Time To Investigate PH Journalism Not Investigating PH Agriculture!

They are very proud to say they are investigative journalists. (Above "investigative" image from pcij.org) Nonetheless, they have not been investigating PH Agriculture since William Dar took over as the new Secretary of Agriculture 3 weeks ago. So, today, we investigate their definition of investigative.

"Journalism is critical to farming innovation take-up," says SciDev.Net (scidev.net). Need I say more?! Yes, because PH journalists are largely ignoring the developments in agriculture, especially with the very active and wide-ranging role Secretary Dar has assumed since his first day in office. PH farmers have also been largely ignoring farming innovations both software and hardware. And the Big Question of Sustainability.

Philippine agriculture has never been threatened such as these days of Climate Change and the adverse effects of RA 10203 or Rice Tariffication Law.

To rescue PH Agriculture from internal weaknesses and not only protect it from external threats but make its products competitive here and abroad, Secretary Dar has declared the adoption and utilization of "The New Thinking for Agriculture" as expressed in the following 8 paradigms (listed as simplified in my essay, "William Dar's 8 Paradigms For PH New Thinking For Agriculture," 26 August 2019, Ani Kitá, ianikita.blogspot.com):

(1) Modernization of agriculture
(2) Industrialization of agriculture
(3) Promotion of exports
(4) Farm consolidation
(5) Roadmap development
(6) Infrastructure development
(7) Higher budget and investments for agriculture, and
(8) Legislative support.

And the investigative journalists are not investigating any of that! Not that I have heard of.

And what should they be investigating? The language, my dear. Beginning with the word paradigm.

From feedback, I now see that the first problem is not the list itself but what exactly is the list made of – in precise terms, why do you list each of the 8 as a paradigm;what is a paradigm anyway? That's for me to say and the investigative journalists to find out!

In other words, Secretary Dar is now telling us that in order for PH Agriculture to elevate and distribute social good from where it is, in agriculture:

(1) PH must modernize.

(2) PH must industrialize.

(3) PH must promote exports.

(4) PH must consolidate farms.

(5) PH must create roadmaps.

(6) PH must develop infrastructure.

(7) PH must have higher budgets and investments.

(8) PH must have legislative support.

Considering all that, there must be active journalistic support of those 8 paradigms!

"What is the purpose of journalism?" asks American Press (undated, American Press Institute, americanpressinstitute.org), then answers its own question:

The purpose of journalism is… to provide citizens with the information they need to make the best possible decisions about their lives, their communities, their societies, and their governments.

News Manual says, "… The best journalists recognize their role as servants of the people" (thenewsmanual.net).

Katharine Viner says (16 November 2017, "A Mission For Journalism In A Time Of Crisis," The Guardian, theguardian.com), The Guardian's journalistic values include "a sense of duty to the reader and a sense of duty to the community."

Now, where are the investigative journalists when you need them most?!@517