How does a plane make a U-turn? Video clips of Bayan Muna representative Satur Ocampo being roughed up, pushed, pulled, dragged, while he resisted and fought, sometimes quietly, sometimes discussing procedure, sometimes angry sometimes calm, while the manhandling continues, is one of the most eloquent testament of the Arroyo government’s fear of an idea that is supported by 1.5 million votes (the mandate of Bayan Muna) and one of the most powerful images of what it means to fight. Being pro-establishment is the easiest thing in the world to be: your ideas would always be protected by the ruling party even as they are irrelevant. It’s 3am and you’re only a handful of defenseless men and women surrounded by more than 50 bullet-proof-and-grenade-belt clad SWAT and police operative units lugging M-16’s out to “extract” you by force, what do you do? In the face of all calculation that the odds are against you and you would be maimed and beaten up while shouting out your rights, what do you do?
Those images instruct us. You fight not to overpower your adversary but to tell him he is wrong; you resist, not to defeat him but to convince others your path might be the correct way.
And so, the plane made a U-turn in the cloudy afternoon even as it was nearer Leyte, over Masbate, and even as it was easier to proceed and land than make a turn-about. That’s how powerful ideas are, especially one with a mandate. (you know, National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales’s partylist (i forgot what its name is; is it PPKSP? or…. PPSQK?) could muster only a few thousand votes, five thousand i think; sometimes i think it’s what possesses him to drive Bayan Muna out of the electoral mainstream, he thinks those votes would be distributed to other partylists like his. Dream, dream, dream.)
Our lesson for today.
And by the way, this was the test i gave today:
Law on Mass Media, 2nd Test. Answer each question within each problem/ item. 50 pts. 4 pts bonus.
1.Enumerate laws that constitute limits to a reporter’s newsgathering methods. Describe/ define/ give the elements of each law. (10 pts., 1 pt for each law enumerated and 1 pt for the description).
2.At 4:45 am today, Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo was hauled off and dragged out of the Manila Police station into a waiting van by elements of the SWAT and the police. There were fifty or so photographers, cameramen, reporters, and supporters crammed in the narrow hallway as the Bayan Muna rep was forcibly pulled and pushed. Marco Agustin, a reporter of TV Channel 10 shoved and pushed and jostled and grabbed the policemen and Ka Satur to get a good vantage point and for an interview. Did the reporter violate any laws that limit newsgathering methods? Why or why not? (5pts.)
3.At 5:20 am, said reporter had finished editing his footages and was prepared to go live. His news director got a call from military top brass that they could air the news but not the footage showing Rep. Satur Ocampo being pulled and pushed and shoved and being able to deliver the following statements: “ito ay isa na naming panggigipit ng pamahalaang Arroyo sa aming partido,” on the ground that it was inciting to sedition and sub judice. What should Marco tell his news director? Did the segment constitute inciting to sedition? Why or why not? What are the elements of said crime? (5 pts.) Is it sub judice? Why or why not? What is sub judice? (5 pts.) Total: 10 pts.
4.Last month, a state prosecutor of the Department of Justice issued a Resolution of the preliminary investigation of the inciting to sedition complaint filed against the Daily Tribune finding a prima facie case and recommending the issuance of warrants of arrest against respondents. The complaint arose from the Feb. 24, 2006 incidents that followed the declaration of a state of emergency by President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo. Give your considered and well-thought out opinion using legal bases. (5 pts.)
5.In the 11 libel cases against a total of 43 journalists filed by First Gentleman Mike Arroyo, the main theory of the case is that Mike Arroyo, not being a public official and being engaged in private business, is not a public figure. Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not? Give your legal basis (rhetorics will not be given points.) Who are public figures and who are not public figures? In which specific category does Mike Arroyo belong? Why? What is the “public figure doctrine”? Cite or describe the pertinent cases to support your answer. (10 pts: 5 pts for discussion on who are and are not public figures and 5 pts for citing/ describing pertinent cases and other legal bases.)
6.Enumerate the laws that constitute limits to free expression. (9 pts.)
7. A TV show called “Saklolo ng SOCO”, a semi-documentary on the work of the Scene-of-the-Crime-Operatives unit of the PNP, showed the chopped-up parts of a rape victim, live, as breaking news. The “Professionals for Christ”, an organization of the laity, filed a case of violation of Art. 201 of the Revised Penal Code, on obscenity. If you were the producer, would you have shown the segment? Why or why not? What is obscenity? What is the Miller test? (5 pts. ) TOTAL: 54 pts (4 pts bonus). ###
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