The Philippine press mourns the passing of Mr. Jose L. Pavia, one of the pillars of Philippine journalism and a member of The Media Project's global community.

He passed away on Monday at the age of 72 after a battle with lung cancer.  He is survived by his wife, Loreto Quijano and their seven children.

In his more than 50 years as a journalist, Pavia was known as a staunch supporter of press freedom, particularly the infamous Maguindanao massacre that killed 57 people, including 32 Filipino journalists.

Jose Leetai Pavia - my mentor, adviser and confidant in this profession for the last 37 years - became head of the state-owned Philippines News Agency when it was established on March 1, 1973, just five months after then President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared martial throughout the land on Sept. 21, 1972.

Despite the declaration of martial law, JLP was able to “wiggle out” from the glaring eyes of the military censors at that time, and his leadership enabled PNA to have a semblance of independence during those trying times.

Pavia's passion for credibility in the news was second to none.  He was especially committed to accuracy and speed in feeding news to the wires at a time when computer and the internet did not exist.


Joe demanded full coverage of a breaking story until its conclusion, such as the hijacking of a plane at the Manila International Airport in the mid ’70, which on JLP's direction, I covered to the very end.

JLP demanded discipline to the letter from all PNA personnel, even the janitors and telephone operators. Any PNA reporter indulging excuses for poor performance would immediately be dressed down for sloppy writing.

When the celebrated trial of Sen. Benigno S. Aquino Jr. before Military Commission No. 2 started sometime in April 1975, Mr. Pavia assigned me to cover the historic event, which I did until Ninoy was convicted and sentenced to die by musketry on Nov. 25, 1977. The sentence was never carried out.

JLP’s instruction was “to write all what transpired during the hearing with no deletion. Forget about censorship. The desk will handle your story and decide if we run it in the wires or not. Your job is to write, period!”

In addition to my journalistic formation, I am also indebted to JLP for encouraging me to write my first book about former President Fidel V. Ramos entitled FVR Through the Years.  When I visited him last month at his hospital bed, together with Jose “Don Pepe” Rodriquez, a long-time Spanish friend, he asked me about another book project I had underway.

After his stint at PNA, Pavia put up his own community newspaper Mabuhay based in Bulacan in 1980. Mabuhay has won various journalism awards over the years.

Pavia was also a journalism lecturer, here and abroad, even as he discharged his duties as executive director of the Philippine Press Institute.  He was a lifetime member of the National Press Club and Plaridel, an association of journalists based in Metro Manila.