The score might be for sensationalism to attract more viewers, readers or audience to their horde of followers. Others perhaps do it for the sake of their profession unmindful whether their piece or report is bland, false, or half-truth half-lie just to have them presented to the gullible public. The mainstream media are armed with the words DEMOCRACY, FREEDOM OF SPEECH and “ENVELOPMENTAL JOUNALISM” (PAID HACKS) which they actually use to abuse their profession.
In the Philippines in spite of being cited as one of the most dangerous place for journalists to practice their profession, the members of the press still enjoy the power of their profession & continue to distort the real meaning of HEROES from that of VILLAINS; from the country’s national heroes, to prominent personalities and the people in conflict of the law. The Philippines’ national heroes were too complex to understand.
In the Spanish era Philippines, a well-off and educated hero in the name of Emilio Aguinaldo killed a poor, self-educated but true nationalist hero Andres Bonifacio. Historians and the mainstream media treated Aguinaldo as great as Bonifacio thereby creating the former as hero out of his treacherous and villainous action.
The same holds true with prominent personalities like the late Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. and his wife the late and former President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino. Fanatical belief created the prominent couple as heroes of the Filipino people. I really don’t know what made the mainstream media and the various sectors came-up with the idea of exalting Ninoy Aquino as hero. There weren’t any substantial contributions Ninoy had to cause something to uplift the lot of the Filipino nation.
The sectors identified with the late president Cory Aquino said that she was the ICON OF DEMOCRACY. Of course she was, obviously because during & after her tenure there was freedom to re-loot of what remains of wealth Marcos et al looted. There were killings. The Mendiola massacre in 1987 where 13 peasants killed and 51 injured. The Hacienda Luisita massacre in 2004 where 12 peasants and 2 children killed and hundreds were badly injured.
Because she was the icon of democracy a deafening noise coming from the idolaters calling congress & concerned authorities to make Cory Aquino a hero. That would be a possibility because the mainstream media and others are all agog about the hero issue since the death of the former president. They have the numbers & resources actually.
The making of heroes not only comes from the leaders of nations but from the average Joes and Janes. The mainstream media not to mention the film industry are guilty of making heroes out of villains, the one that who are in conflict of the law. Members of the press love to feature criminals cum Robin hoods in their repertoire.
Notorious criminals are featured in the media together with their sobbing family members whenever they are caught or killed by law enforcers. Often the showbiz-like emotional drama of sobbing relatives in front of camera get sympathy from media and eventually the criminals’ exploit are treated as heroics. When the smoke are cleared, the law enforcers are now the one being accused as villains and sued for violating human rights & so on & so forth. The mainstream media are party to the rise of notorious criminals in the Philippines.
