Tribune throughout the years as ‘told’ by its loyal staff

Looking back

By Stephanie Maureen F. Asi, Staff Writer

03/13/2010

In the world of beauty, 10 years spell a whole lot of difference. To most women who are just hitting their 20s, everything is in its right place — the body is in great shape and the skin has a youthful glow. Once they hit their 30s, that’s when signs of trouble begin to emerge. Fine lines and wrinkles may start to develop and it’s not so easy to lose weight anymore. And then there’s the 40s, when the wrinkles deepen, age and sun spots begin to appear, and to most women, the body type they have may well be the result of what they’ve been doing for the past decades. You see, 10 years may feel like an avalanche of changes in the body. Could this also be true in the office setting and the world of publishing?

Well, it depends. When The Daily Tribune launched its operations in the beginning of the new century, year 2000, there were more pages, the building where the office is still situated to this day had a different name and owners and, yes, the pioneers all say, “We were younger then.” Today, the paper is 10 years older, the pioneers are aging, er, aging gracefully with the publication and there are, on most days, 12 pages that come out of the printers and off to the households and offices that regularly read the daily.

But those aren’t the only things that have changed. Columnist Louie Logarta says, “The guys I started out with a decade ago aren’t around anymore....I miss them a lot.” While many have come and gone, Art Director Sonny Bismonte also appreciates the growth of the people working in the paper. “From a modest-sized staff at the start to the lean but mean staff we now have, Tribune has always been consistent in its news and views — ‘without fear or favor,’” he muses. But for business reporter Ayen Infante, not much has changed. “...We still keep the operation in the same old building. Indeed, the best location accessible assigned to authorities to closely watch our daily operation.” Photographer Tunying Penaredondo agrees. “(It’s the) same good people,” he says.

It’s a mixture of changing and constant “settings” at Tribune for Associate Editor Chito Lozada though. “Same salary, more jobs,” he quips when asked to compare how Tribune is then and now.

Changing or not, for the staff of the newspaper, Tribune is like the 40-year-old woman who’s aging gracefully: Older, maybe; wiser, certainly; and every bit as glamorous as a 20-year-old who’s life outside the confines of the university is just about to begin. Plus, she’s got something a 20-year-old doesn’t have — an arsenal of lessons she gained from the one-man competition called life. “We started good in Tribune, but I believe that our situation is much better now,” muses Tribune driver Allan Borga.

So why have some of the pioneers stayed on and new ones continue to embark in the cutthroat world of publishing with Tribune? Again, there are a variety of reasons. For one, there are the memorable incidents that both terrified and got them attached to the publication.

Ask any old-timer in the paper and they’ll most likely name three incidents that they consider most memorable: One, the terrifying fire that almost burned down the office back in 2001; two, the day of the raid when men in uniform stormed inside GLC’s 8th and 9th floors at midnight in search of who knows what, which also got the boss, Ninez Cacho Olivarez, her 15 minutes on TV; and three, that time with the installment salary pay scheme, which tested the “money-saving savvy” of the employees.

Logarta recounts, “When the government tried to shut down the paper in February 2006, in conjunction with Malacañang’s declaration of a state of emergency and the issuance of Proclamation 1017. The police raided the Tribune office..., served the closure and confiscated editorial materials....The government later recanted after so much hue and cry from all over. So much for that excursion...”

Columnist Edgar Cruz also pitches in to these memorable anecdotes of experiences that the paper has surpassed. “When fire gutted a lower floor of the Trib building,.. I thought it was the end of my writing career. Felt like the end of the world back then,” he describes.

Fellow columnist Resty Vergara also has one to add: “The challenge and the privilege of having a regular column in Tribune is quite an experience.”

While the “attachment” and lure of working for Trib (as we like to call our paper sometimes) usually is because of these unique experiences, there are, of course, what some would also call the “perks.” For Sports Editor Aldrin Cardona, the perks of Tribune are simple. “My co-employees are nice and the boss stays away from us, most of the time,” he laughs. Lozada also values the freedom that writing for Tribune bequeaths. “(The best thing about working here is the) freedom as a writer. Except for one or two cases, no stories are sanitized,” shares the Associate Editor. Meanwhile, Logarta counts the privilege of meeting people he otherwise wouldn’t have met if not through his job in the paper. “I wouldn’t have been able to talk to Gen. Fidel V. Ramos or Defense Secretary Johnny Ponce Enrile at the height of Edsa I if I had been and assistant manager of a commercial bank. I wouldn’t have been able to meet President Aquino during the height of her power and popularity in the Malacañang Palace... I wouldn’t have been able to toss a question to the late John B. Kennedy Jr....who was a transit passenger in the Ninoy Aquino Internation Airport with his girlfriend Daryl Hanna, while they were on the way to a luxury resort in Palawan if I had been an OFW in Abu Dhabi,” he rattles off.

Vergara’s answer echoes that of Logarta’s. “(The highlights of my job include) the chance to cover international events and special local events such as covering the President’s party and other government officials in the Senate and Congress. Meeting topnotch people in the society is worth the effort,” he says.

But, ultimately, it’s the admirable dedication to the job of its staff that makes them stay with the paper albeit the sometimes “harsh” and perilous working conditions. “I have been covering the Trade and Industry/Investments beat ever since. It’s a day to day thing to deliver timely, relevant stories. Most of the time (these are) business and related news that carry angles other broadsheets would not likely entertain (and) which readers would not want to miss,” she says, adding, “Staying in Tribune means letting big job opportunities pass me by all these years and it’s a happy choice because I know I may never enjoy the freedom of giving fearless stories...”

Ten years may have already whizzed by, but one thing’s for sure. The first decade holds the promise of bigger and greater things. We’re just getting started.

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