Freedom of the

Press and Media

By: Prof. Prestoline S. Suyat. MC
 FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
• According to Wikipedia:

Freedom of the press or freedom of the

media is the freedom of communication
and expression through mediums
including various electronic media and
public materials
 FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
• According to
Merriam-Webster:
The right of publishing
books, pamphlets,
newspapers, or
periodicals without
restraint or censorship
subject only to the
existing laws against libel,
sedition, and indecency.
• According to
dictionary.com:
The right to publish
newspapers, magazines,
and other printed matter
without governmental
restriction and subject
only to the laws of libel,
obscenity, sedition, etc.
Man, at birth…

Freedom of the
Press/ Freedom of
Speech
Generally known as
Freedom of
Expression
1987 Philippine Constitution,
Article III  Bill of Rights
Section 4:
• “No law shall be passed abridging the
freedom of speech, of expressions, or of
the press, or the right of the people
peaceably to assemble and petition the
government for redress of grievances.”
 Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, Article 19:
• "Everyone has the right to freedom of
opinion and expression; this right includes
freedom to hold opinions without
interference, and impart information and
ideas through any media regardless of
frontiers"
- adopted and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly
Resolution 217 A(III) on December 10, 1948, of which the Philippines is a
signatory
Freedom of expression is umbilically
linked to the right of information. It
finds sustenance and growth from the
free flow of ideas and information. To
suppress information, then, is to
strangle freedom of expression, if not
ultimately to kill it.
• Therefore, the
freedom of the press
is the veritable pillar
that holds up the
inviolable right of
people to know.
 Two Types of Restrictions
on Freedom of the Press
1. Prior Restraint – 2. Subsequent Punishment –
• This means that the idea • This simply means you
as expressed in writing can say, print and
may never reach the disseminate whatever
public. It is censored or you wish but you will be
suppressed. certainly punished for it. It
comes after the freedom
is exercised.
• “The fundamental condition for press
freedom as constitutionally protected right is
the absence of government regulation”
» Prof. Luis V. Teodoro, former dean of UP College of
Mass Communication
 MEDIA -
• is an all-encompassing term that refers to
a collective of communicatory mediums
used to store or transmit information or
data. Media is usually intended to inform
or influence a wide range of audiences.
Different Types of Media:

1) Print Media – newspapers,

books etc.
2) Electronic or Broadcast Media
– television, radio
3) New Age Media – internet,
mobile phones
Main Objectives of Media:

1. Inform
2. Educate
3. Entertain
• “Providing information is the fundamental
expression of media responsibility. Having said
that, however, it must be emphasize that the
discharge of that responsibility requires
adherence to established professional and
ethical standards, which include fairness and
humaneness, factual and contextual accuracy,
relevance and impartiality. “
» Dean Luis V. Teodoro
ROLES OF MEDIA:
 Watch dog

• monitoring the conduct of

government officials
which is vital in
democracy
 Fourth Estate -

• In the United States, the media is

often called the fourth branch of
government (or "fourth estate").
That's because it monitors the
political process in order to ensure
that political players don't abuse
the democratic process.
 Catalyst for Change
• “The media play a crucial role in scrutinizing and
strengthening democratic institutions, defending
and asserting press freedom, freedom of
information, and freedom of expression. The
media could—and should—be a catalyst for social
debate and consensus that would redound to the
promotion of public welfare. To do so, the media
must provide citizens with the bases for arriving at
informed opinions and decisions.”

Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ)

• “Were it left to me to decide
whether we should have a
government without newspapers
or newspapers without
government. I should not hesitate
for a moment to prefer the latter “
Thomas Jefferson,
3rd US President (1801-1809)
• “I would rather have a
completely free press with all
the dangers involved in the
wrong use of that freedom,
than a suppressed or
regulated press”
Jawaharlal Nehru,
1st Prime Minister of India
• “The media's the most powerful
entity on earth. They have the
power to make the innocent guilty
and to make the guilty innocent,
and that's power. Because they
control the minds of the masses.”
Malcolm X
BASIC TENETS OF
JOURNALISM:
 1. Fairness
• means that reporters covering a story
must remember there are usually two
sides – and often more – to most
issues, and that those differing
viewpoints should be given roughly
equal space in any news story.
 2. Balance -
• means writing stories about breaking news
that includes all reasonable responses. It
means balancing the strong arguments or
assertions by one group with the position
of another. It means always giving people
accused or errors or wrongdoing an
opportunity to respond.
 3. Objectivity -
• means that when covering hard news,
journalists or reporters don’t convey their
own feelings, biases or prejudices in their
stories. They accomplish this by writing
stories using a language that is neutral
and avoids characterizing people or
institutions in ways good or bad.
DIFFERENCE OF MAINSTREAM
PRESS VS. CAMPUS PRESS
Kind of Media MAINSTREAM CAMPUS
MEDIA OR MEDIA OR
PRESS PRESS
Objectives Inform, Educate Inform, Educate
and Entertain and Entertain
Audience General Public Students,
University
Publisher Private Students
Individuals,
Corporations
Means of Advertisements, Subscriptions,
Operation Subscriptions donations
WHY MEDIA IS IMPORTANT
AND THAT IT MUST SERVE
ITS ROLE FAITHFULLY AND
CORRECTLY:
* A doctor can kill a few patients; a
lawyer can send innocents to prison. An
engineer can bury hundreds under the
rubble of ruins, and an accountant ruin a
business and deprive hundreds of their
jobs. But in a media dominated world a
journalist can file a misleading report
that can lead entire nations to a war that
can kill millions – or can help prevent it
by reporting all sides.
 References:
• CEGP Stylebook, 1984
• Objectivity and Fairness in journalism, Tony
Rogers
THANK YOU!