Tips on how to cover Duterte’s press conference from Mindanao-based journalist.
A Mindanao-based journalist Edith Ging Cadauya shared her tips on how to cover the incoming president Rodrigo Duterte during press conference and interviews.
Cadauaya took the social media site Facebook to air his reaction about media groups urging the journalists to boycott the press conference of Duterte.
The journalist said that she has been covering his press conference and daily activities for two decades. According to her, the reporters cannot stop the outgoing Davao City mayor when he wants to emphasize certain points.
She also added that the Davao media is aware that the 71-year-old Mayor is using a particular case to emphasize what he means.
“Davao media is aware that Duterte sometimes use a particular case to contextualize what he means to emphasize his point,” she wrote.
Furthermore, Cadauaya said that if you take Duterte’s words without studying it, you will end up having a wrong interpretation and you will likely misquote him.
On Thursday, Duterte dared journalists to boycott him. He said that he doesn’t care if nobody is covering him since he doesn’t want publicity.
Duterte also dared the journalists to stop the journalism in the country. He also addressed the Manila-based journalists not to come back in Davao City for interviews.
Read the full post of Edith Ging Cadauya:
Understanding Duterte’s mouth
President-elect Mayor Rody Duterte is now the subject of the media after he issued statement about some members of the Philippine Press.
I used to cover Duterte as my news source for more than two decades now.
Covering his press conferences and his day to day activities as mayor of Davao was more of a challenge than just a coverage.
First, Duterte talks the way he thinks on the issue and you cannot stop him from explaining when he wants to emphasize certain points.
Davao media is aware that Duterte sometimes use a particular case to contextualize what he means to emphasize his point.
“Interviewing Duterte sometimes mean, you need to do a research because he often give you a figure of speech and if you do not know the issue you will end up misquoting him,” says one of my mentors when I was about to join the mainstream media in 1992.
The editor who fielded me to the daily newspaper specifically pointed out “study Duterte’s mouth and his body language for you to understand him better.”
True enough, for how many years covering the Duterte mayorship, I heard in many instances, Duterte ended up asking the media “is this what you mean? please repeat your question, I didn’t get it”.
During interviews, Duterte provides every answer to your question.
But IF YOU TAKE HIS WORDS HOOK LINE and SINKER AND WITHOUT CONTEXTUALIZING IT, YOU WILL END UP MISQUOTING HIM AND YOUR INTERPRETATION OF FACTS WILL BE DISTORTED.
His recent statement about the media k****** was A TYPICAL situation, he was asked “what is your policy on media k******?’
I guess Duterte answered on the premise that a broadcaster was k***** in Metro manila and he went on with his usual explanation about how the media work and how some members of the media who are on the take works.
But he emphasized “There are so many good members of the media.”
Now, the question and the answer was not contextualized–the result?? oh well, SOME MEDIA GROUPS URGED JOURNALIST TO BOYCOTT the Duterte press conference.
But, during the last three weeks, Duterte only held three announced press conferences–In many occasions it was the media who spied and held ambush/tipped interviews.
Now, who gets what?