FURTHER AMENDING PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 576, ENTITLED “ABOLISHING THE MEDIA ADVISORY COUNCIL AND THE BUREAU OF STANDARDS FOR MASS MEDIA, AND AUTHORIZING THE ORGANIZATION OF REG…

WHEREAS, the important role of mass communications in national
development necessitates the assumption by the government of an active
role in promoting the development of mass media, consistent with the
principle of press freedom and the need for social responsibility in its
exercise;

WHEREAS, the self-regulating print and broadcast media councils or
bodies authorized to be organized under Presidential Decree No. 576
have succeeded by and large in self-regulation, internal discipline and
maintenance of standards for professional conduct and excellence;

WHEREAS, it is necessary to enhance the role of these councils or
bodies not only in elevating the standards to excellence of mass media,
but also in assisting the government in the enforcement of the laws,
such as the nationality requirement in the Constitution, relating to
mass media activities;

WHEREAS, it is desirable that the registration of mass media
should be exercised in such a manner as to avoid the possibility of
oligopolistic self-regulation, and thus afford greater opportunity for
participation in mass media activities; and

WHEREAS, it is desirable to improve upon the membership in the
regulatory council for each mass media group by including prominent
citizens who will represent the viewpoint of the general public and
provide greater balance in the deliberations of the council.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Republic
of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the
Constitution, do hereby order and decree the following:

SECTION 1.  Section 2 of Presidential Decree No. 576, as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:

“SEC. 2. For purposes of this Decree, mass media shall be divided
into two groups: Print Media and Broadcast Media. “Print Media” includes
all newspapers, periodicals, magazines, journals, and publications and
all advertising therein, and billboards, neon signs and the like.
“Broadcast Media” includes radio and television broadcasting in all
their aspects, including all forms of audio, visual or audio-visual
communications such as video tapes, citizens band, and other similar
electronic devices, and cinematography, to the extent that these forms
are utilized as mass media through radio or television broadcasting
transmission. The Print Media group and the Broadcasting Media group are
hereby authorized to organize and determine the composition of a body
or council within each group which shall be responsible for instituting
and formulating systems of self-regulation and internal discipline
within its own ranks; Provided, That there shall be adequate
representation from the general public in such body or council by the
inclusion of knowledgeable prominent citizens of unquestioned
integrity.”

SECTION 2.  Section 3 of Presidential Decree No. 576, as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:

“SEC. 3. Each regulatory council or body shall be responsible for
the elevation of the ethics and the standards of excellence of mass
media in all its phases within each group. Towards this end, each
council or body is hereby authorized to adopt policies, formulated
guidelines, fix standards and promulgate reasonable rules and
regulations for the operation and discipline of all mass media under its
supervision, and to administer and enforce the same. Such policies,
standards, guidelines, and rules and regulations shall be in conformity
with the provisions of existing laws, especially those on national
security.

“The Minister of Public Information shall be furnished copies of
the rules and regulations and other issuances as well as decisions of
the regulatory councils or bodies, for purposes of information only.”

SECTION 3.  Section 4 of Presidential Decree No. 576, as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:

“SEC. 4. No mass media activity shall be undertaken by any person
or entity in the Philippines without first being registered with the
regulatory council or body concerned, which shall issue certificates of
registration to all applicants qualified under the Constitution and the
laws, and under its respective rules or regulations: Provided, That each
council shall have the authority to suspend or cancel such certificates
of registration for such cause or causes as may be provided in the
rules and the existence of which council or body shall have duly
determined: Provided, further, That no certificate of registration shall
be granted in any manner or under any condition to any of those engaged
in mass media which were, in September 1972, ordered closed and/or
sequestered upon the promulgation of Proclamation No. 1081, by order of
the President or the Secretary of National Defense, or which thereafter
may be ordered closed as a consequence of a finding that it has been
utilized for purposes of subversion, sedition and other subversive
activities, inimical to the national security.”

SECTION 4.  This Decree shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 14th day of January, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and eighty-one.

(SGD.) FERDINAND E. MARCOS
President of the Philippines

By the President:

(SGD.) JUAN C. TUVERA
Presidential Executive Assistant