Sadness and nostalgia enveloped me when I learned about the passing away of a journalists I respected and admired most.
Early morning of Friday, June 12, my colleague, Carla Gomez, sent me an Associated Press story about the passing away of David Briscoe, an American journalist, who served as AP Manila Bureau Chief from 1970 to 1986, when he was transferred to Washington, DC, where he focused on international affairs.
The AP obituary quoted David – while summing up his role in chronicling Ferdinand Marcos Sr. regime administration’s yielding to the 1986 People’s Revolution – as saying: “I expect to witness or cover no greater event in my life.”
In 2001, following his Washington, DC assignment, he was designated as AP Bureau chief in Honolulu, Hawaii, until his retirement in 2009. He died in Hawaii in the presence of his family on June 7 at the age of 82.
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Prior to his almost four decades of media work, David worked as a Peace Corps volunteer and later as a journalist in Bicol, where he eventually met his wife, Leonor, a community paper editor.
I met David when he came to Bacolod City to cover the brewing massive protests in the province, particularly the arrest and incarceration of the Negros Nine, which included Australian priest Brian Gore and Irish missionary Niall O’Brien.
That was when I was editor of the Visayan DAILY STAR, then on its infancy stage.
David struck me as a genial and gentle person, which made him stand out among journalists occupying senior positions. I remember him as a very approachable boss, one with a guiding hand and a ready smile, which I thought was a reflection of his deep exposure to Filipino culture.
A senior editor of the AP Manila Bureau later called me up upon David’s instruction, to ask if I could serve as AP stringer for Negros – a rare opportunity I accepted which lasted for over two years.
The Negros Nine case was a celebrated media fare, which lasted for over a year. It had high news value, particularly to editors, reporters and photojournalists – both Manila and foreign-based who descended to Bacolod City to cover the almost daily trials of the church workers facing trumped up multiple murder charges.
For us working then with the DAILY STAR, the case largely helped in establishing the credibility, public trust, sustainability and professionalism of the paper.
With me as editor covering for AP, our president, the late Ninfa Leonardia reporting for Reuters and Carla for the then United Press International, DAILY STAR became a reliable partner of the top news agencies of the world – a badge of honor we carried as we navigated the challenging years of community journalism.
Other overseas publications in Australia, Ireland and Japan, among others, relied on us for daily updates when their reporters and correspondents could not cover Negros Nine and related developments then.
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As Negros was a rich source of international news, which included the wave of massive wide protests, the sugar crisis and its eventual impact on the local economy, health and nutrition, my contact continues with David, who personally came to Bacolod City a number of times for first-hand coverages.
My personal link with David lasted until his assignment in Washington DC, when I asked him if he could serve as my reference in my professional growth opportunities.
He gladly granted my request and sent me a copy of his recommendation letter, which highlighted in particular my coverages for AP of the Negros Nine case, the sugar crisis and the anti-administration protest rallies. I also used his letter recommendation in other professional pursuits
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In my conversations with him during his visits, David shared tips to further improve my coverage and writing craft, reminders that have been useful in my career as a journalist, editor and media educator.
He also related how he has imbibed the local culture, particularly with his marriage to a Filipino wife and his almost two decades of media work in the Philippines, something which has immensely transformed his life as a person and as a professional journalist.
The AP obituary on David concluded with the plan of his wife and family “to hire a boat and scatter his ashes in the waters of the Pacific, hoping the currents take his remains back to his adopted home.”
Farewell, David, my boss, mentor and friend. You are in the mind and heart of many whose lives you touched in the various phases of your long media career.
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Do not mistreat foreigners who are living in your land … Love them as you love yourselves. (Leviticusv19:33-34) | NWI
