I just said goodbye to The Philippine Star. After years of writing there, I felt the time had come. I'm sad in many ways, but also felt the dissonance between the work I do, the way I live, and my last experience with the paper. I was censored for reasons I simply could not swallow. Anyway, I was a thorn on their side and for many years I have felt like the paper and I were not a good match, but I am grateful that I had that experience. So, this blog is where I can be read today. I also write for Town & Country occasionally. I have learned that every parting leads to new beginnings and this particular unknown is quite exciting to me. Here's to endless possibilities!
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Goodbye Sunday Life
I just said goodbye to The Philippine Star. After years of writing there, I felt the time had come. I'm sad in many ways, but also felt the dissonance between the work I do, the way I live, and my last experience with the paper. I was censored for reasons I simply could not swallow. Anyway, I was a thorn on their side and for many years I have felt like the paper and I were not a good match, but I am grateful that I had that experience. So, this blog is where I can be read today. I also write for Town & Country occasionally. I have learned that every parting leads to new beginnings and this particular unknown is quite exciting to me. Here's to endless possibilities!
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8 comments:
I don't get it! Why did they censor this again please???!
They don't want to dignify the Gorell blog, which I'm sure I did not do. They felt I might be seen as speaking ill of a Lopez (Celine). You read it. Did you think any of those things? Both my children are Lopezes so, you know....ewan. I just saw it as a door wide open so I stepped right out and am now happily skipping in the meadow.
Shame on them! So, which newspaper should I read now? I only access the phistar website because of your column ...
Blush. Thank you. Try www.truthforce.info or www.onephil.com. I think we really need alternative media so we have to create it!
Huhhh??? I STILL don't get it! Dignify the Gorell blog?? So sad that that they even saw that when all I read was about Easter, Pag-Asa, renewal, etc. Now am I soo out of it?
Ok, out of curiosity, I had to read it again to understand. Fine. Now I see that there is a line that alluded to that "probably truthful" blog. Nothing named, nothing offensive. Gee, it was not even the central topic. So what is wrong with that??!! Such a myopic view. Seriously, I needed a microscope to see that! Grrr.
Anyway, happy skipping!
My questions exactly. Fact is, that blog is news. It's legitimate news now. A newspaper should report news. Last I heard the blog was at 3 million hits na. That's news! Plain and simple. So, I feel that the decision not to mention that particular piece of news, goes against NEWS. If no one in The Star was mentioned, would they have decided to keep mum about it as well? I don't think so. If you're a newspaper, it is your responsibility to cover news. Once you start censoring content to protect yourself, you're in trouble.
Ms. Tapales, it is with regret that censorship of media exists in our semi-feudal country. However the fact that you were "pre-censored" not by government but by management signals a shift in the social paradigm-- esp. in this late state of consumer society where media liberalization is a key word.
Clearly a pit and valley is being created by this scandal which seems to polarize a swatch of the social fabric.
While some of us do not want to be identified with Gorell's more "negative" exposes, we wish to stand up to any civil atrocity that is committed.
In this case, let me assure you that you are not alone in your quest for the truth.
We should further explore means of being activists in the "higher" social sense.
Mr. Jalbuena, thank you very much for such sound and clear insight. I could not have said it that way. Yes, there is a new activism that awaits and it has everything to do with truth-telling and truth-living. Thank you again.
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