UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN

PANGASINAN
Binalonan, Pangasinan

Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education

Second Semester, A.Y. 2021-2022
MODULE 1
THE PHILIPPINE PRESS: A BRIEF HISTORY
Course Title: Campus Journalism
Course Code: El119
Name:
Course and Year:
Date and Time Allotment: Week 1

Introduction
This module entitled The Philippine Press: A Brief History will give the students a particular
knowledge about the background of the Philippine Press, articulate and discuss the latest development in
the specific field of practice.

I. Objectives

At the end of the end of this module, students should be able to:
1. Actualize appreciation of the history of the Philippine press, its variation, and its development; and
2. Distinguish the different periods in the history of Philippine Press.

II. Lecture
THE PHILIPPINE PRESS: A BRIEF HISTORY

TOMAS PINPIN is generally accepted as the FATHER OF FILIPINO PRINTING. He learned the art of
printing from Spanish friars and Chinese Craftsmen.

SUCCESSOS FELICES (Fortunate Events) – a 14-page newsletter in Spanish, now officially known as
the FIRST PHILIPPINE NEWSLETTER was published in 1637. It was made by Tomas Pinpin because of
the reason to satisfy the Spanish colonizers’ hunger for news about the other parts of the Philippines. It was
devoted to the raids by Muslim pirates in the Philippines. This newsletter came out during the period when
newsletters were in fashion as community newspapers in England and Europe.

In 1977, “HOJAS VOLANTES” meaning “FLYING SHEETS” were distributed in the country for mass
readership. With the title, AVISO AL PUBLICO (Notices to the Public), these sheets acted as town criers
for the Spaniards in the Philippines.

THE EARLY YEARS

AUGUST 8, 1811 – The first REAL NEWSPAPER made its debut in the Philippines (218 years after
printing was invented). DEL SUPERIOR GOVIERNO was made to satisfy the Spaniards’ need for
information on development in Spain and Europe. It was the first newspaper with NAME, DATE and
PLACE of PUBLICATION. Unfortunately, it came out only with 15 ISSUES over six month period and then
the publication was ceased.

Because of strict censorship by the Spanish authorities and the Church, it was not after 35 years later,
DECEMBER 1, 1846 that the first DAILY NEWSPAPER in the country, LA ESPERANZA was published.
It was colorless, dull, and filled with long discussions of historical, scientific and religious subjects. It was 3
years of existence. It gave birth to the other dailies such as:
● LA ESTRELLA (1847)
● DIARIO DE MANILA (1848)

APRIL 1, 1887 – marked the beginning of political journalism in the Philippines when LA OPINION was
published. One journalism historian mentioned that it was the first paper to DEFY the friars and
campaigned for the ouster of the religious, including one archbishop.

Despite all the attempts at advancing Philippine Journalism, it was not until 1890 that a newspaper found
the secret which was to make it popular with the public. This daily newspaper was named EL RESUMEN
which was established by PABLO POBLETE, the first multiple newspaper publisher.

THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD

LA SOLIDARIDAD – considered as the MOUTHPIECE OF THE REVOLUTION. Its first appearance was
on February 19, 1889 with the policy “to work peacefully for social and economic reforms, to expose the
real plight of the Philippines, and to champion liberalism and democracy.”
To avoid detection, all the writers used pseudonyms. The writers included:
1. Jose P. Rizal
2. Marcelo H. Del Pilar
3. Mariano Ponce
4. Andres Bonifacio
5. Pio Valenzuela
6. Graciano Lopez-Jaena (a young lawyer who exiled himself to spain and edited the La Solidaridad
during its first 9 months).

In 1889, Lopez-Jaena passed on the editorship to Marcelo H. Del Pilar, who left his family in the
Philippines, and flew to Spain and literally gave his life for La Solidaridad. It was in November 15, 1895
when the paper died as its editor a;sp died early the next year.

The revolution was to be without a voice for only 2 months because in January 1, 1896, the Katipunan, the
secret society of rebels issues ANG KALAYAAN (Liberty).

THE AMERICAN COLONIAL PERIOD

When the Americans took over the Philippines, American journalists saw the need to put up their dailies.
Soon, newspapers such as:
✔ MANILA DAILY BULLETIN
✔ MANILA TIMES
✔ THE AMERICAN
✔ CABLE NEWS appeared.

MANILA TIMES – the pioneer among the American-owned newspapers was the first CONTINUOUSLY
issued English daily.

THE TIMES – was founded by Englishman, THOMAS GOWAN, who apparently had heard the complaints
of American soldiers on the lack of a good English newspaper in the country. This was owned by the
Americans for 32 years and its ownership was changed for several times. Not until MANUEL L. QUEZON
who later became President of the Philippines bought the newspaper in 1917. He kept this newspaper for 4
years before selling it. It was Alejandro Roces, Sr. who disbanded THE TIMES in 1930.

THE MANILA DAILY BULLETIN – the OLDEST EXISTING NEWSPAPER in the Philippines today. It
began in 1900 as a shipping journal. In 1912, the paper widened its scope of coverage and circulation.

PHILIPPINES HERALD – the first PRO-FILIPINO, ENGLISH LANGUAGE publication of any consequence
started by Manuel L. Quezon on August 8, 1920.
ALEJANDRO ROCES, SR. – often called as “FATHER OF MODERN JOURNALISM” in the country. He
had the development of the first chain ownership of newspapers in the Philippines.

THE JAPANESE OCCUPATION PERIOD

Within 2 weeks of the Japanese invasion, most editors were interned or forced to hide in the hills. All
publications, except those which the Japanese planned to use for their own purposes, were disbanded.
The TVT (Taliba, La Vanguardia Tribune) and one of Ramon Roces magazine chains were
allowed to operate. These publications, as explained by one Japanese executive editor, were published
“solely for the benefit of the Japanese state.”
For anyone else who wanted to go into publishing, the Japanese stipulated two conditions:
1. They must first secure a permit from the military;
2. They must submit to military censorship.

In 1942, the control of the TVT and Liwayway (largest of Ramon Roces vernacular magazines) was taken
over by the Japanese military.

In 1944, President Jose P. Laurel, of the Japanese-installed Philippine Republic created his own BOARD
OF INFORMATION “to control, direct, supervise, and coordinate all information and publicity of the
government.”

POST-LIBERATION YEARS

The FIRST POST-LIBERATION NEWSPAPER: “THE MANILA FREE PHILIPPINES” was published by
the US Office of War Information. It was at first distributed for free, but eventually, it was sold for five
centavos.

The field was left mainly to the giants:

● The Manila Bulletin (which underwent modernization in 1947).
● The Manila Times (revived by the Roces family in 1945).
● The Evening News (Manila’s “FIRST AFTERNOON newspaper” put out by Ramon Roces).
● The Manila Chronicle (which started as “The People’s Newspaper”).

In the sixties, illustrated comics-magazines, published out of Manila began to proliferate throughout the
country. The comics-magazine with its easy-to-understand stories, were said to be mainly responsible for
the rapid growth of the Tagalog language in the non-Tagalog provinces.

THE MARTIAL LAW DAYS

On September 21, 1972 (when Martial Law was proclaimed), all the papers (including the so-called
“oligarchic press” and broadcast stations) were closed.
Ferdinand E. Marcos issued Letter of Instruction (LOI) No. 1 ordering the Press Secretary and
the Secretary of National Defense to “ TAKE OVER AND CONTROL OR CAUSE THE TAKING OVER AND
CONTROL OF THE MASS MEDIA FOR THE DURATION OF THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY, OR UNTIL
OTHERWISE ORDERED THE PRESIDENT OR BY HIS DULY DESIGNATED REPRESENTATIVE. ”
At the same time, a number of publishers, editors, columnists and reporters were arrested and
detained.

On September 25, 1972, the Department of Public Information (DPI) issued Orders 1 and 2.

ORDER 1: Require all media publications be cleared first by the DPI.

ORDER 2: Prohibit printers “from producing any form of publication for mass dissemination without
permission from the DPI.”

Other decrees, effectively controlling the media, include the following:

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE (PD) NO. 33 – Penalized the “printing, possession, distribution and circulation of
printed materials which are immoral or indecent, or which defy the Government or its officers, or which tend
to undermine the integrity of the Government or the stability of the State. (October 28, 1972).

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE (PD) NO. 90 – Penalized “rumor-mongering” because it “undermines the

stability of government and the objectives of the New Society, endangers the public order, or causes
damage to the interest or credit of the state. (Jan. 6, 1978).

To bolster these laws, media-regulating agencies were established. The MASS MEDIA COUNCIL (MMC),
created through Presidential Decree No. 36 was given the task of issuing permits on mass media to
operate. Thus, no newspaper, magazine, periodical or publication of any kind, and no radio, TV, or
telecommunications facility, station or network could begin operations without an MMC certificate of
authority.

Major newspapers and broadcast facilities (eventually fell in the hands of Marcos’ cronies and his relatives).
● The Bulletin Today (resurrected as Manila Daily Bulletin) (late Gen. Hans Menzi)
● The Times Journal (Benjamin “Kokoy” Romualdez – brother of Imelda Marcos)
● The Daily Bulletin (Robert S. Benedicto)
● ABS-CBN
● GTV-4 (the official government channel)

III: Application/Activity
Instructions: Comprehend what is being asked. Answer it as brief as possible and be guided by this
criteria. Content-15 points, Grammar and mechanics- 10 points, Organization- 5 points. Your answer
should not go beyond 150 words and not lesser than 100 words.
What is the significance of studying the Brief History of Philippine Press?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
IV. Assessment
Instructions: Answer the following assessment questions below. Your answer to the question should not
go beyond 150 words and not lesser than 100 words. Scoring criteria is presented below for your guide in
constructing your answers. Write your answer in yellow paper then attach it to this module.

1. In your own words differentiate the Press in Different Period

FOCUS CONTENT ORGANIZATION CONVENTION

The single controlling The presence of ideas The order was developed Grammar, Mechanics,
point is made with an developed through facts, and sustainable within Spelling, usage, and
awareness of task about a details, opinions, etc. and across paragraphs. sentence formation
specific topic.
5pts 5pts 5pts 5pts
V. Other References
● Malinao, A.L. (2004). Journalism for Filipinos. Third Edition. National Book Store. Mandaluyong
City.
● Baran, S.J. (2006). Introduction to mass communication. Fourth Edition. McGrawHill Education.