I’m from the old school.
So my orientation is to try to always get the facts straight, not play politics in the work milieu, and speak my mind, if it’s called for, after presenting my case.
And as far as these aspects go, I believe newsrooms breed journalists.
Not intrigue-seeders or swellheads.
But times have changed.
Instead of reporting on the news, it seems, journalists are losing their detachment and are becoming self-obsessed, not unlike the political and social bigwigs they cover.
Why is this coming to pass, I ask myself?
Without absolving the personalities who become entangled in such concerns, methinks the problem takes root when news organizations given multi-tasks themselves put on a secondary hat of marketing not just their journalistic outputs, but their journalist-talents.
Not to say that this can’t be done in an atmosphere of level-headedness.
But as the journalists turn into celebrities and ratings-builders, the hubris and self importance that develop can balloon out of proportion.
Even more so with the revolving door that now links media stars with politics.
So what to do with this conundrum?
Your guess is as good as mine.
But one thing sure when network-created personalities self destruct, the society they began serving becomes poorer for the loss of good journalists spoiled by fame and hubris.
Nuff said.
Popularity: 3% [?]
Ding,
It comes to pass because networks and newspapers need viewers and readers, so ratings and circulation are paramount. Thus, newscasters become performers, and slant becomes routine (Fox news). I see this reality-show buzz that underlies news and cringe. It is toxic to rational and civilized behavior.
Joe
fox news is the only network in the u.s. that reports the things that the whole of america needs to know. the mainstream media, e.g., new york times, washington post, la times, n.y. daily news, sf examiner, etc., and “traditional” networks, e.g., cbs, pbs, abc, nbc, and their cable twins, msnbc, cnbc, cnn hnn, etc., hardly touch on subjects unflattering to obama and his government. through fox news reporting, the highly controversial van jones had to resign, “acorn” had to fire several “corrupt” personnel and lost public funding by 86-7 votes in the senate while getting its service contract with the u.s. census bureau canceled. many obama initial appointees had to either withdraw or lose their jobs through fox’s exposure of past and present wrongdoings. the very controversial obama health care agenda is being scrutinized by the american public, which otherwise would have been rammed through the people’s throat by the democrat-controlled legislature. this in addition to the “stimulus” debacle, “cash for clunker program”, bailouts of big business, among other issues. i believe, as long as one or few true journalists remain and protected by the laws and the constitution, democracy is safe.
to say it’s all a matter of ratings is quite simplistic. for going against the media tsunami of pro-obama editorial policies, fox news is getting the highest ratings among all the u.s. networks, both cable and mainstream, in overwhelming proportions. there is, afterall, clean money to be made in legitimate journalism.
You seem to be saying that being against Obama is indicative of being impartial. So is being against G.W. being partial?
This is interesting since I have family who works in Fox and they are pro-Republican.
no. whether it’s bush or obama, if there is something negative that the public should know about and the press/media deliberately ignore or withhold it from their readers/viewers, that would be, as you put it, partial towards the one who would benefit from such withholding.
The prime time newscasts of the three major networks, NBC, ABC and CBS still singly and combined are watched by more viewers than Fox News at the same time slot. For serious news and mainstream America they still look to the major networks.
The tabloid nature of cable news and their need for 24/7 content gives them no recourse but to scrap the bottom of the barrel for sensationalized news reporting. The Philippines needs a cable news show like Fox desperately. Unfortunately no one wants to risk capital on a tabloid type of cable news show. What we have is the showbiz portion of the news show.
I do love their penchant though for featuring more Aryan princesses and other shrill female personalities who could double as hot porn stars.
Slime and shrill news reporting fills huge gaps. The Fox network though has come up with really good TV shows.
what do you think of Glenn Beck?
glenn beck is a courageous and effective broadcast journalist who is not afraid to take on any party, ideology, interest group, who he thinks is a danger to the principles that the american society was founded upon. he is an ordinary man whose views are not easy to contradict. the objects of his advocacy usually find it hard not to listen to him and to act accordingly.
GabbyD,
Glen Beck is a talented entertainer who can zero in on controversial issues with the best of them. His job is to gain ratings, not be objective. He gains ratings by adhering to a strict ideological slant that would go so far as to claim President Obama has deep-rooted racial hatred toward whites.
He is typical of the modern type of news commentator (different than a newscaster, who is objective). On the left you have Keith Olberman, who is a re-constituted sports reporter who thrives by advancing the liberal agenda. He is not a newsman, either.
Walter Cronkite was the last dignified newsman. Even Dan Rather slanted left.
Joe
so when he called obama a racist, he was correct?
GabbyD,
What do you think? Do you think Glen Beck has an inside road to Mr. Obama’s hidden psyche, as Mr. Obama distinguishes himself by running for president and winning in a fundamentally white political structure, surrounds himself by talented white office staff, goes with the best people he can find rather than blacks, and relentlessly works for the good of the whole of America . . . the latter in the face of the spit and animosity of those who indeed condemn Mr. Obama because of his skin.
It is best to look at his work, and decide if he is doing a good job. Look at the results, and decide if he is doing a good job.
Beck is an entertainer, one whose views should be looked at for what they are — a desire to stir up trouble to get the attention of the reality-show mentality audience.
C’mon, GabbyD, don’t tell me you are a racist, too.
Joe
@Joe
oh, i was asking Bencard, what he thinks of Glen Beck. i dont understand glenn beck.
gabbyd, i don’t recall glenn beck calling obama a “racist”. i think i heard him say obama is, wittingly or unwittingly, stoking racial discord with reckless comments like he made in the case of that cambridge black professor, calling the white police officer “stupid”. now comes the aging jimmy carter pompously holding that any negative remark against obama’s handling of the nation’s affairs is racially motivated. how can anyone criticize the present government without being labeled a “racist”? and how can anyone defend against a charge of being a racist?
@Bencard
“gabbyd, i don’t recall glenn beck calling obama a “racist”.”
FYI:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MI_0Kt_e3Go
he uses the r-word.
also, he’s known to emotionally break down on this TV show. (this is a matter of taste — do u think it was called for?)
he’s also held inconsistent positions on US healthcare.
if glenn beck BELIEVES obama is a racist because of what he perceives in the aftermath of the lewis affair, isn’t he entitled to his opinion? as to his being teary-eyed sometimes, what is “bad taste” about showing emotion? ed muskie cried when he was campaigning in the democratic presidential primaries in new hampshire in 1976. ted kennedy was not above showing some tears when overcome by emotion. pelosi did it just a few hours ago. as i said, glenn beck is an ordinary man.
the obamacare proposal involves a lot of monumental issues that one can take a position on, for or against. on what issue,in particular, do you find beck inconsistent?
its just that, as ding’s article implies, isn’t it better to have broadcast journalists that aren’t “stars”, or even be an “ordinary person” who calls the president of his country racist for no reason? or to breakdown on tv.
is the defense always gonna be “freedom of speech”? freedom to express his opinion?
if so, can he literally say anything he wants and not be called to task for it?
arent there higher standards for conduct for a professional journalist? isn’t that the point ding was trying to make?
i’m not even talking about their afterwork/off-camera statements.
this korina vs RG cruz thing is no big deal unless it spill over to their on-cam/journalistic work.
here, is Beck doing these things ON CAMERA, on the job.
so i dont get beck.
gabbyd, do you want to know what bush or gma was called by their detractors? let’s just say, the shoe is on the other foot, and as long as there is freedom of expression, that will be the rule regardless of what you and ding think as “better”.
ah, so it IS true.
“the shoe is on the other foot”
so this isn’t about professional conduct. ITS about ideology. its the conservatives turn now to call the sitting president names.
professional conduct doesnt matter.
Ok.
suit yourself, for all i care.
suit myself?
are u saying that i’m making this up? am i being unfair to your words? that i’m mis-informed?
if any of what i wrote is false, please do explain. i’d like to understand glen beck, and why people like him.
i don’t have any obligation to convince you. you can wallow in your own understanding. i’m not saying that you are, or i am, right. i am not your answer man.
i was hoping to have a civil conversation.
apparently i did something to make you think i consider you my “answer man”.
in fact, i didn’t even realize knowing answers to questions is a pejorative!
but i will cop to it — i think you may have some wisdom to share and so i pursued it.
Because of what I am reading here, there is a crying need to make some distinction, especially with regard to the distinction between broadcast networks (ABC,CBS,NBC,etc) and the cable networks (MSNBC, CNN, including Discovery and History channels, etc) and where FOX stands.
FOX Broadcasting (FBC) is a broadcast network, owned by News Corp. This owner also operates Fox News and Fox Business, which are two cable networks. Fox News is where politics are discussed among other things. FBC is noted for popular programs like American Idol.
Market penetration of broadcast networks, including FBC, is pegged in the 70’s (or close) while cable at the 40’s (or close). The disparities are easily explained. Cable has costs, with broadcast you need only your TV set and your antenna. Affordability therefore is the issue and choices are not necessarily completely free choices. Average cable costs are above $50 monthly.
“Local stations” are either affiliates or independent, though mostly affiliates of the big broadcast networks. Thus, one local station in SF is known as an ABC affiliate, etc.
Ratings have to be taken under the above context. To illustrate, CBS K Couric registers 5+ million viewers against O’Reilly’s 3+million, but this is comparing apples and oranges for two obvious reasons. And broadcast networks have been consistently losing large chunks of their viewership, their being free notwithstanding. O’Reilly, and lately in tandem with Beck, has been dominating the news cable networks combined. O’Reilly for the last 8 years.
The second obvious reason why comparing Couric and O’Reilly is like comparing apples and oranges is that Couric is supposed to be an objective news anchor, or call her newscaster or news journalist, or derisively as simply a newsreader, which they all do anyway. And they are obligated to deliver news objectively and without injection of any bias, though bias could still creep in under this antiseptic environment. And one can place the late W Cronkite in this category, though it did not prevent him at times to inject his personal biases on the news he reported. Out of that limelight, Cronkite was not shy to espouse his liberal ideas.
O’Reilly runs a news analysis or opinion program. He is tasked with injecting his personal beliefs unto the news he is analyzing. Thus, whatever he opines will necessarily be slanted. BTW, he labels himself a traditionalist which in my personal interpretation means essentially, a conservative.
In another medium, talk radio is dominated by conservatives, with Rush Limbaugh on top with about 15 millions listeners a week. Followed by Hannity, Glenn Beck, and Laura Ingraham, all registering similar ratings.
thanks, amadeo. hope mr. america gets a little education from that concerning tv ratings which he talks about with an air of expertise.
Amadeo,
Nice overview. Keith Olberman is also liberal.
Times change. So we have to change also. The Internet and the Web
Blog have revolutionized the field of Journalism. Before, the Newspaper Columnist were thought to be wise people of the time.
Some were brought by Politicians to pitch their political agendas.
Some were not. Truth are truth. It should be readers beware. Not
all opinions are sensible. Some are politicaly motivated.Some are
done to show the opinion writer that he has brains. Some are just done, out of ignorance. It is a Free Country.
However, some are really true. Especially when the motives are pure.
and it comes from the heart…
Ding compare Jessica Soho with the Divas of ABS-CBN. She is a superior journalist. But it remains a ratings game and blood and sex sells on media.
In the U.S. you have the local stations and you have the national networks. Programs like 60 minutes are still unmatched.
Fox news has taken the blood and sex angle appeal to cater to the amygdala portion of the human brain. They deliberately set out to capture that market.
That kind of agitprop always will find a market.
We have very little news analysis that is not influenced by PR companies. Even for front page headlines money talks.
Look at the posts on platforms. People do not know the difference between policies and programs. Much more the more important rationales or philosophies behind it.
How can you have political discourse when people do not understand what they know?
Yes, j_AG.
Having worked with Jessica in her early years at the network your appreciation of her is spot on…
The Philippine Media is no different from Noynoy. It is still basking in the glory it piggybacked upon in 1986. Trouble is the way Pinoys regard their media establishment has not changed despite circumstances being different today.
I write this in The establishmentisation of the Philippine Media:
With regard to the spectacularly profitable ABS-CBN:
In fact, lester2k makes a call to the Philippine Media to STEP UP to their real duty to society in light of the coming elections:
Are Filipinos, their Media, and their politicians up to stepping up to the REAL CHALLENGES? Or are we simply trading in horsemanure as we have been for the last 50 years?
fox news is the only network in the u.s. that reports the things that the whole of america needs to know.
there is, after all, clean money to be made in legitimate journalism. – Bencard
Isn’t Fox News owned by Rupert Murdoch who was forced to apologize for an editorial cartoon published by New York Post, a tabloid paper he also owns, that drew charges of racism because of images shamefully appearing to compare your President and Commander in Chief to a chimpanzee?
rupert murdoch is the controlling shareholder of the corporation that OWNS fox news. as far as i know, he is NOT a journalist or a commentator, or an editor.
FOX NEWS impartial? Oh, please..
Now what would Jon stewart say
and Stephen Colbert (watch his gig with Bill O’Reilly) – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QquTUR9nbC4
The insinuation above is unfair, because Fox News (FNC) delivers both straight news and opinion. With regard to straight news, who can say it is not as impartial as the next channel? Maybe showing partiality not in how the news is reported, but what news to report. And all stations prioritize their news based on their individual judgments.
With regard to their opinion programs, it definitely is not of the left or liberal. In its main line-up, O’Reilly fancies himself a traditionalist, Beck declares himself a libertarian (thus an equal opportunity critic of both major parties), Hannity is openly Republican and conservative, and Van Sustern leans right. A new host is Mike Huckabee, erstwhile Republican presidential candidate. I know of only one liberal known entity and that is Geraldo Rivera. Another known entity coming aboard is Don Imus.
But take the same cursory look at the other news channels (both broadcast and cable/wireless), and you will see why Fox News has deliberately chosen and hired its current big guns.
But one unique feature it religiously adheres to is giving proponents of the other side(s) the opportunity to debate side by side with the strong opinions of their hosts. And I submit it is one reason it dominates the cable world. And though maybe not in market penetration but popularity definitely, also the broadcast media. How many have heard that Charlie Gibson is retiring and will be replaced by another woman anchor?
With regard to straight news, who can say it is not as impartial as the next channel? Maybe showing partiality not in how the news is reported, but what news to report. And all stations prioritize their news based on their individual judgments.
Doesn’t this mean that whether it’s “opinion” or “straight news,” the judgment or opinion of top network executives matters?
Doesn’t this mean that whether it’s “opinion” or “straight news,” the judgment or opinion of top network executives matters?
Anything is possible. But with this one has to start with a very dismal and cynical attitude about the intelligence, integrity, ethics, or callousness of the scores of reporters on the field, the newscasters, and their crews. etc. who all contribute to bringing straight news to their consumers. And misrepresenting actual facts or actual events cannot last long enough before being exposed. Massaged facts do not remain secrets for long. Partiality of course can lie with the station’s individual choices on what stories to run or not run, run as the lead story or hide at the end or in between. And with the “opinion” hosts and their outsized personalities, how far can management control or gag them before they start flexing and making noise? I recall one night during the last US election coverage, K Olbermann of cable MSNBC went with one of his over the line commentaries, and the following night he was gone from the line-up.
But going to real world scenarios, which personality would most likely resort to this kind of control?
In US media, two personalities stand out. One is R. Murdoch of News Corp. He owns all the Fox companies, NY Post, WSJ, more, and even a social networking site. The other is J Immelt CEO of GE. GE owns the ff subsidiaries: NBC broadcast network, cable MSNBC and business channel CNBC.
Most know Murdoch is on the other side of the political fence, though early during the primaries he publicly expressed his favorable sentiments for the current president.
On the other hand, Immelt could not be any closer as an unofficial adviser of Obama. He moves in the inner circles in the WH. When the recently passed “cap and trade” bill was in deliberations, Immelt lobbied not only with his vast employee rosters but with the government also for its passage because GE’s future plans dovetailed with the regulations that are integral to the bill. GE stands to generate billions of dollars in business. And GE which has been in consistent decline for many years (follow its stock prices in the markets) needs all the business it can generate to stay alive, especially after it had to stop doing business with Iran after being exposed.
So under the circumstances, which personality is likely to exert his weight in his companies to try and influence results?
on a relevant note, venezuela’s hugo chavez has ordered the closure of all radio and tv networks that are critical of his regime, save one. this remaining one is said to be “allowed” to continue just so chavez could say there is still democracy in his country. however the reporters, commentators and other employees are getting beaten up and hounded like common criminals. aren’t you guys lucky in the philippines?
This is not about being lucky. It is what should rightly be.
GabbyD,
Thanks for the note. Bencard gives a good portrayal of Glenn Beck, actually, a libertarian, emotionally engaging lots of times, with straightforward interviews of people he agrees with and disagrees with. Sometimes he just goes over the top on things, as he did on the obama racist comment. He got criticized, but I imagine his ratings have gone up rather than down. He is actually a very difficult person to define, as square peg in round hole; his hole is triangular and his peg is octagonal. He is definitely not a newscaster, although he is an informer, and wielder of opinons, and, more than anything, an entertainer. He gets audience.
The good thing about American news and commentary. Every view in the world is available, so one can be informed as broadly, or narrowly (tuning only to stations that support one’s ideology), as one desires.
oh, i thought you guys were calling your president worst than marcos. you never said, except that under gma, we can say or write whatever we want against her and her government without being thrown in jail, beaten up, or without her taking away our jobs, or confiscating our employers’ assets. marcos did it and she could have done it too but she didn’t. wasn’t that being “lucky”?
Hi, Atty. Ben,
Let me indulge your assertion:
“Since President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo came to power in 2001, 50 Filipino journalists have been murdered, the highest death toll of any administration, including the 14-year Marcos dictatorship.”
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/news/view/20070223-51230/Journalists_worldwide_demand_solution_to_RP_media_killings
are you sure it was the government that did it ding? do you have the proof? if you have no proof and it’s all speculation, leave it at that but continue looking for the “smoking gun”. the government is not the only one that is capable of killing, didn’t you know that? lawyers, doctors, accountants, even priests get killed. is anybody counting? why should journalists be so special? they make as many enemies as any other professional, even more so at times.
btw, did you also make a comparison of the number of journalists (actually making a living as such) during marcos era and gma’s time and figure out a fair proportion?
“the government is not the only one that is capable of killing”
well, government officials have duties to protect and to promote peace. Officials are expected in a HIGHER DEGREE to perform and oversee PEACE for the country. when human rights violation such as the inability to prosecute criminals is a governance problem specifically when the police force and Judicial system. It is not how many are killed , it is about how many familes have accessed and to justice or received justice from getting one of their members killed.
yes, leytenean, apprehension, prosecution and conviction of criminals is the responsibility of all governments, anywhere in the world, regardless of whether they are democratic, totalitarian, monarchical or theocratic. crimes exist even in the “best” of societies. they can round up and KILL all known criminals, or they can build as many jailhouses to lock them up and throw away the keys. still there will be new ones that will come, as there are new viruses that emerge after the latest one is contained. do you have ANY practical suggestions other than “motherhood” criticisms?
correction: ARE the responsibility of all governments…”
hi atty ben,
strengthening police force including penalties for non performance can be a solution. training and education are the key but someone must have an initiative and that would be the person in command. Second, we must strengthened the rule of law. Study shows that it’s not the judges in the Philippines or our courts, but it is actually the lawyers who may conspire before reaching the court. so even if people have accessed to justice but lawyers are money hungry , even a stronger policy may be just supplementary.
With the passage of RA 9406 (An Act Reorganizing and Strengthening the Public Attorney’s Office) last year, hopefully, the PAO will be strengthened fiscally and technically. However this law must be supplemented with an increase of licence professional lawyers or create a demand for lawyers. this way, lawyers will compete with their skills and real talents like in an open market.
During the reign of the Soviet Dictator Josef Stalin.
He established Soviet Gulags in Siberia. If you are
a political enemy or disenter. You are sent there to
work as slave until you die. Stalin would had told you,
if you had asked him: Are you killing people who are
against you? He would had answered: ” Where is your
proof?” Some of the Soviet Gulags described clearly by the Russian Novelist Solsenitsyn were not even in the
map of the Soviet Republic. Alexander Solsenitsyn was
a survivor of one of those Soviet Gulags.
Pareng Ding,
Medyo nalilihis tayo dahil sa malamig na hangin na hinihinga ng mga ibang tao na hindi pa nakakaranas ng mga pananakot sa kanilang minamahal dahil lamang sa mga pahayag nila dito sa bansang tinatawag na masuwerte. Nguni’t hindi biro ang pagtangkaan. Lalong hindi biro ang mawalan ng isang anak o ama, at walang mapuntahan man lamang para malaman kung sila’y buhay pa.
Kamakailan lamang ay may isang bata na dinukot na naman.
Tayo ay hayag, bukas, at hindi nakatago sa likod ng napakakapal na maskara.
Pero ako mismo ay nalilihis. Sa usapang mamamahayag na mukhang tinatanging artista, mayroon ba tayong tinatawag na pamantayan para sa kanilang pananalita at kilos kung wala naman at malayo na sa kanilang tungkulin bilang mamamahayag?
Kung mayroon man, sino ang naka-bantay at nagsasabi kung lumalabis na ang isang “celebrity”?
Mabuhay ka,
Dean
@ Atty. Ben,
You really take my breath away.
Read back. Did I say GMA’s government “did it”.
The media killings took place and are taking place during HER watch. The numbers are incontrovertible. Deal with them.
The murders are crimes, right? Who is holding the reins of government with responsibility to the governed?
@ Dean,
Kapatid, And sinumang magmamalabis, media celebrity man o karaniwang mamamahayag hindi ay isa lamang ang aanihin sa dulo: ang kawalang kredibilidad at karangalan at ang paghahanap ng mga maniniwala pa sa kanya.
Patuloy ang mga grupo tulad ng Center for Media Free and Responsibility na nagsisikap na iangat ang antas ng pamamahayag.
Gaya ng hamon sa ibang propesyon tulad ng abogasya, ng proceso tungo sa propesyunalismo ay pang araw-araw na pagsubok…
Siguro optimist ako, nguni’t ang taumbayan nama’y may angking talino upang maunawaan kunf sino ang bulok, journalist o abugado man na puno lamang ng yabang at bastos sa kapwa, at ang turing sa hindi niya ‘ka-lebel’ ay bobo.
Wink. Kape tayo?
sagutn mo ang tanong ko. nagpapalusot ka na naman. ilan ang journalist nong panahon ni makoy at ilan sa panahon ni gma? ilang porsiento ang napatay sa bawat isa sa kanila? ipakita mo na “worst” nga sa ilalim ng pamahalaan ni gma gaya ng sinasabi mo.
Atty. Ben, kung di ka tamad magbasa, eto pa:
http://www.pcij.org/blog/?p=3557
Dear Joe and Ding,
Take it from me. For all my opinions are worth, and they may not be worth any to some, an American who chooses to live in Biliran, almost a hundred kilometers from the nearest fully-equipped hospital, cannot be patronizing nor condecending, much less disrespectful of Filipinos.
While indeed there may be such a creature as the ugly American, I’ve worked for a couple of American firms (Citibank, Ogden and even sat on the board of Enron (Phils))and I’ve seen that the ugliest American is not even an American. Its the self-mongrelized who’s imbibed the worst of several cultures, including disrespect not only for the divergent views of others but also a disrespect for the medium that allows communication and an exchange of ideas that we might be educated and collectively grow.
You are right Joe. I take back what I said before about getting one’s education from bloggers. This medium, a new and pioneering province of the Fourth Estate, can indeed be educating. Even where it is occassionally visited by schoolyard bullies whose eloquence is not found in profound thought but in readilly spewn insults that substitute for thinking.
Note that the schoolyard bully is the one who sits at the rear of the class.
Someone in this string said a while back that words were designed to communicate and were not meant to be weapons. I might be paraphrasing it, but in its simplicity, there’s wisdom in that remark that should have tempered what acerbic assaults followed.
Ding wonders why in the mainstream media there are superstars? I might add a twist to that. There also seem to be villains who ride the ignominy to boost their wrinkled stature thinking that as a constant foil they are important.
They are not.
Mabuhay kayo,
Dean
Dean,
Mr. de la Paz, today,
your words are precious, and very refreshing.
It is 97K, so you know the area well, a drive that, to those of us who grew up amongst very high rocks and habituated in the great concrete desert of Los Angeles for way too many years,
it is about the most beautiful 97K on the planet, so if I die en-route to that hospital, at least let me look out the window whilst passing.
I knew there was a reason I held you in such high regard. Originally it was just brainpower; today it is that and overarching civility, and kindness.
Thanks, and regards to you,
Joe
JoeAm:
So you are in Biliran island. I had thought you were closer to us in No. Mindanao where I come from. But anyway, Leyte is a familiar place. My grandfather came from Palompom and I currently have relatives in Baybay that I on occasion visit.
So is Biliran being serviced by the Supercat line?
Indeed, Leyte has beautiful coastlines, though a little bit of a trade-off is that it gets visited by typhoons quite regularly. But no problem.
Welcome to the islands!
Amadeo,
I lived on Mindanao for a couple of years, but NPA troops trooped through my house, looking for me, and pretty much destroyed any semblance of security there. The neighbors moved back to Italy. Army troops are now regulars in the area. Market value of my P5MM investment is zilch negative.
Biliran is more peaceful, serenely beautiful, and my new house (in a few years) will be built to withstand the storms.
It is the mountains, and the rice plains, encircled by mountains, that I find beautiful here. I don’t know about Supercat line; have never seen them, if it is a bus line. Eaglestar is here.
Thank you for the welcome!!
Joe
JoeAm:
SuperCat line is the fleet of fast catamaran ferries servicing areas like Ormoc, Bohol, Cebu, etc.
BTW, it may look ironic or even funny to you for me to remember that historically the people of Biliran island, when it was still part of Leyte, had been hapless victims of perennial raids by marauding Moros. But as you said, it is now very peaceful.
Amadeo,
Ahhh, I’ll find out shortly. If they Super-Cat runs here, I would like a ride!
I know nothing of the history of Biliran, although it is on my agenda to explore. I only know it is totally gorgeous, authentic, I suppose for its isolation, and peaceful. I appreciate the brief on moro raids!!! By the way, I love waking up to the Muslim call to prayer, preceded at like 4:50 by the Catholic church bells clanging. Counted 20 clangs this morning then went back to sleep.
This ain’t Peoria.
Rain today . . .
Joe
Amadeo,
Okay, Super-Cat does not come to Biliran, but it does go to Ormoc, Leyte, which is about an hour’s drive across the ocean and through the hills and sugar cane plantations. It goes to Cebu, so now I have a new goal for the family! Thanks!
I shall suppress the knowing that it is run by the same company that runs the super-ferry line whose boat sank a couple of weeks ago.
Joe
Not to worry, JoeAm, about those fast ferries. I have taken them from Bohol to Cebu and Cebu to Ormoc and as far as I could tell you do not miss the sight of land the entire trip. A little taste of first-world amenities.
And you know we from Mindanao are accustomed to sea travel, the horror stories notwithstanding. Took a SuperFerry 2 months ago to get to Cebu and out of Mactan airport bound for San Francisco USA.
Amadeo,
Ah, I can swim that far, if land is in sight.
Cebu to SF direct? Or via Manila?
Have you considered getting into the travel agency business? You are most helpful.
Where in the Bay Area are you ensconced?
Joe
JoeAm:
Cathay Pacific flies out of Cebu direct to SF, with a short stop-over in HK. I believe NorthWest does too but can’t say where it stops over.
But definitely no hustle compared with at times chaotic conditions in NAIA. And quite convenient for those residing around the Visayas and Mindanao.
Left the SF/Bay Area for Tracy, some 50 miles away going southeast.
Amadeo,
I owe you two favors which you can collect upon any time at all. Super-Cat and Cebu.
I know Tracy. It is in the northern edge of the great Central Valley of California, the agricultural center of the universe, with machines so big they can grab trees and yank them out by the roots. I used to work for one-half of the bank that is now known as Bank of the West, and was responsible, at one time, for where it situated its branches. I drove many miles back and forth across the Valley.
Joe
Well, what do you know, JoeAm? It is a small world indeed.
The wife worked for Bank of the West for many years until 2004. If I may say so, she turned in stellar performances in their sales and deposit campaigns every time. But when push came to shove, they dropped her just like that. Quite ungrateful for them, if I may add.
And I myself am quite familar with the evolution of the current BancWest starting with the S&L debacle in the 90′s.
Amadeo,
I was a part of the acquired bank a few years ago (UCB, formerly Sanwa) and was a part of the transition team that put the two banks together. In that capacity I was responsible for putting myself and others out of a job (I had a wholly unneeded planning job). I didn’t mind phasing me out — that is business — but I did mind when, after doing this bloody work, they more than halved my bonus. I no longer have anything to do with the $%#@ people there. I empathize with your wife.
I took early retirement and headed for the Philippines.
The fates were good, except for that bonus . . .
Joe
A shamefaced self-promotion plug, only because I believe it is apropos after the heated exchanges above, to give wider perpective to the pesky issue of incivility:
http://theignatianperspective.blogspot.com/2006/07/bloghopping-uplifting-or-unraveling.html
And if one is charitable enough, one can continue with these:
http://theignatianperspective.blogspot.com/search?q=civility
As shown the deleterious effects had begun to show in the US blogosphere. First, the burn-out, and then the disappearance. I can remember this happening much earlier to then influential blogger, software engineer Steven Den Beste, though he is back now but on a more laid-back and limited basis I believe.
Quite resonant and instructive.
Happy hopping, Sir.
Amadeo,
“And what about those who are somehow intellectually dishonest for gratuitously throwing in trite or proved-false talking points, simply to depict another who espouses a different ideology in a bad light?”
You had several very precise observations on the less civilized ways to be found on blog sites; I particularly liked the above.
I would say, though, that the blog personalities are probably similar to what is to be found in government (US or Philippines), or in any large corporation, or about anywhere. Perhaps they are not as evident, but they are there, lurking, always.
Scary, eh?
So it is an exercise to remain civil, and failures occasionally occur.
Joe
Reminds me of my idol, DJB. Oh, how I wish he’s back here in FV.
Dear Amadeo,
I assume that you are an Atenean. First because of the Ignatian reference, and second, because of your magnificent prose ( I can here the Areneow accent) in those two essays you wrote on blogging and civility.
Third is the cura personalis evident in both. Something to keep in mind when we post as the medium is not simply an outlet of raw passion but one where a more liberal education can be had while “hopping”(see my comment for Joe re: getting an education from bloggers).
I’ve clipped your essays out and kept them beside my terminal simply because those are exactly the themes that I’ve wanted to read and should have reflected on before jumping into this medium.
Fabileoh,
Dean
Thanks for the kind words, Dean, though maybe quite undeserved.
Yes and I plead guilty. I and all my male siblings (and a sister) are all true-blue from a “provincial” Ateneo, except for my late father who was an alumnus of ADM, during the time when most of our mentors were people who were citizens of our old colonial masters. And my father could spend his time in the premier Ateneo, because his family was rich. HiHiHi.
AMDG
Bert,
You can still find DJB at his home blog.
Here it is, Bert:
http://philippinecommentary.blogspot.com/
Thank you, Ding. lurks there from time to time. what i’ve been missing particularly were the very lively debates and the sparks that goes with them happening when DJB was with FV’s rambunctious crowd, heheh.
@ Bert :D
Right on.