Tomorrow, I embark on a journey to Samar for an empowering journey to meet young minds ready to shape the future of storytelling and journalism. I have the honor of serving as one of the resource speakers on Column Writing for the third phase of the Youth for Ethical Storytelling in Journalism (YES Journ), a campus journalism training organized by the Provincial Government of Samar.
More than a training, this is a transformative opportunity. YES Journ empowers student-writers and campus publication advisers in the province by enhancing their skills in responsible journalism, news writing, editorial management, and media ethics. It is an investment in the next generation of storytellers, the very people who will carry the torch of truth in a time when facts are often overshadowed by noise and chaos.
In our country, we uphold the right to a free press. The 1987 Philippine Constitution states that “No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of grievance.” This is a right that protects the journalist’s voice, but it also calls for restraint and responsibility. Freedom of expression is not a license to harm, mislead, or defame. It is a responsibility to uphold truth for the common good.
What’s interesting is that while the Constitution offers the broad promise of press freedom, our penal laws provide the boundaries. The Revised Penal Code penalizes libel and defamation, while the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 addresses the spread of malicious falsehoods online. These legal parameters are not obstacles to journalism; they are guardrails that protect both the press and the public.
Libel and defamation penalize the public and malicious imputation of a crime or vice that tends to dishonor or discredit a person. With the rise of digital media, the Cybercrime Prevention Act extended this protection to the online sphere, categorizing cyber libel as a distinct offense with harsher penalties, recognizing the wider and more permanent impact of defamatory content on the internet.
Ethical and powerful storytelling begins with a deep respect for truth. Jurisprudence also discusses that while the press enjoys wide leeway to comment on matters of public interest, this freedom is not a shield for malicious propagation of false information. Storytellers must distinguish between fair comment and defamatory attack, between criticism and character assassination.
The write (right) to power is more than just a play on words — it is the journalist’s sacred duty to use the written word to speak truth to power, but with that power comes the ethical obligation to follow guiding principles that ensure stories enlighten rather than exploit. Ethical storytelling means verifying facts, avoiding sensationalism, and giving context to complex issues. A responsible writer attributes sources properly, protects identities when necessary, and must also recognize his or her biases to be able to tell balanced, inclusive, and honest narratives on issues.
As we gather under the banner of YES Journ in Catbalogan, Samar, we are not just training future writers, we are building the next generation of truth-tellers, public servants, and community leaders. The collective expertise of our speakers, particularly in workshops on responsible journalism, news writing, editorial management, and media ethics, will definitely bear fruit and will have a lasting, positive impact.
To our Samar YesJourn participants and future media colleagues, your words possess immense power. They can expose injustice, inspire reform, or comfort the grieving. Above all, they must tell the truth.
To the reader, you have the freedom. You have the tools. You have the platform. But more importantly, you have the discernment.
Tuum est. It is yours to decide.