Thursday, September 16, 2010

Ressa – Hack and Slash Journalist




Ressa writes as if ABS CBN is lily white in the whole fiasco. Media is as guilty in what has transpired when the hostage taker was able to monitor the goings on outside the bus. In the interest of journalistic freedom ABS CBN inadvertently provided a monitor for the hostage taker to see the siege preparations, the taking into custody of his brother (which caused him to snap) in more detail and repetitiveness than a B movie, sent other media reporters into the scene trying to scoop each other in a frenzy, in some cases becoming more of an obstruction than help in the negotiations.
The manner in which she wrote went down to the level of movie hacks, perhaps a rung higher in style but having a similar paucity of substance in content and using the same cheap tricks of making plausible tales about the existence of factions in the cabinet, coining catch labels as "sablay" (referring to Samar and Balay). While "sablay" was not mentioned in her article, it does fit in as part an overall news effect. How ingenious! How masterful the use of squid tactics (an integral part of media's arsenal) to divert the attention away from media's culpability.

Ressa spares no detail and included Cory’s ineffectiveness and P’noy’s minimal output as senator for good measure; more vicious than the attack of a killer dog.

Is this a reflection of the Lopezes’ regard for the Aquinos? If not, Gabby should call off his hounds to refrain from sniffing about for more scuttlebutt and other yarns to spin.

On one hand it may be that Ressa got so excited about the scoop. It was a rare media coup in the offing and went beyond what she claims media’s role is, as observers only. As we now know they contributed to the drama that unfolded in the eyes of millions of viewers, reason enough for her to remark “fantastic!”, as if saying to herself “now we are getting somewhere”. Perhaps after a while somebody must have told her or it may have dawned on her that they were treading on dangerous grounds and as a panic reaction started her unbridled cackle against all other parties involved with the exclusion of media. On hindsight she, as senior vice president of Asia’s premier media house should have been more circumspect and so there...

As the bald poet Will said “The lady doth protests too much, methinks” or in a less refined analogy “the hen that lays an egg cackles exceedingly loud”.

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