My general impression for some years has been that, of all the nation’s newspaper publications, the Daily Inquirer is the best, the most respected and popular. It offers broad news coverage and appears to have no discernible axes to grind.

The newspaper does work the sensationalist angle to boost circulation by emphasizing scandal or  conflict in big bold headlines, as do most of the Philippine media. This has the unfortunate consequence of showing the Philippines to its citizens as a nation under constant strife.

Stability is what the nation needs to do good works with a minimum of interference, to keep the economy growing and to attract travelers and investors.

It seems to me the columnists in the Inquirer Opinion Section are the best in the Philippines, as a group.

My confidence in the Inquirer gets shaken

But I must say, my ideas about the Inquirer’s integrity were shaken the other day by one editorial that took the…