EDITORIAL - Press freedom under Trump, Duterte

Last Wednesday was World Press Freedom Day. Unlike in Cebu where press freedom is actually "celebrated" not just for a day but for an entire week, World Press Freedom Day came and went with almost nary a breeze to rustle the leaves and suggest its passing. The near-silence was deafening. As to what that augurs – it can only be uninspiring.

In only two fronts was there a determined effort to salvage what relevance the day still meant for real democracies in the world, for whom press freedom is supposed to mean a lot. Unfortunately, the Philippines figured prominently as one of those two fronts, the other being the United States. Rightly or wrongly, the two countries are being referred to as places where press freedom is under threat.

Sadly, not one of the media outlets that took the time to make the reference bothered to produce a shred of evidence that would suggest the existence of such a threat. No media outlets are being padlocked in either country and no journalist has been picked up and thrown to jail for any act related to his job as a member of the press.

What these two countries do have are presidents who have made no bones criticizing certain sectors of the media. Both Donald Trump and Rodrigo Duterte refused to remain the constant whipping boys of the media and have decided to hit back. But neither employed any of the awesome powers of the state against the fourth estate. They merely used one of media's own tools – the power to criticize – and turned it around against their tormentors.

It is basically nothing more than a tit-for-tat, with one very critical and telling element: It embarrassingly exposed the inability of the media to take what it perennially dishes out. If the media can criticize, why cannot the subjects of their critiques fire back as well? Minus the acrimony and the decibels, it is still a fair exchange of ideas, don't you think?

Unless Trump and Duterte start to really squeeze some delicate media balls, it is difficult to imagine press freedom and its alter ego free speech come under any real threat anytime soon from these two unconventional and outspoken leaders. In fact, press freedom and free speech should grow stronger in an environment where there is now a clear exchange, unlike before when only one side did the talking because nobody dared ever tangle with the all-powerful press.