Palace: No calls for ad boycott against media

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang said it did not call for a boycott of advertising in the media.

In a press conference, Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said “there is no such call by the President. Let me be clear with that. There is no call from the President to boycott media. In fact, we regard media as a necessary partner to governance.”

Last week, during the induction of the new officers and directors of the Advertising Board of the Philippines, Aquino called on the agencies to place advertisements in media that promote “good citizenship…[and] uphold truth and fairness.”

“I understand that advertising is commerce, but the decisions of where to advertise can also be used to encourage responsible corporate behavior and improve the level of discourse in our country,” he said.

“Instead of just cost per thousand, why not add other criteria? Does the program where you are placing your advertisement promote the values of good citizenship? Does the network or newspaper that receives your placements uphold truth and fairness?” he added.

Lacierda said the media has misconstrued the meaning of Aquino’s message.

“The funny thing is media has taken this to mean as though we are trying to blackmail or trying to tell them to ban or to boycott,” he said.

He noted, “we are not averse to criticism by the way. We're used to that. What we are saying also is that, we need to also show to the people what this government is doing. We appeal to fairness. We appeal to good citizenship on the part of the Adboard members.” (report from abs-cbnNEWS.com)