In a post, Mayor Vice Sotto hits supposedly veteran journalists who do this.
Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto shared his sentiments about veteran journalists interviewing contractors attempting to enter politics.
Due diligence is key in any profession because it ensures that decisions are based on careful research, verification, and sound judgment. This is what Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto seemed to want to relay to his followers, after he reacted to this kind of interview that veteran journalists have conducted.
On Facebook, he shared a screenshot of contractor Curlee Discaya and his wife, Sarah, with Korina Sanchez and Julius Babao. The photos were taken from the interviews conducted by the two journalists.
He emphasized that media personalities should take a step back and reflect on why certain individuals would be willing to pay a hefty amount to secure a feature. This alone already raises important questions about the motives, intentions, and the influence the interview would have on the public.
While the transactions are not illegal, this could undermine the credibility of the profession.
“At the very least, it should be considered shameful and violative of the spirit of their code of ethics,” he said, as he also noted that they could just easily mask off and identify their feature as lifestyle content or sponsored material.
He continued alleging that journalists allow themselves to be swayed by financial incentives at the risk of their hard-earned reputation and credibility. He then went on saying that “a corruption is systemic… it permeates into every sector of society, not just government.”
But this pattern can be broken if “more and more of us consistently do our part, wherever we are and whatever are position may be, one step at a time.”
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