Sen. Escudero u-turns, bucks Right of Reply bill
September 26, 2009 10:24 pm
CEBU CITY, Sept. 26 — Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero said here on Friday he and six other senators would continue to oppose the Right of Reply bill, which previously survived the Senate with almost no opposition.
He said he used to support the bill and was even one of its three principal authors, but he reconsidered after hearing the side of media organizations about Senate Bill No. 2150.
The bill, whose principal authors include Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr., proposes a fine or imprisonment for media workers and outlets that fail to print the reply of an aggrieved subject of a published report.
It is now pending in the House of Representatives.
Escudero said he now believes that instead of a legislated right of reply, media outlets can practice self-regulation and continue to listen to, air or publish responses to published reports.
Initial calls by some senators to push the Right of Reply bill, he noted, have pushed media outlets to strongly police their ranks.
Escudero said that aside from fighting over the Right of Reply bill, government must do its part to be transparent to the media, while media workers need to focus on covering, not creating, events.
Escudero was a guest speaker at the Press Freedom Week forum Friday on Citizen-Media Participation in the 2010 Elections held in the Marcelo B. Fernan Cebu Press Center in Sudlon, Lahug, Cebu City.
Escudero recalled that when the bill was approved on first reading, he and his colleagues were surprised that no initial moves were made by media organizations to oppose it.
However, when media organizations in Manila such as the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) approached him and made their stand on the controversial bill, he changed his mind and eventually opposed the bill.
Aside from Escudero, Senators Manuel "Mar" A. Roxas II and Loren Legarda have also expressed their opposition to Senate Bill 2150. (PNA) scs/EB/re
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