The First Amendment; Teddy Owens-Manila

Read. The First Amendment and a free people a weekly examination of civil liberties and the media in the United States and around the world the program has produced cooperatively by WGBH Boston and the Institute for democratic communication at Boston University. A host of the program is the institute's director Dr. Barnett Rubin. This edition of The First Amendment and a free people is coming from broadcasting studios in Manila. Republic of the Philippines. And I'm going to be continuing this series of discussions with key people involved with the media in Southeast Asia. My guest today I am very pleased to say is Mr. Teddi own the news and managing editor of the newspaper bulletin today one of the leading newspapers in Manila Metro Manila and the Philippine Islands. He's a 30 year veteran of a news work. He was also has also been an instructor in English

San Juan de Letran college for some 30 years and did his work himself at the University of St. Thomas College of philosophy and that is graduating in 1949. Terry own Let me ask you first off to give your impressions your views on the situation regarding the press today and as Americans know the Philippines has been under martial law since 1972. Can you can you get a view of what's going on here today and also your impressions of the critiques being made of freedom of the press from outside sources. Well to go back to the first question bring freedom of the press in the Philippines as a relevant matter as far as I'm concerned. Different views are given as to what freedom of the press

is. You can have for example freedom of the press which is a licentious press which has no responsibilities. And on this matter I believe that this is exactly what the situation was before martial law was imposed. I believe that it was only the bulletin at that time which was conservative enough to carry both sides of a question as you must understand to be a good newspaper one must have a fair and impartial report giving both sides of any controversy or of any question as it was prior to martial law we had at least two newspapers which were completely lopsided and which were totally critical without even giving Mr. Marcos a chance to have a say. So much so that as a malacañang reporter at that time no presidential powers reporter a presidential palace reporter. I I noticed that he had to use or higher pay for TV time. But on his

side this is probably one reason why the bulletin was reopened after martial law. Now as martial law was imposed Naturally there was a clamp down on information and news and part nice the first six months we had military people looking over our shoulders didn't look so very good you know. But then this was replaced by a media group headed by the president of the National Press Club who later on went to the States and became a critic of the president at that time we had a little problem it was probably even worse because the censor at that time was a fellow who probably knew nothing about what the press wise. And then finally they created the print media council which is now headed by our publisher general Hans Menzi. This man that we now have to govern ourselves. And the important point here is that there is wherever you have any rights it's understood you also have a

corresponding obligation. What is the obligation to be fair to be impartial to give reports as they happen and not to put in your five cents worth which was the which was the way I look at it at that time what was being done before martial law. So we govern ourselves now and we actually have dismissed people who have not been doing their job properly. And this is done by the print media council group that's out every. Every reporter must have a security clearance. Yes. Now are you in favor of that. In other words could you have responsibility without imposing such a harsh restraint which in effect restricts an echelon of reporters from working in their profession. No actually a lot of these things I think are being exaggerated. Many of the old reporters of the old days are working now. Many of them are working with the government. Many of them are working with us. They select their own way of working. And many of them have gone into private business for example

McSally when used to be a columnist in the Manila Times and he was authorized to write a column that he wanted to write a column for us as yet I don't know he's thinking it over. Let me ask you a question about a big story that happens to be coincidental with my work here in the Philippines lecturing and research. It's a story that is in all the big national newspapers indeed the regional newspapers criticizing the military for alleged atrocities torture and the rest in the southern regions of the Philippines especially where there's insurgents and it is said that they went into several villages and did some rather dastardly things. The president himself Fernando markers for Ferdinand Marcos has has said that we must look into the to the bottom of this. We must get at the heart of it. He has also said the criticism which originally initiated by church authorities that he said All churches are the allies of the government.

Then he said no one must be arrested unless we're absolutely sure of the facts. Other people suggest that hardly any military man of rank has ever been castigated for this kind of thing. Is is it a story that is very difficult. I'm not I'm not characterizing this story but I'm saying it must be one of the most difficult stories to handle as a responsible newsman. Well don't I'd like it. No I am very proud to say it but I think it was a bulletin who brought that stroke this store. Yes. And I was talking it over with our editor and he said well let's let's just put it out. It came from the UPI I think. So I said OK let's put it out. After all it doesn't harm. So there was no reaction at all. As you can see he did not call us up or castigate us and in fact we started a trend and following this man created that team to check up the reported complaint of the bishop in our city.

The president held a meeting with all of the top brass the top brass and they're going to talk. But this has been going on all along there have been many many persons investigated by military tribunals since nineteen hundred seventy four for atrocities and a number of them have been sentenced to death. And that guy putting out several stories of troopers being sentenced to death. This means to say that whatever happens will have to go to Marcos for his final approval before they're shot. So I don't think this is a very difficult story. I think it's a very good start and a very good sign that the President Marcos himself. Has is normalizing gradually the situation. We have not been. Our attention has not been called to such critical stories since I can remember maybe for the last two years we try our very best to put out what we can under the set up under the situation and at least we are very careful and we follow the

so-called responsibilities that we have towards our people and towards the government. Now we are not protecting the government. We do our very best to do what we can under set up. Before we get to other questions as you know there is a special relationship between the United States and the Philippines. You know it is held very deeply as a nation by most Americans because of our national history and yours which happened to be coincidental. And it's been a love hate relationship I think right from the start. But the influence of the United States in perhaps the worst way pop culture is very prevalent and I think the the approach of radio and television stations the style of newspaper reporting is in that western style made very popular by American press organs given all of that. And as I say I in particular have a great fondness for the Philippines. One of our concerns is the human rights concern and within the Philippines there isn't much controversy on that because there

isn't much much information on it. But in the world and in United Nations circles and United States Foreign Relations Committee reports this has been made a great deal of. Is it possible that we might look forward to a time in the near future when the Philippine government will be perhaps less and less defensive on this point and take the same attitude as the United States that it will brook no violations of human rights. Well Bernie I don't know as a newspaper man. I think the matter of human rights is I think in this part of the world at least if if ever abused sometimes we wonder. I mean to say as a Filipino I wonder how the United States would countenance violations of human rights let's say for example by Iran's former xargs group no and in a good point in Korea in South Korea and yet defend these two

countries to the limit armed them to the limit. But over here a little violation is expounded and expanded in the United States as if we were the biggest criminals of all. But many American newspaper men come here we don't shoot them like they got they got shot in Nicaragua and they don't kick them out like they kick them out let's say in Singapore all violations of human rights I suppose are again it's a word which could be sometimes overused. Is it possible Terry on that I I'm on the right track that the reason for this particular interest in the Philippines comes from the particular attention that particular fondness and the relationships that the United States hurts or the Philippines because they have those same relationships with I think President Carter's human rights program probably is to remind us that all these many years we've been together it would not be so very good for us or nor for the United States or your country to be

called as the mother country of a nation which today violates human rights. But I think also maybe Mr. Carter is playing a little bit too much in politics because he's picking on the wrong country or to say your word but he is barking up the wrong tree. Could we turn to another subject. How do you feel about the the third world first world news in bounds or worse news in bounds given. And I'm I'm addressing it to you with a little fillip of the question that is most of the people I talk with in the Philippines or in Thailand or in India and Sri Lanka on this particular trip the press leaders are all first world people and they have a bias an urban bias that is very prominent that the rural people really suffer from is almost the exact imagery of first third world what to start with that first part of the question. What's your own impression of the current state of the debate and what we can do about the situation.

Well I think that whenever an American comes to the Philippines they always find a little bit of America here. We have been under you for many years and we have grown up under the American educational system and naturally we have patterned our way of life practically along the American way of life. And so when it comes to the American system of newspapering which as you explained earlier seems to lack a great deal of rural information which you think is very vital. And I agree with I suppose a campaign to this effect is very effective the United States would step down to the Philippines along the same line. I suppose that is in your line of reasoning and your campaign could try the Institute for Democratic communications trying to bring local community groups to the attention of newspaper men so that they not only look at their advertising signs or their best clients or the political class yes that's precisely what I think we are really lacking in and that's exactly I think what the government is trying to do.

It's the so-called developmental journalism which a lot of American newspaper men think is hogwash is one of the campaigns of the government to get more attention and stress to rural development. Perhaps maybe the government you know the politics seeps into the picture but then I suppose you cannot help that. Even in your country always politics seeps into some sort of a campaign. What about the observation that I have come to carefully and I hope in a scholarly way on this trip through observation and gathering of data and talking with many many leaders that the middle class which I consider to be the catalyst for all national development talks a better game of national development. Then it pursues that a very small percentage of graduates of most communication schools or are taking people taking degrees in any other field. Health education pharmacy you name it welfare social work. I actually want to go into rural development because they want to stay in the cities they want to stay in the better paying jobs.

It's funny. Byrne But I remember that story of Dick Whiton thing and his cat. There was always an attraction of the city has for rural folk and no matter how difficult life is here they come here it's like a magnet. We're drawing them in and I suppose this happens all over the world not only in Manila. If we could find a way by which we could keep our people in the rural areas to help in the development I think it would be better off if they were kept away from the city. I agree with you there. It's very true. But you just can't stop people from traveling. No but could we. Could it be possible that on the Philippines but and in all countries and all countries are developing including the United States especially in social relationships and rural relationships. Would it be possible to make these jobs more attractive in other words have me how we not missed the boat in claiming that people won't go out when we haven't really done anything to create market towns that are first class

where people can find out from with good communications good health services and the like. And we also haven't done anything to raise the pace standards for the key people in the communications related industries. If we say go international development they have to suffer economically their families have to suffer. That's very true Bernie. I think the whole setup is made more critical by the fact that while the government is trying its best to help our private business trying its best we have this oil crunch coming up now and then and so everything goes up with this oil business. I'm not blaming anybody. But you can see for yourself what's happening. And so this is bound to stifle any any efforts to move towards his direction. And I don't know how long this will last but whatever it is since martial law there have been great changes in that country and I must admit myself and this has been admitted by even the most bitter critics of the president that there were changes that were achieved which could not have been achieved

in pre martial law days. Now tell me when we talk about martial law. Are we looking forward in your view to a permanent situation or are we looking forward to a situation in which sooner or later the emphasis will be upon strengthening the institutions of government so that they could once again be relied upon most heavily for the conduct of business. I think your second explanation is the one that the president's heading towards He has been continuously announcing that he is gradually normalizing and will lift martial law. I suppose he just wanted to take roots the concept of course is to change what could not be changed under the old system. And he feels as if he has made these changes complete and there have been what he wants for the people the little things that they need the advantages they now have. I suppose he he would ultimately lead. There are two worlds existing in the Philippines and in Manila here I've been to Manila and as you know I've

been to say boo Cebu City one world is the world of government which is trumpeted in all the newspapers all sorts of ministerial statements every day without too much follow up news. And the other world is another world which despite martial law just keeps burgeoning and burgeoning emerging that's the world of commerce industry public relations advertising manufacturing. There seems to be a world where there is no limit in the Philippines and private capitalism is going full full force ahead. Would you say that's a fair picture. Well I don't know. Doctor I know very well that under martial law business has been able to expand. You see in the past you always had a change of administration. Well we have a saying in Filipino. It goes like this. Bagong Hari by golly. In other words a new king and new means of doing things every time a new president takes over.

Business is stifled. It has to adapt itself to the new conditions. But since martial law. Conditions being as they are all along under one man business has been able to burgeon That's very true but at the same time because of conditions now caused by the oil crunch businesses is bound to suffer more because labor is demanding greater pay and business can't afford it and there is a a so-called depression in our exports you know. A big problem has cropped up. I don't think it says beautiful. You look at it. Well I know it isn't a or less giving you the veneer because I wanted your comment. I I know that in 1972 in martial law was declared one hardly presumed that seven years later the president would be making as many speeches about stagflation as about any other subject. Nobody expect that I was paying 72 hours paying 37 centavos

which is worth about four cents you go all your money per liter of gasoline that's 37 cent tablas now it's two or three paces a leader so you can imagine the big change. Three pesos is almost a half a dollar American dollar a liter which is enormous. And of course it's hardest on the people who have to buy kerosene and the people who need something to cook with isn't it. That's very true. And here in the Philippines one of the stories that's in the press is the rise of the minimum wage. It was a 60 person as well it's 60 paces beginning September 1st. That's a living allowance living alone not a minimum wage doctor mind you living alone under a low living allowance. This can be taken away any time it's not added to the minimum wage it's not part of the salary. It's just an allowance granted by a company. So don't mistake it for a part of the minimum wage now and after January 1st another 30 pesos.

Now this is just to keep people so they keep their boat afloat. Yeah it really is not helping them at all. We all have to buy in enough rice to live on and so it depends upon how the prices go up between now and December was one. One man told me the other day it was a middle class man. So he's facing staggering rises he doesn't even know whether the middle class will continue to be the middle class. Maybe they'll just be the upper middle class economically. That's very true. That's a situation created by the Arabs as has been very bad on us. And I suppose it will also affect all other third world countries are developing countries. Steady on managing a news editor of The Bulletin today and here in Manila one of the leading newspapers. What would you like to do that you can't do. What would I like to do as the news and managing editor of the newspaper. Oh I'd like to have a bigger paper more space to put on more news. You know sometimes a problem is having too many advertising materials in a newspaper without enough space. And so this is the continuous trouble I have with the people who want to make money

naturally if we don't have that money I don't get paid. But it's important to me to get more space so I can put a lot more news out and I think this is sometimes a complaint of our readers. We don't have enough space for the reading materials that we have. We have to throw away. And this was one of our board directors asked masers Why is it that I can read the bulletin in 15 minutes and it takes me about 30 minutes to read the other papers and that's the answer I gave them. Why would why are we would like to give you more material. The advertising eats up all our space so it's almost 75 25 you know in ratio sometimes 80 20. That's it that's a serious problem. Terry on what do you think of the worst case analysis about freedom of the press. Whenever we talk about freedom of the press in the developing world where there are some problems people always refer to that story which caused a communal riot. Those newspapers which in their view were literally obscene or covered with automobile crashes and sexual

titillation and all sorts of sensationalism without necessarily talking on a day to day basis here. But looking at theoretically is that or is it not the price to pay for freedom of the press and other words if you protect yourself too closely do you sacrifice too much. I think you have the point there brain freedom the press is having everything that you talked about and sometimes having a little more. But then there are certain certain factors that come into the picture. And for me it has been this way all along because we've been trained by editors who came from your country and one day of American editors the last editor of Ford Wilkins's always told me he says don't forget he says when you write a story as a newspaper man you have to see it from the factual impartial point of view and you can't afford to be you know exaggerated or are a yellow journalist in nature that is not what the bulletin is. So we had received that training and

we pass it on to the next generation. And that's how I look at freedom of the press. Ian Wright of the of the Guardian in London told me a couple of months ago that in answer to a question from one of my students I was giving you coarsen median constraints in Britain. One of my graduate students said What is the most important person on this newspaper The Guardian this distinguished newspaper. And he said the subeditors any subeditor carries more weight around here than I do on a daily basis. There was a situation on the bulletin today. No I don't think it's true. We have section editors are your columns that subeditors who handles sports and they are given as much autonomy as possible but are there pages the way they see fit. We don't touch them until there is a case on involving libel involving personalities where they seem to be lopsided and then we go after them. Other than that we don't. Don't touch them at all.

From your own news and managing editor are you told to stay away from certain stories or is that the most unusual kind of thing. No this has been a practice all along. Even when I was a young reporter from our American editor he says don't write stories involving private people because after all of private affairs or private apere what he was thinking about is that. Perhaps you could get a libel suit because I mean the truth doesn't stop you from being sued for libel. Concentrate on government affairs and developments and all that. And be sure you are now under martial law we had certain rules the power for example. I suppose it's true in our country as well as it is here. You're not supposed to report on military movements which are really secret and in your country you're not supposed to advocate sedition or overthrow of government. I suppose you have a sedition law and the last one of course was not personal personal. And the president made it very clear not personal attacks on him or his family but you can criticize the

president by offering constructive criticisms about a program he's undertaking now they differentiate there while you are ordered not to criticize him later. Personally yes minister certainly I am told that you know not ministers were ministers you can take any direct shake off in any direction. I think that's because he sees this as steam coming out of the currency. He says he wants to know what they're doing and that the press will help him. So he will know just what to do in case they're wrong. As we wind up this program Teddy. Can you tell me whether you think that looking down the road of peace relationships between the United States and the Philippines which have always been close and always been sometimes at arm's length. We want a better defense treaty with you. Mutual Defense Treaty and so on. Do you think that they will get better because they have been somewhat strained in recent years.

Well I like to look at this way. Byrne I like to look at it like two of my sons fighting there for a while you know I agree with each other and then you come to fisticuffs later on or together when anybody else hates them. I think the Philippines the United States have a long long story of going together and I think despite the fact that we may criticize each other I argue against one another or even come to blows once in a while that will not stop the intimate and close relationship between the two. Do you feel that the Philippines and Malaysia and Singapore and Thailand and so on will be a bloc here tied together by mutual interest in the next period of South-East Asian relief that that will come through Riyadh but we'll take a little time because each of these nations have different traditions and customs you know and each of them is jealously guarding its own rights. You know it's on national sovereignty. Each of them is not willing to give up so much. But it's about the same way that the sea formed in Europe took a

little time but it'll work. I think it'll work out well Teddi on the news and managing editor of The Bulletin today here in Manila. I appreciate your comments they have been the most candid and interesting for this edition from Manila Philippine Islands of the first amendment and free people. Bernard and Ruben briefly. The first amendment and a free people a weekly examination of civil liberties and the media in the United States and around the world. The engineer for this broadcast was Margo garrison. The program is produced by Greg Fitzgerald. This broadcast is produced cooperatively by WGBH Boston and the Institute for democratic communication at Boston University which are solely responsible for its content. This is the station program exchange