CA upholds libel charges vs. ABS-CBN officials

The Court of Appeals (CA) has upheld a Department of Justice (DOJ) finding that there was probable cause to file libel charges against current and former officials and talents of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. in connection with its allegations that GMA Network “stole” exclusive video footage in 2004.

In a resolution penned by CA 10th Division Judge Eduardo Peralta Jr. dated June 9, 2014, the appellate court dismissed the petition for review (certiorari) filed by ABS-CBN over a DOJ ruling ordering the City Prosecutor of Quezon City to file libel charges against ABS-CBN chairman Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III, and several executives and talents of ABS-CBN.

“The Petition for Certiorari dated January 13, 2012 is hereby dismissed for lack of merit,” the resolution read.

In a four-page ruling issued by Justice Secretary Leila De Lima on December 14, 2011, she said GMA Network had proved that all the elements of libel, namely, defamatory imputation tending to cause dishonor, malice, publication, and identifiability of the person defamed were present in the utterances and statements made in an ABS-CBN news reports about GMA’s use of what ABS-CBN claimed as its exclusive video.


“The malicious imputation was evident from the use of the words ‘magnanakaw ng aming eksklusibong kuha,’ ‘pamimirata ng footage,’ ‘pagnanakaw ay isang malaking krimen,’ and ‘pagnanakaw ng video’ uttered by [ABS-CBN respondents],” De Lima said in the ruling.

The libel case stemmed from ABS-CBN's allegation that GMA Network stole its live newsfeed of the arrival of overseas Filipino worker Angelo Dela Cruz at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on July 22, 2004 after he was released by his Iraqi captors.

The footage was aired by GMA News in its Flash Report but GMA Network's footage was taken from Reuters Television Service (Reuters), with which GMA had a subscription contract for videos.

After the video airing incident, ABS-CBN, in its now defunct shows "Insider" and "Magandang Umaga Bayan" used the phrases, “pagnanakaw ng aming eksklusibong kuha” and “pamimirata ng footage” in their reports on the incident. One report further said “ang pagnanakaw ay isang malaking krimen.”

“We must however take this opportunity to likewise remind media practitioners of the high ethical standards attached to and demanded by their noble profession. The danger of an unbridled irrational exercise of the right of free speech and press, that is, in utter contempt of the rights of others and in willful disregard of the cumbrous responsibilities inherent in it,” the CA said in its resolution.

Acording to a report aired on GMA News' “24 Oras” Thursday, aside from the junking of ABS-CBN's petition for certiorari, the CA, in the same ruling, also upheld the filing of libel charges against Lopez, senior vice-president Jose Ramon Olives, vice-president for news operations Jake Maderazo, former ABS-CBN vice-president for news operations Luisita “Luchi” Cruz-Valdes, assistant vice president for news operations Jose “Jing” Magsaysay Jr., news operations director Alfonso “Pal” Marquez, supervising producer Maria Progena Estonilo Reyes, reporter and anchor Lynda Jumilla, executive producer of the now defunct program "Insider" Lilibeth Frondoso, executive producer of "Magandang Umaga Bayan" Annie Eugenio, executive producer of "News Patrol" Dondi Garcia, Luis Alejandro and former ABS-CBN news anchor Erwin Tulfo.

On February 14, 2013, Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 88 ordered the arrest of the accused in the libel charges filed by the QC Prosecutor's Office. All of them were able to post bail.

On March 3, 2011, the CA dismissed with finality the copyright infringement case filed by ABS-CBN against GMA Network over the airing of the said video footage. — Elizabeth Marcelo/JDS, GMA News