Community press lauded as change catalysts
LINGAYEN–Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma lauded the provincial press as “catalyst and harbinger of genuine change”.
In his speech during the Central-Luzon Media Summit here read for him by Director Helen Tibaldo of the Philippine Information Agency Cordillera Region, Coloma underscored that the executive branch recognizes the power of community journalism.
The summit, organized by the Federation of Provincial Press Clubs of the Philippines (FPPCP) headed by interim President Allan Sison, concurrently president of the Pangasinan Press Club, gathered some 100 journalists from Regions 1-3and the Cordilleras.
“It can’t be denied that you — away from the bustling noise of metropolis — are the ones in position to know in the province, “ Coloma said, adding that the existence of FPPCP as one group “is a testament to the fact that the provincial media should never be ignored but instead supported.”
“Notwithstanding the challenges posed by the urban-based Internet and other alternative platforms of news and information sources, the provincial press remains a key in setting the agenda for all other media,” Coloma said.
He cited the fact that commentators in daily morning public affairs program, whether in television or radio, derive their materials from news from the provinces. Ditto, he said, to primetime newscasters who also take the lead from stories that emerge from the province.
“With the changing economic landscape as well as the changing lifestyles of consumers, it would be best for media to calibrate its strategies to suit the needs of the market, including an emphasis for a provincial audience,” he added.
He said the agenda-function of media is a toast to its credibility, stressing that like the metropolitan press, the provincial press also has the ability to tackle an issue or news item in depth, and provide consumers with various viewpoints and essential details.
Coloma also called on the provincial press to use the Internet to broaden readership, adding that per a latest survey, only about 25 to 33 percent of the newspapers go online.
