning of another English paper and so he
closed it down in 1930. Also sometime in 1927 the son of Alejandro Roces, Sr.,
Ramon Roces put up a magazine known as Graphic.

TVT then was considered the first newspaper chain in the Philippines. Its founding
was one of the highlight events during the 1920s and had bestowed on Roces the
titled "father of modern journalism." Manila Tribune was established by Roces on
April 1, 1925, with Carlos P. Romulo as editor.

When World War II broke out, all publications except those used by the Japanese
were disbanded. Only the Manila Tribune, Taliba, and La Vanguardia were allowed to
publish under regular censorship by the Japanese Imperial Army. However, Filipinos
during the period were not left without an "alternative" media. Underground
"newspapers", mostly typewritten or mimeographed, proliferated to provide the
people with counter information. When World War II broke out, all publications
except those used by the Japanese were disbanded. Only the Manila Tribune, Taliba,
and La Vanguardia were allowed to publish under regular censorship by the Japanese
Imperial Army. However, Filipinos during the period were not left without an
"alternative" media. Underground "newspapers", mostly typewritten or mimeographed,
proliferated to provide the people with counter information.

Golden Age

The post-war era to pre-martial law period (1945-1972) is called the golden age
of Philippine journalism. The Philippine press began to be known as "the freest
in Asia."
The press functioned as a real watchdog of the government, It was
sensitive to national issues and critical of government mistakes and abuses.
Among its practitioners were a clutch of scholarly, noble-minded writers and
editors Mauro Mendez, Arsenio Lacson, Modesto Farolan, Leon Guerrero, Armando
Malay, S.P. Lopez, Jose Bautista, to name a few.
The press during the period was forced into a "marriage of convenience"
with large business enterprises and political groups. Most of the newspapers were
wholly or partly owned by large business complexes. Some newspapers had control
and interest in other media particularly radio and television.
In 1952, the National Press Club was organized "to promote cooperation
among journalists and uphold press freedom and the dignity of journalists." In
1964, the Philippine Press Institute (PPI) was organized "to foster the
development and improvement of journalism in the country."

Martial Law
After more than three decades of free press, on September 21, 1972 upon the
declaration of Martial Law, publications were once again halted from their
liberal operations. Then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos issued Letter of Instruction
(LOI) No. I which contained the ordinance, "to take over and control or cause
the taking over and control of the mass media for the duration of the national
emergency, or until otherwise ordered by the President or by his duly
designated representative." Almost similar to the press' situation during the
Japanese Occupation, publications were put under government supervision. Media
entities were sequestered or closed down restraining their operation unless
approved by the MMC / MAC agency, which was tasked to regulate them. Editors,
publishers and activist-journalists were put into jail considering them as
threat to the administration. It was in this period when the likes Geny Lopez,
Jr., Chino Roces, Max V. Soliven, Luis Beltran, Teodoro Locsin, Jose Diokno,
Benigno Aquino, Jr. and others were detained at Camp Crame.
The only periodicals that continuously existed were those owned by Marcos'
cronies and relatives. These included Manila Daily Bulletin, then owned by the
late Gen. Hans Menzi who was presidential aide-de-camp, The Times Journal by
Benjamin "Kokoy" Romualdez, brother of then First Lady, Imelda Marcos, and The
Daily Express by Roberto S. Benedicto, who was a family friend.

Contemporary Times
There are a total of 14 "national" daily broadsheets and 19 tabloids published
in Metro Manila (1998 Philippine Media Factbook). The combined circulation of
these newspapers is estimated to be only about 7 million, including pass on
readership, in a country of almost 75 million.
Of the 14 broadsheets, only two are in Filipino Kabayan andNumero Uno.
Among the newspapers with biggest claimed daily circulation are Manila
Bulletin (280,000 on weekdays and 300,000 on Sundays), Philippine Daily
Inquirer,(260,000 and 280,000 respectively) and Philippine Star (271,687).
Tabloids, with an average cost of half the broadsheets enjoy a higher
circulation and seem to be preferred by readers in the C, D and E income
brackets. Tabloids are written in Taglish, a combination of English and Filipino
and have an entertainment gossip slant. The most popular tabloid is Abante with
a claimed circulation of 417,600. Another favorite is Peoples Journal with
claimed circulation of 382,000.
There are also five Chinese broadsheets, all published in Binondo,
Manilas Chinatown. These includeUnversal Daily News, China Times, World News,
United Daily News, and Chinese Commercial News.


An important trend is the emergence of a chain of provincial
newspapers nationwide owned by a single corporation. An example is the Sun
Star dailies found in major cities nationwide such as Baguio, Angeles, Cebu,
Iloilo, Dumaguete, Cagayan de Oro and Davao. Most of these provincial papers were
existing but not viable when bought by Sun Star. The acquisition has enabled the
new owners to infuse additional capital, acquire new printing equipment and
facilities, and hire more editorial staff. The result is significant improvement
in the editorial quality of most of these newspapers.. Some provincial dailies can
now compete with the so-called national (Metro Manila-based) dailies in terms of
editorial quality.
But the most popular reading fare in the country is still the
illustrated komiks. The Media factbook reported 46 komik titles published either
weekly or twice a week. Most of these feature drama-love story and horror. Among
the popular ones arre Aliwan Lovelife, Beloved, True Horror, True Ghost, Shocker,
and Halimaw.
Another popular reading fare are the magazines. Of the 38 magazines listed
in the Media factbook, almost half are movie/fan magazines such as Gossip,
Glitter, Kislap, Hot Copy, Rumors and Moviestars.

Reference/s:
Allen, Donna, Ramona R. Rush and Susan J. Kaufman ( eds.). (1996). Women transforming
communication. California: Sage Pub.

Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication. (1998). Communication sector analysis for
child rightbased programming. Manila: AIJC

Braid, Florangel Rosario. (1996). "Filipino women in communication: breaking new grounds" in
women transforming communication. California: Sage Pub., 280-28 pp.

Braid, Florangel R. and Ramon R. Tuazon. (1998). "Communication and media the making of a
nation." Paper presented during the centennial congress May 28.

Maslog, Crispin. (1988). Philippine Communication: an introduction. Laguna: Philippine
Association of Communication Educators.

Pilger, John. (1999). "Propaganda censorship in the 1990s" in Philippine Daily Inquirer July
4, 1999. 8 p.

Philippine Daily Inquirer Research. (1999). "Drop of credibility behind declining newspapers
circulation" in Philippine Daily Inquirer. July 1999. 8 p.

Santos, Vergel.(1995). How to edit a community newspaper. Manila: Philippine Press Institute.

http://rocesfamily.com/sm2002/rocesphils/early.htm

http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?igm=3&i=221

You might also like