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Monday, May 30, 2005
Mayor opposes censor of live shows
MAYOR Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday said that the memorandum order issued by the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) chairperson restraining television stations to air live talk shows is not feasible as it cuffs the freedom of expression.
"Censoring talk shows is a violation of the freedom of speech. You can't take a person's freedom to speak," Duterte said during a weekly media forum Sunday.
"The essence of freedom is that one can speak what he or she wants to express without restraints," Duterte added.
MTRCB chair Maria Consoliza Laguardia, in her Memorandum Circular 07-05 dated May 17, ordered television station managers, block timers and other stakeholders to "submit materials of the aforementioned television programs to the Board for review and approval prior to telecast, effective immediately."
But Laguarda denied in a radio interview on Friday that her agency is involved in muzzling the media, particularly the television talk shows. She said the order is focused on showbiz talk shows, especially those that air so-called sex videos. She said she has ordered talk shows to submit copies of their episodes in the last two months to determine if they violated any rules.
She said MTRCB respects the right to freedom of expression and self-regulation of television networks.
She said the order does not cover news programs.
She said she was only trying to implement the Supreme Court (SC) decision last January 17 that "public affairs programs, news documentaries, socio-political editorials, and all other programs of the same category, are television programs that are subject to MTRCB review and approval in accordance with Section 3 of Presidential Decree 1986." (RCB with PR)
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (May 30, 2005 issue)
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