Why Democracy Needs an Investigative Journalism
I N T R O D U C T I O N
“A free, aggressive, open and bold press is part of the spiritual core of our Democracy”.
-Thomas Jefferson
In the world we are living today, investigative journalism is becoming a significant part in our daily lives as it informs, unleash and reveals us the happenings in our community, society, government and in the country.
Having the democracy to exercise and express our freedom of the press, which was have been suppressed before, during the Marcos regime, we can say that the Philippine news media’s role is critical to the advancement and preservation of the country’s democratic institutions and way of life and in helping catalyze equitable development. The issues and problems confronting the Philippine press revolve around its capacity to contribute more substantially to ensuring accountability of government even as it faces accountability challenges of its own.
Its journalistic functions can only be made more meaningful by upgrading news media standards and the quality of its outputs in order to continue to earn the trust and confidence of the general public.
It is hoped that the enhanced capacity of the investigative journalists will in turn lead to the improvement of the public’s capacity to discern the objective truth and to make more informed decisions and opinions on matters that affect our daily lives.
But removing the constraints to effective media performance cannot be left to the industry or market forces alone. Experience shows that a freewheeling approach can only lead to the emergence of a press community that cannot be held accountable except by market forces dominated by a public that fails, or refuses to, distinguish between good and bad journalism.
The work of building a mature press in the Philippines requires the involvement and commitment of media to raise the level of skills and of professional standards as well as helping journalists reach a consensus on their role in promoting democracy and development.
“A free, aggressive, open and bold press is part of the spiritual core of our Democracy”.
-Thomas Jefferson
In the world we are living today, investigative journalism is becoming a significant part in our daily lives as it informs, unleash and reveals us the happenings in our community, society, government and in the country.
Having the democracy to exercise and express our freedom of the press, which was have been suppressed before, during the Marcos regime, we can say that the Philippine news media’s role is critical to the advancement and preservation of the country’s democratic institutions and way of life and in helping catalyze equitable development. The issues and problems confronting the Philippine press revolve around its capacity to contribute more substantially to ensuring accountability of government even as it faces accountability challenges of its own.
Its journalistic functions can only be made more meaningful by upgrading news media standards and the quality of its outputs in order to continue to earn the trust and confidence of the general public.
It is hoped that the enhanced capacity of the investigative journalists will in turn lead to the improvement of the public’s capacity to discern the objective truth and to make more informed decisions and opinions on matters that affect our daily lives.
But removing the constraints to effective media performance cannot be left to the industry or market forces alone. Experience shows that a freewheeling approach can only lead to the emergence of a press community that cannot be held accountable except by market forces dominated by a public that fails, or refuses to, distinguish between good and bad journalism.
The work of building a mature press in the Philippines requires the involvement and commitment of media to raise the level of skills and of professional standards as well as helping journalists reach a consensus on their role in promoting democracy and development.