The Hardest Assignment

I just completed one of the hardest assignments I’ve ever had in this job thus far. It’s not difficult because the point people were difficult to reach. In fact, they were very accommodating. Neither was it because the subject matter was an uncommon one. The question of censorship is about as old as the media and entertainment industry itself.

The trouble with this assignment is that what’s right will always be a relative matter. People have different levels of tolerance on what is moral, what is artistic, and what should and should not be shown.

The deeper I dug into the story, the more I realized that both sides had valid points, as well as some short-sightedness. Someone on one side thought it would be a good idea to tip off the press and send reporters on a wild goose chase. Yes, I was not alone. On one of the interviews, I bumped into a reporter from a rival newspaper. We had arrived to question a certain individual on his censorship decision. The poor man had thought we schemed to arrive at his office at the same time as some grand scheme of the media to deface his institution. In the end, all it really was is a he said-she said matter; each side with conflicting stories and sadly biased logic. And I had a deadline to meet. Just great.

It’s all frighteningly familiar, reminding me a lot of an incident that had happened back in college. A Filipino adaptation of The Vagina Monologues was set to be staged on our school. One of the school’s board members, however, wasn’t too keen on the choice of title, or the language, for that matter. As we all know, the colloquial Filipino word for vagina is not too pleasing to the ears. Indeed, the play has its own artistic merits and brings across a very valuable message. The governing body of the school, however, feels that the medium with which it brings this message across is not as noble.

As one would expect, a lengthy and exhausting debate ensued. On one side, we had the artists that championed the various merits of the show. “Who’s afraid of such a little word?” they’d say. I remember simply pronouncing it in the local dialect never failed to trigger some laughter in the publications room. On the other, the governing body feels that that same message can be brought across through less scandalous means.

It’s nothing new to our country really. Modern modes of expression constantly clash with the issue of censorship, and how far is too far. We’ve seen it happen with countless movies and books that have sought to challenge our comfort zones and ways of thinking, only to be met by stiff resistance.

In the beginning, I was excited to get to work on such a pressing and sensitive issue. I later learned that I’m truly caught between the two. On one hand I have my family, my father and the foundation he works for has long been pushing for better child-friendly programming. His efforts have gained the admiration of the very censor board I had to tap for questioning. On the other hand, there is the art community, one I’ve grown to know and love in all my years in the Fine Arts Department of the Ateneo. I don't know the artists personally, but I know that without them, I wouldn't have the courage to write the stories that started my love for writing. I’d very much love to support one side as much as the other. Trouble is, there’s only so much space on paper, and only one side you can truly support.

There’s always the cop out that the media must remain neutral. It’s one I had to take this time. Not that I didn’t want to choose sides. The consequences that weigh on each, however, make the decision so difficult.

What’s somewhat comforting is that both sides, in a way, got what they wanted. The governing board had their decision implemented, with much criticism, of course. The artist, has his work uploaded into youtube instead, and thanks to the media buzz surrounding it and youtube’s more liberal standards, is enjoying quite a lot of attention.

Like many of my stories, it was open ended. I left the readers with all the pertinent information they needed to make their own informed decision. There’s so much more I wanted to say, and equally as much that stopped me from doing so.