Being a reporter in the 80s, one of the best beats given to me by my editors was covering the first-ever “ Kapihan sa Manila, an early morning coffee media forum held at the Manila Hotel.
The setting up of this Kapihan was timely because of the growing opposition to the Marcos regime; there was a need for the opposition’s voice to be heard or published in the three big newspapers at the time — The Times Journal, Daily Express, and Bulletin. Even the working journalists at these newspapers were not happy because they knew their papers were unbalanced.
Considering the political atmosphere at the time, even the owners of these newspapers, who were relatives or cronies of Marcos, had no choice but to allow space for opposition views.
Since both opposition representatives and government officials attended that public breakfast forum, discussing the country’s current issues became legitimate news.
Well, let’s go back to my story, why covering this early morning media forum was good for me. First off, I had to give 100 percent of my attention to the exchanges of various views being aired there and to ensure that I could get the right quotes from the views expressed by the invited guests, I had to use my mini cassette tape recorder.
Covering that forum widened my knowledge about everything—politics, economics, current events, foreign affairs and even entertainment.
My exposure to that breakfast forum has trained me to write anything “under the sun” or any topic that catches my fancy.
I had to commute every Monday morning from Project 6 in Quezon City to the Manila Hotel to cover the Kapihan; it’s worth all the effort, just to think about the experiences I had that contributed to my growth as a journalist.
There was no need for me to worry that my Kapihan story would land on the inside pages of my newspaper, because any discussion that emanated from that forum would surely land on the front page of the paper. Remember, those topics discussed at the forum were the ‘hot”issues burning the country at that time,
Could you still recall that when Kapihan sa Manila was founded in February 1985, it was exactly one year before the historic People Power Revolution in 1986?
Many years have passed, but I still vividly recall when the late Times Journal Executive Editor Manuel Salak Jr. asked me to cover the Kapihan sa Manila; right then and there, I felt some kind of joy, knowing that Mr. Salak had trust in me and that I could deliver the goods, so to speak.
Aside from the privilege of covering the Kapihan, Mr. Salak told me that I could have my free breakfast at the Manila Hotel by simply getting my receipt. Upon returning to my office to write my story, I could issue a refund immediately.
Since some of the people attending the Kapihan were other government officials and opposition leaders, I had the opportunity to interview them for follow-up stories, which meant I would have other stories to “bank” and write in the next few days. Not only was the Kapihan a good place to get to know people on a personal basis, but it was also where VIPs from the various government departments and agencies gathered.
In January 2025, I had the chance to attend the breakfast forum at Café Adriatico. One thing I noticed was that before the start of the discussion, those media men covering the event were given free breakfast.
Oh, that was a good way to treat journalists these days. Imagine, they have to wake up early in the morning to cover an event.
These days, breakfast media forums are almost everywhere in the country — coffee shops, restaurants, hotels, and TV stations — and, just like the original Kapihan Breakfast forum, the same setup is in place, with opposing parties invited to present their views on the issues of the day.
As I’m writing this piece, I remember journalists Felix Mediavillo of the Daily Express, and Sid Roman of the Bulletin, because the three of us were the first newspapermen, together with some foreign journalists, who gave our very best to report all the verbal exchanges that happened at the first Kapihan in the early 80s*****