If, as the old saying goes, necessity is the mother of invention, then OpinYon was borne out of a necessity to change the game in Philippine media.
The country's first advocacy paper was started exactly 15 years ago by public relations specialist Ray Junia, who saw a need to inform ordinary Filipinos and people “in the know” on the real issues that affect their daily lives.
“Freedom of the press” in the Philippines is an irony, Junia always pointed out. “Sinu-sino ang may-ari ng mga media outlet, mga pahayagan, mga TV at radio stations? Either big business oligarchs or people with vested interests.”
Media in the Philippines have been criticized as being too shallow, tending to avoid “sensitive” issues (sensitive, in the sense that reporting on these issues would hurt big business).
“Do you think these oligarchs will allow the media they control to publish stories against them? Do you think they will allow the ordinary public to see how they have effectively robbed the masses for profit? Of course not,” he added.
Thus, OpinYon was born: an outlet for intelligent discussion on the pressing political and economic issues of the day, as well as a champion for the rights and welfare of the people.
Surviving - and thriving
The first five years of OpinYon were fraught with financial difficulties, not to mention the retaliation of the big business tycoons whom Junia and his brilliant editorial team dared to cross with.
For instance, large malls and bookstores refused to carry OpinYon inside their premises due to its relentless criticism of big business oligarchs, and there were reports of “mass buyouts” of copies designed to deprive its readership.
And yet OpinYon managed to get the attention of "insiders" in government and business due to its radical and unique approach to tackling the main economic and political issues of the time.
By 2015, the seeds of what would become the "Run Duterte Run" campaign was planted – a campaign that was successfully carried in the 2016 presidential elections with the victory of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Buoyed by the success of its “Run Duterte Run” campaign, Junia in 2018 decided to expand OpinYon's reach and bring its unique brand of journalism to the local level.
Local advocacy papers
Running a community newspaper isn't new to Junia: in the late 1980's, he first ventured into the field with the Laguna Times, one of the most successful local newspapers in the province at the time.
In 2016, OpinYon tested the waters with the launch of OpinYon Mindanao, its first regional branch. While OpinYon Mindanao was short-lived, it gave Junia and his staff confidence that its own unique brand of advocacy journalism is what the local media scene needed.
Drawing into his experience with both Laguna Times and OpinYon, Junia launched OpinYon Tacloban (later rebranded into OpinYon 8) and OpinYon Laguna in 2018.
While OpinYon Laguna and Region 8 had to literally start from scratch as they built the trust of local political and business leaders, these editions immediately caught the attention of local officials, business leaders, and the reading public for tackling the major political and economic issues of their own constituencies.
“Mas interesado ang mga tao sa mga nangyayari sa kani-kanilang mga sariling bayan o lungsod. I already saw that with Laguna Times, when we would often beat national tabloids when it comes to readership here in our province. And that’s what we want to give to our readers in Laguna and Region 8,” Junia recounted.
But what is most remarkable is that both OpinYon Laguna and Region 8 was able to continue their mission when the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020.
These editions were among the handful of newspapers that were not only able to survive the economic impacts of the pandemic, but also provide their readers with accurate and timely information as the pandemic progressed.
Into the new media
After the Covid-19 pandemic, OpinYon Laguna, like other media organizations, found itself at a crossroads.
Social media, which had slowly gained traction before the Covid-19 pandemic, is now the primary source of news and information among the public.
With that came the perils of fake news, misinformation (and disinformation), and the rise of artificial intelligence.
“That’s when we realized that the times had changed. While print still remains prominent, social media has become the top source of information. That’s when we saw the need to reinvent ourselves,” Junia recounted.
Thanks to this “reinvention,” OpinYon Laguna now ranks among the top media sites in the province, with over 67,000 followers on Facebook.
It is now quoted as a main source of information by local government units, while its exposes of public issues have served to galvanize the public into action, especially in the wake of the recent exposes of massive graft and corruption in government.
However, Junia said throughout it all, OpinYon continues to uphold its original philosophy of “politicizing economic issues and giving an economic perspective to political issues.”
Amidst the ever-changing media landscape, he believes that it is through staying true to its founding aims that will enable OpinYon to withstand the challenges of the times.
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