Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto raised eyebrows on Thursday after strongly criticizing some well-known journalists. He accused them of doing what he called “paid interviews” with contractors who are now trying to join politics.
Mayor Vico posted on Facebook after old videos resurfaced showing contractor Curlee Discaya and his wife Sarah being interviewed by big names in the media—Korina Sanchez and Julius Babao. Photos of those interviews also spread online, making the issue even hotter.
According to Sotto, the problem is not just about the interviews themselves. He questioned why these contractors would allegedly be willing to spend millions of pesos just to appear in those shows.
“Before big journalists agree to interview contractors who want to run for office, didn’t they ever ask themselves, ‘Why is this person ready to pay ₱10 million just to talk to me?’” Sotto said.
The mayor explained that while this act may not be technically illegal, it still damages the trust and honor of journalism.
“At the very least, it should be considered shameful and against the spirit of their code of ethics,” he added.
Some people defend these interviews, saying they are just lifestyle features or sponsored content. But Sotto disagreed. He said that journalists, whether they like it or not, are lending their credibility to questionable people in exchange for money.
For him, this is a dangerous form of corruption. He reminded the public that corruption doesn’t only exist in government offices but also in other sectors like media.
He then urged everyone to take part in fixing the system.
“We can slowly but surely break this cycle if more and more of us consistently do our part, wherever we are and whatever our position may be, one step at a time,” Sotto said.
