Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto has weighed in on the resurgence of viral interviews featuring his former political opponent, Sarah Discaya, which recently appeared on the vlogs of several well-known journalists.
Sotto said that while the interviews may not be “illegal,” they clearly cross the boundaries of journalism ethics and instead serve the interests of those “corrupt” individuals behind them.
“Hindi naman ito journalism. More of lifestyle lang,” the mayor pointed out, stressing that such practices diminish the credibility of the press.
Discaya’s company was among those earlier flagged by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. for allegedly being involved in questionable flood control projects. The Senate has already summoned Discaya to answer questions regarding the controversy.
“I know for a fact that there are many good, honest people in media who are disappointed, if not angered, at practices like this which undermine the integrity of their profession,” Sotto said in a social media post.
Discaya has yet to release any statement since the issue broke out.
It can be recalled that Sotto trounced Discaya in the Pasig City mayoral race, beating her with a lead of more than 250,000 votes.