Olivar to De Quiros: Remember basic principles of journalism

Some comments on Conrad de Quiros’ column on the bishops (“Rock the boat,” Opinion, 2/5/14):

1. I’m deeply dismayed that Conrad, who is (unlike me) an Ateneo product, finds the Rolling Stone magazine comparison of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI to the horror-film villain Freddy Krueger not only “totally deserved,” but also “perfectly brilliant.” If we’re going to offend people with Hollywood caricatures of dignitaries, how would Conrad feel if critics were to compare his favorite president to, say, the Dustin Hoffman character in the movie “Rain Man”?

2. The invented title of “highest Church official of the land” belongs neither to Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle nor to Archbishop Socrates Villegas. According to a retired archbishop I know, who is presumably more familiar with Church affairs than even Conrad, “all bishops are held to be equal, and every bishop and archbishop and cardinal is only subject to the Pope.”

3. There is no political test for being a good bishop. Blinded by his anti-Arroyo animus, Conrad again slanders the bishops who accepted second-hand SUVs from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office during the previous administration so they could minister to the remotest reaches of their dioceses. But this time he goes even farther, slandering the Church herself by questioning what exactly she has done about poverty in the land.

How conveniently he forgets that the Church is the single biggest charitable institution in the world. And if we look around us at all those Catholic schools, hospitals, charities, lay volunteer groups and outreach missions, how obvious it should be—except to Conrad—that the Philippines is no exception to the rule of Church benevolence.

4. I’m appalled that Conrad considers “Archbishop Villegas and his ilk” to be a “curse.” Is this his all-purpose label for anyone who disagrees with him? Will he not spare even men of the cloth from his vituperation? If Conrad truly wants to be a “good journalist,” as he claims in his piece, may I remind him of a couple of basic rules from journalism school that he seems to have forgotten:

Stick to the facts. And treat people fairly.

—GARY B. OLIVAR,

Center for Strategy,

Enterprise & Intelligence,

373 Boni Avenue,

Mandaluyong City