Changing of the Guards
Whenever there are major movements in newsrooms and networks, journalists and ordinary folks alike often take notice. There is endless speculation about what could have caused a resignation or a dismissal. Rumors about who’s soon to get the boot or who’s expected to come barging in swirl like whirling dervishes. After all, it is an information business.
When Cheche Lazaro and her Probe Team left GMA-7 in November 2003, it left a lot of bad blood that has not been diluted one bit by the passage of time. When Luchi Cruz Valdez left ABS-CBN in 2008 after jumping from the GMA fences in 2002, talk about a power struggle among the newsroom executives also circulated among practitioners. When Bel Cunanan, a long-time columnist of the Inquirer, was let go just this year, it stirred controversy and raised questions about partisanship among columnists, or journalists, for that matter.
When Maria Ressa, news and current affairs head of ABS-CBN, announced Monday evening that she was ending her contract this year and that Ging Reyes, the network’s North America bureau chief was taking over, it unleashed a fusillade of questions and speculations about the reasons for her departure.
Was there a falling out with big boss Gabby Lopez? Was the hostage crisis coverage the culprit? Did both internal and external politics become too hot to handle? Was the invisible hand of TV5’s Manny V. Pangilinan at work somewhere? Was the entry of Ging (a former executive producer of TV Patrol when Noli de Castro was at the helm), and the foreseeable return of the former vice president himself, part of the reason? And for that matter, Korina Sanchez? Are there irreconcilable differences over the return of these two personalities who have strong associations with politics?
If there’s anything certain about the media, it is its instability. And borrowing from author Dan Ariely, the media too can be so “predictably irrational.” One time you’re at the top; another moment, you’re out. If you’re lucky and patient enough to wait it out, you can even get a second wind. Reasons for the predictable unpredictability can range from purely business interests to political pressure, public criticism, popularity, loose talk, or just plain personal issues.
The irrationality is especially true for television whose vulnerability stems from both its influence and its being a capital-intensive business. Its strength is also the very source of its weakness. When journalists say “you are only as good as your last story,” it is true especially for TV where stories are even more fleeting. Network executives would adopt a variation: “You are only as good as the last meaningful battle won.”
How does one survive the instability and irrationality of the media? Veterans’ lists would include the following: 1. know the lay of the land and the power players; 2. do due diligence and know what the agenda or interests of the players are—these tend to shift; 3. choose the battles you wish to be part of—not all battles are worth fighting; 4. learn the art of healthy compromise—reciprocity demands give and take; 5. ally yourself with the dominant players; 6. strengthen your forces and constantly watch your back; 7. have a core group that does regular analyses and readings of the situation with you; 8. adapt or adjust your action plans accordingly; 9. avoid painting yourself into irrelevance; constantly reinvent yourself; 10. have an exit plan and timetable in anticipation of a worst case scenario, and leave when compromising your core beliefs and principles becomes an imperative.
The soul must remain intact. At all costs.
