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THECMFRMONITOROFMEDIACOVERAGEOFTHE2010ELECTIONS
GOVERNMENTTVCOVEREDTEODOROMOST,IGNOREDBOTTOMDWELLERS
BROADCASTDISCOURSEANALYSIS(ForthePeriodFeb.926,2010)
Scope
Theprogramsmonitoredwere24Oras,Teledyaryo,andTVPatrolWorld.Theprograms24Oras(GMA7)andTVPatrol(ABSCBN2)aretheleadingearlyeveningnewscastsinthecountry.Teledyaryoisairedover governmentowned station NBN4. The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR)
analyzedtheprogramsfromFeb.9(whenthe nationalcampaignofficiallystarted)to26.
CMFRanalyzedtheaboveprogramsreportsonthepresidential,vicepresidential,senatorial,andparty
listelections.Reportsabouttheelectionsingeneral,suchasthecountryspreparednesstoundertakeits
firstnationwideautomatedpollsinMay,aswellaselectionrules,were includedinthemonitor.Reports
exclusivelyaboutlocalelectionswerenot.
The news programs reported the presidential elections most. As in print coverage of the first three
weeksofthecampaign,mostreportsaboutthevicepresidentialandsenatorialcandidateswere limited
toshortsoundbitesaboutvariouscontroversiesorreactionstothesebypartyspokespersons inbehalf
oftheirpresidentialcandidates.
Thepartylistelectionsweregivenminimal coverageonTV.
Aboutfour inevery10Teledyaryoreportsonthepresidentialelectionswereaboutadministrationbet
Gilberto"Gibo"TeodoroJr.However,itignored othercandidatesinthecoverage.
Inits
coverage,
Teledyaryo
also
showed
bias
in
favor
of
Teodoro.
Numberofreports
FromFeb.926, lessthanathirdoftheoverallcoverageofthesethreeprogramswasdevotedtothe
presidential,vicepresidential,senatorial,partylistelectionsandgeneralissuesaboutthecampaignand
upcomingelections299outofatotalof1,028reports/items,or29.09percent.Manyreportswerenot
just on one category (for example, the presidential elections) but also on others (such as the vice
presidentialorsenatorialcampaign)atthesametime.
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9867
25 20 235
416
9444 28 28 4
44
263
10753 26 23 13
52
349299
164
79 7119
131
1028
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Electionrelated
reports
Presidential
elections
Vice
presidential
elections
Senatorial
elections
Partylist
elections
Electionsin
general
Totalnumberof
reports(news
hole)
*Reportsmayhavemorethanonecategory
Numberofreports*
24Oras
Teledyaryo
TVPatrolWorld
Total
TV Patrol had the most number of electionrelated reports (107) followed by 24 Oras (98) andTeledyaryo (94). However, in proportion to their news holesor their total number of reports aired
duringtheperiodTeledyaryoairedmoreelectionrelatedreports(35.74percent)thanTVPatrol(30.66percent)and24Oras(23.56percent).Clearly, theprograms reported the presidential elections most (164 times). General issues about the
elections (such as fears of election fraud and electionrelated violence) took the second spot (131
times). The programs devoted almost equal coverageif not far smaller compared with that of the
presidentialelections
to
the
vice
presidential
(79)
and
senatorial
elections
(71).
As
in
coverage
of
the first three weeks of the campaign, most reports about the vicepresidential and senatorial
candidateswere limitedovertelevision, toshortsoundbitesaboutvariouscontroversiesorreactions
to these by party spokespersons in behalf of their presidential candidates. The parties platforms or
viewsonpolicyissueswerehardlydiscussed.
Issuesrelated topartylistelectionsarenot important,at leastbasedon theTVcoverage in the first
threeweekssince thenationalcampaign started. Thepartylistelectionsweregivenminimal coverage
onTV(19outof299electionrelatedreportsor6.35percent).
Placement
Morethanhalf(162reportsor54.19percent)oftheelectionrelatedreportsweretreatedasamongthe
days biggest stories and aired during the programs first half. About four in every 10 reports (42.81)
wereairedduringthesecondhalf.Asmallnumber(9or3.01percent)werebannerorleadstories.
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3
52 43
98
2
6032
94
4
50 53
107
9
162128
299
0
50
100
150
200250
300
350
Banner/lead
story
Firsthalfofthe
program
Secondhalfof
theprogram
Totalperprogram
Placement
24Oras
Teledyaryo
TVPatrolWorld
Total
Subjects
Manyreportswereonmorethanonecandidateorgroupasnewssubjects.
TheNacionalistaPartys ManuelMannyVillarJr.wasthemostcoveredpresidentialcandidatewith74
reports (18.69 percent). Following Villar were administration candidate Gilberto Gibo Teodoro (59
reports or 14.9 percent) and the Liberal Partys Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Aquino III (49 or 12.37
percent).
Former president Joseph Estrada was the fourth most covered candidate in terms of the number of
reports, although he was the top candidate in terms of airtime during the same period monitored
(36.29 minutes; See TV news devoted more air time to Joseph Estradaduring the first weeks of thecampaign).
Villar, on the other hand, was not far behind Estrada in terms of airtime (34.51 minutes). Although
televisiondevotedthemostairtimetoEstradaduringtheperiodmonitored,hegotfewerreportsthan
Villar.Duringtheperiodmonitored,Villarwasastapleofprimetimenews,reactingtohisrisingsurvey
ratingsand/orrespondingtovariouscontroversiessuchashisexcessivecampaignspending,hisseeking
of endorsement by celebrities and religious groups, and his alleged involvement in the C5 road
extensionprojectcontroversy.
Other candidates were the subjects of fewer reports: Sen. Richard Dick Gordon (39); evangelist
EduardoBro.
Eddie
Villanueva
(35);
Ang
Kapatiran
Partys
and
Gordons
nephew
John
Carlos
JC
de
losReyes (33);andSen.Ma.AnaConsueloJambyMadrigal (31).The leastcoveredcandidateswere
economistJesusNicanorNickPelas(23)andKilusanngBagongLipunansVetellanoDodongAcosta
(11)whowaslaterdisqualifiedbytheCommissiononElectionsaftertheperiodmonitored.
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Duringtheperiodmonitored,Teledyaryocompletely ignoredcandidatessuchasGordon,DelosReyes,
Perlas, and Acosta. About four in every 10 Teledyaryo reports (39.62 percent) on the presidential
electionswereaboutTeodoro.
Somereportstriedtomovebeyondtheusualdiarytype,straightnewsreportingofthecampaign.One
examplewasa24OrasreportlastFeb.10whichtackledtheHaciendaLuisitacontroversy,anissuethathasbeenconsistentlylinkedwithAquino,includingthestockdistributionoptionthatwasofferedtothe
farmersin1988inexchangeforlandownership.
PRESIDENTIALCANDIDATES 24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
candidate
1 Villar,ManuelJr."Manny"Bamba(NP) 27 15 32 74
2 Teodoro,GilbertoJr."Gibo"Cojuangco
(LakasKampi)
15 21 23 59
3 Aquino,BenignoSimeonIII"Noynoy"
Cojuangco(LP)
17 8 24 49
4
EstradaEjercito,
Joseph
"Erap"
Marcelo
(PMP)18
5 19
42
5 Gordon,Richard"Dick"(B.BayanVNP) 25 14 39
6 Villanueva,Eduardo"Bro.Eddie"Cruz
(BP)
21 3 11 35
7 DelosReyes,JohnCarlos"JC"Gordon
(AKP)
24 9 33
8 Madrigal,Ma.AnaConsuelo"Jamby"AS
(Ind)
19 1 11 31
9 Perlas,JesusNicanor"Nick"Pineda(Ind) 17 6 23
10 Acosta,Vetellano"Dodong"Seinez(KBL) 10 1 11
Total
per
program
193
53 150
396
Among the vicepresidential candidates, Loren Legarda was the most covered candidate (24 reports)
whilerivalManuelMarRoxasoccupiedthesecondspotat19.Theirranking intermsofreportswas
consistentwiththeirrankingintermsofairtime.Likesomeofthepresidentialcandidates,TVprograms
gave scant coverage of the lesserknown candidates.Teledyaryo did not report anything about vice
presidentialcandidatesBayaniFernando,JoseJaySonza,andDominadorJunChipecoJr.duringthe
periodmonitored.
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VICEPRESIDENTIALCANDIDATES 24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
candidate
1 Legarda, Loren "Loren" Bautista
(NPC)
5 12 7 24
2 Roxas, Manuel "Mar" Araneta
(LP)
5 4 10 19
3 Binay, Jejomar "Jojo" Cabauatan
(PDPLaban)
6 3 8 17
4 Manzano, Eduardo "Edu" Barrios
(LakasKampi)
2 7 5 14
5 Yasay, Perfecto "Kidlat" Rivas
(BP)
7 2 5 14
6 Fernando, Bayani "BF" Flores
(B.BayanVNP)
3 5 8
7 Sonza, Jose "Jay Sonza" Yumang
(KBL)
2 2 4
8
Chipeco,
Dominador
Jr.
"Jun"
Fuentecilla(AKP)2
1
3
Totalperprogram 32 28 43 103
Comparedwith thecoverageof thepresidentialandvicepresidentialcandidates, thecoverageof the
senatorialcandidatesall61ofthemwerescant,andwhenitoccurred,perfunctory.
Mostsenatorialcandidateswerecoveredprimarilyfortheirreactionstovariouscontroversiesusually
involvingtheirpresidentialcandidates.Moreoftenthannot,theirstandoropiniononvariousissueswas
hardly solicited at all. A Feb. 19 TV Patrol report proved one worthy exception when it adequatelyfocused on reelectionist Juan Ponce Enriles position on the perpulse billing rate for cellular phones.
TeledyaryosFeb.
25
report
about
alaw
authored
by
another
reelectionist,
Sen.
Lito
Lapid,
also
reported
thelawssalientfeatures.
MOSTCOVEREDSENATORIAL
CANDIDATES
24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
candidate
1 Enrile,JuanPonce"JPE"(PMP) 3 2 7 12
2 Estrada,JinggoyEjercito(PMP) 4 2 4 10
2 Querubin, Ariel "Marines" Oliva
(NP)
3 5 2 10
3 Bong Revilla, Ramon. Jr. "Kap"
Bautista(Lakas
Kampi)
4 3 1 8
3 Langit,ReyMagat(LakasKampi) 1 4 3 8
3 Marcos, Ferdinand Jr.
"Bongbong"Romualdez(NP)
1 2 5 8
4 Lapid, Manuel "Lito" Mercado
(LakasKampi)
2 4 1 7
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4 Tamano,AdelAbbas(NP) 2 2 3 7
5 Bello, Silvestre III "Bebot"
Hernando (LakasKampi)
1 5 6
5 DefensorSantiago,MiriamPalma
(PRP)
3 2 1 6
5
Lim,Danilo
"General
Danny"
dela
Puz(Ind)4
2
6
6 Cayetano, Pilar Juliana "Pia"
Schramm(NP)
1 2 2 5
6 Remulla, Gilbert Cesar Catibayan
(NP)
2 1 2 5
7 HontiverosBaraquel, Ana
Theresia"RisaH."(LP)
2 2 4
7 Lambino, Raul Loyola (Lakas
Kampi)
3 1 4
7 Maza, Liza "Liza Maza ng
Gabriela"Largoza
(Ind)
1 1 2 4
7 Recto,RalphGonzalez(LP) 3 1 4
8 Bautista, J.V. "J.V. Bautista"
Larion(PMP)
1 1 1 3
8 Biazon, Rozzano Rufino "Ruffy"
Bunoan(LP)
1 1 1 3
8 Drilon, Franklin "Frank"
Magtunao(LP)
2 1 3
8 Inocencio, Ma. Katherine "Kata"
L.Reyes(BP)
1 1 1 3
8 Mitra,Ramon"Monmon"Blanco
(NP)
1 1 1 3
8 Ocampo, Saturnino "Satur"
Cunanan(BayanMuna)
1 2 3
8 Ople,Susan"Toots"Vasquez(NP) 1 1 1 3
8 Tinsay, Alexander "Alex Tinsay"
Britanico(BP)
1 1 1 3
Totalperprogram 73 55 50 178
There was some coverage of the controversies involving partylist groups and their candidates,
especially those accused of being administration or opposition fronts. Some groups, such as Bayan
Muna, were also reported for filing disqualification cases against certain partylist groups that are
allegedly
dummiesof
Malacaang.
Beyond the controversieshowever, notmuchcoveragewas given to theprograms, ifany,of the 187
partylistgroupscurrently running,orwhetherthey really representmarginalizedsectors.Substantive
coverageofpartylistcandidateswasabsent.
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This lack of serious coverage about the partylist elections, an appalling trend in the coverage of
previouselections, isattheexpenseofanelectorate,themajorityofwhichstilldoesnotknowabout
thepartylistelections.
AccordingtotheJanuary2010preelectionsurveyforpartylistgrouppreferencebypolling institution
PulseAsia,nearlysevenoutof10Filipinosareunawareof thepartylistsystemeven ifthesurvey
wasconductedjustfourmonthsbeforethefirstnationwideautomatedelections.ThePulseAsiasurvey
found this low levelofawarenessdespiteFilipinoshavingvotedforpartylistgroups fivetimessince
1998, when the partylist elections were first introduced. Pulse Asia added that the current level of
awarenessofthepartylistsystemisthelowestsofaramongthegroupssurveysontheissuesinceearly
2004.
PARTYLISTGROUPS 24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
candidate
1 Akbayan! Citizen's Action Party
(AKBAYAN)
1 4 5
1 BayanMuna(BAYANMUNA) 1 4 5
2 1AangatkaPilipino(1AK) 1 2 3
2 AhonPinoy(AHON) 1 2 3
2 Anakpawis(ANAKPAWIS) 1 2 3
2 Gabriela Womens Party
(GABRIELA)
1 2 3
3 ActTeachers(ACTTEACHERS) 2 2
3 Action League of Indigenous
Masses(ALIM)
2 2
3 Babae para sa Kaunlaran (BABAE
KA)
2 2
3
KabataanPartylist
(KABATAAN)
2
2
4 Alyansa ng Media at Showbiz
(AMS)
1 1
4 Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta
(PBA)
1 1
Totalperprogram 8 24 32
Themes
Asinthecoverageofpreviouselections,mostTVreportsfocusedonthecampaignofthecandidates
theirlatestcampaignsorties,theirstrategies,anddaytodayactivities(116times).Asidefrombeing
repetitious,thislogbooktypeofreportingdoesnothelpinformthepublicabouttheissues inthese
elections.Neitherdotheyevencomeclosetosuggestingthereasonswhytheelectorateshouldvotefor
acandidate.
IssuessuchastherulesandregulationsoftheCommissiononElections(Comelec)oncampaign
spendingorpoliticaladvertisementswerereported51times.
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47
9
6
11
9
20
12
9
5
19
28
31
2
1
2
8
12
14
6
15
2
8
9
38
5
10
8
12
19
1
10
2
1
9
27
116
16
17
21
29
51
15
28
26
8
36
64
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
CampaignConduct
CampaignFinances
Contest/Horserace
Polls/Surveys
Pollautomation
OtherComelecrelated issues
Electionrelatedviolence/Peaceandorder
TheArroyofactor
Personality
Civilsocietyandelections
Development/Policyissues
OtherThemes
*Reportsmayhavemorethanonetheme
Themes*
Totalpertheme
TVPatrolWorld
Teledyaryo
24Oras
Development/policyissueswerereported36timesduringtheperiodmonitored,butwereinsufficiently
discussed.Suchreportsoftenmerelymentionedthatthecandidates,especiallyifindebatesorspecial
programs,discussed
issues
related
to
development
or
policy
(such
as
peace
and
order,
the
economy,
andagriculture)withoutsubstantivelyexplainingorairingeventhemainpointsofthesecandidates
discussionsortheirpositions.
MOSTREPORTED
DEVELOPMENT/POLICYISSUES
24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
issue
1 Peaceandorder 3 2 1 6
2 Economy 2 3 5
3 Agriculture 3 1 4
4 Education 1 1 2
4 Platformandpolicy 2 2
4 Corruption 2 2
4 Landgrabbing 2 2
4 Health 1 1 2
4 Reproductivehealth 1 1 2
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The three programs also reported other issues. Among the most reported were the endorsement by
celebritiesofvariouscandidates (14times),thecitizenjournalisminitiativesbyABSCBN2 (reportedin
TVPatrolseventimes),andeffortsbyvariousmediaorganizations(suchasABSCBN2andGMA7)toeducatevotersonthisyearselectionsandtohelpassureitsintegrityandtransparency(seventimes).
MOSTREPORTEDOTHERISSUES 24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalperissue
1 Celebrityendorsement 5 8 1 14
2 CitizenJournalism 7 7
2 Media efforts on voters'
education/Media campaign for
cleanandfairelections
3 4 7
3 Voters'education 4 4
3 Appointed officials running in
theelections
2 1 1 4
4
Aquinovs.
Villar
2
1
3
4 EDSAPeoplePower1 2 1 3
4 C5 road extension project
controversy
2 2
5 Incumbent officials running in
theelections
2 2
5 Bulacangubernatorialrow 1 1 2
4 Politicalendorsement/support 1 1 2
5 ManilaPeninsulasiege 2 2
5 Villar as Arroyo's alleged
"secret"candidate
2 2
5 Mediacoverageofelections 2 2
5 Disqualificationcases 2 2
Sources
The most covered presidential candidate in terms of reports, Villar, was also the top source of
information on the presidential elections with 30 reports. He was closely followed by Aquino (27),
Teodoro(27),andEstrada(25).
PRESIDENTIALCANDIDATESAS
SOURCES
24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
candidate
Presidential
Villar,ManuelJr."Manny"Bamba(NP) 16 6 8 30
Aquino, Benigno Simeon III "Noynoy"
Cojuangco(LP)
16 1 11 28
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Teodoro,Gilberto Jr. "Gibo" Cojuangco
(LakasKampi)
14 5 8 27
EstradaEjercito,Joseph"Erap"Marcelo
(PMP)
15 2 8 25
Gordon,Richard"Dick"(B.BayanVNP) 12 5 17
Villanueva,
Eduardo
"Bro.
Eddie"
Cruz
(BP)
12
2
3
17
Madrigal, Ma. Ana Consuelo "Jamby"
AS(Ind)
8 7 15
De los Reyes, John Carlos "JC" Gordon
(AKP)
6 5 11
Perlas, Jesus Nicanor "Nick" Pineda
(Ind)
7 3 10
Totalperprogram 106 16 58
Legardaand
Roxas
were
the
most
quoted
vice
presidential
candidates
as
well.
VICEPRESIDENTIALCANDIDATESAS
SOURCES
24Oras Teledyaryo TV
Patrol
World
Totalper
candidate
Legarda,Loren"Loren"Bautista(NPC) 2 4 2 8
Roxas,Manuel"Mar"Araneta(LP) 3 5 8
Manzano, Eduardo "Edu" Barrios
(LakasKampi)
1 3 2 6
Binay, Jejomar "Jojo" Cabauatan (PDP
Laban)
2 3 5
Yasay,Perfecto"Kidlat"Rivas(BP) 3 1 1 5
Fernando,Bayani"BF"Flores(B.Bayan
VNP)
1 3 4
Sonza,Jose"JaySonza"Yumang(KBL) 2 2
Totalperprogram 14 8 16
Backgrounding
Aboutthreeineveryfivereportsduringtheperiodmonitored(182outof299reportsor60.87percent)
providedsomebackgroundinformationontheissuestheyreported.About38.47percent(115reports)lackedbackgroundinformation.Twoitemsdidnothavebackgroundastheymerelyflashedthefacesof
candidatesonscreen.
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50 46
2
98
33
61
9499
8
107
182
115
2
299
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Yes No N/A Total
Background
24Oras
Teledyaryo
TVPatrolWorld
Totalpercandidate
Slant
Anoverwhelmingmajorityofthereportswasneutral.Outof299reports,234(or78.26percent)were
consideredneutral.Only48reports(16.05percent)hadapositiveslant,while 18(6.02percent) hada
negativeslant.Teledyaryohadthehighestnumberofslantsintermsoffrequency(31positiveandeight
negative slants) and in terms of proportion to the total number of electionrelated reports (41.05
percent)
1231
548
4 8 6 18
8256
96
234
98 95 107
299
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Total
*Reportsmayhavemorethanoneslant
Slant*
Positive
Negative
Neutral
Totalperprogram
TeledyaryounabashedlyshoweditsbiastoadministrationbetTeodoro(13times).
POSITIVESLANT(CANDIDATES) 24Oras Teledyaryo TVPatrol
World
Totalper
candidate
Presidential
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Teodoro, Gilberto Jr. "Gibo"
Cojuangco(LakasKampi)
13 13
Villar, Manuel Jr. "Manny" Bamba
(NP)
3 2 2 7
Estrada Ejercito, Joseph "Erap"
Marcelo(PMP)
4 1 1 6
Villanueva, Eduardo "Bro. Eddie"
Cruz(BP)
1 1 2
De los Reyes, John Carlos "JC"
Gordon(AKP)
1 1
Vicepresidential
Roxas,Manuel"Mar"Araneta(LP) 1 1 2
Manzano, Eduardo "Edu" Barrios
(LakasKampi)
1 1
Senatorial
Lapid, Manuel "Lito" Mercado
(LakasKampi)
1 1
Estrada,JinggoyEjercito(PMP) 1 1
Villarreceivedsixnegativelyslantedreportsfromallthreeprograms(2ineach) whileAquinoreceived
threenegativelyslantedreportsfrom24Oras(one)andTeledyaryo(two).
NEGATIVESLANT(CANDIDATES) 24Oras Teledyaryo TV Patrol
World
Total per
candidate
Presidential
Villar,ManuelJr. 2 2 2 6
Aquino, Benigno Simeon III
"Noynoy"Cojuangco(LP)
1 2 3
Acosta, Vetellano "Dodong" Seinez
(KBL)
1 1
Teodoro, Gilberto Jr. "Gibo"
Cojuangco(LakasKampi)
1 1
Vicepresidential
Roxas,Manuel
"Mar"
Araneta
(LP)
1
1
Binay, Jejomar "Jojo" Cabauatan
(PDPLaban)
1 1
Partylist
Kabataan 1 1
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