Why is Cebu Citizens Press Council telling journalists how to do their jobs?

In a recent entry, I wrote rather glowingly about journalists in Cebu, particularly their efforts to foster a more open dynamic with the public. But today, after reading a press release from Malacanang about the Cebu Citizens Press Council (CCPC), a part of me tells me that I may have spoken too soon.

In that press release (which I’m reposting below), the CCPC called for “sobriety” and “a greater sense of responsibility” among media and local officials so that Cebu and its hosting of the summit is given “excellent media coverage,” whatever that means. It urged the press and public officials to put off their bickering for the sake of the summit.

If indeed the CCPC issued this statement (and it looks like it because the resolution is now online), it certainly left a bad taste in my mouth. To rail against media’s tendency to report the negative is one thing. To tell media that their reporting on the beauty of Cebu can be “distracted” by reporting on “side issues” about the summit — that is quite another thing. To ask people to “put off public discussions of their grievances and misconceptions about the summit so that their actions could not fuel negative reporting by the media” — that too is quite another thing.

Telling journalists to put down their pens despite the many issues that need to be written about, and all because Cebu wants to put its best foot forward for the summit — that’s asking journalists to become press agents for the summit and for the government. That does not serve what I thought is the purpose of the CCPC, which is not to tell the journalist how to do their jobs but to set up a mechanism for the press to be more accountable to the public.

If the CCPC sustains this kind of position in future matters, I’m afraid it would become no different from media groups that the government has been using to spread propaganda and exert control and influence on journalists.

True, Cebu’s hosting of the Asean Summit is important for Cebuanos. I can understand that. But is it that important so that Cebu’s journalists would compromise themselves or be used as a tool in the government’s propaganda (that is what Malacanang did with its press release on the CCPC resolution) against its critics or critics of the summit?

Here’s Malacanang’s press release:

Cebu Press Council appeals for sobriety among media, local officials

CEBU CITY – In an effort to show the best side of Cebu province, the Cebu Citizens Press Council (CCPC) called on the media and local officials Tuesday to show a greater sense of responsibility for an excellent media coverage and a successful hosting of the four-day 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit which opens here Sunday.

In a resolution, the CCPC appealed to media practitioners to show a deeper sense of community in reporting and commenting on the news during the four-day summit and for public officials to show restraint in their disagreement with what it called specific media lapses or practices.

“The CCPC hereby appeals for greater sense of responsibility on both sides, the press and the government, for excellent media coverage and for a successful hosting of the summit,” the resolution said.

Meeting en banc for their fourth quarterly meeting at the MBF Cebu Press Center in Lahug, the CCPC noted the vast importance to the country in general and Cebu in particular of the 12th ASEAN Summit.

It also cited the major stake of the Cebuanos in the event which is expected to provide unprecedented opportunity to showcase the best of the province to foreign visitors.

“The Cebu media can greatly help in presenting Cebu’s rich heritage, culture and values; its advances in governance, education, and technology; and the attractions of the province as tourism and investment destination,” the CCPC resolution said.

The CCPC likewise pointed out that public officials should also put off public discussions of their grievances and misconceptions about the summit so that their actions could not fuel negative reporting by the media.