Essay About Journalism Law

Journalism Law and Regulation is rarely discussed in the field of Journalism. Usually, protests arise every time such topic is discussed for it always comes with two sides, protection of the journalists versus the freedom of the press. In discussing such opposing ideas, it would be utmost important to discuss the idea of Journalism law, how it was studied and applied from the other countries and the state of press freedom in the Philippines throughout the history of Journalism in the country. Journalism law is basically a collection of laws that uphold the rights of the journalists in a country. But not all countries have same interpretations for this. According to Kyu Ho Youm (2009) “The sources and objectives of these media laws reflect each society’s political and sociocultural value judgments in weighing press freedom against its competing values”. Countries could apply their laws directly to the press or indirectly, depending on how the country interprets its freedom of speech (Youm 2009). In a study made by Jerry Knudson, he discussed the irony of the colegios, a regulating body

Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility discussed that “Unlike many other countries, there is no body of laws in the Philippines that may be called Media Laws. Instead, [there are] certain laws apply to the mass media as well as to other groups of persons” (2006). These laws originated from various parts of constitutional provisions from Article III which discusses the freedom of speech and press. Also affecting the mass media are the Civil Code which discusses privacy, the Rules of Court which upholds fair administration of justice and contempt and the Revised Penal Code which discusses national security, libel and obscenity (CMFR, 2006). Another important law is the “Shield Law” or the Republic Act 53, amended by RA 1477 which discusses that a journalist could not reveal their source of information (CMFR,