A History of Journalism in the Philippines: Early Years (2 of 11)

Boletin Oficial Agricola de Filipinas was a monthly newspaper published on January 31, 1894. Among its writers was Manuel del Busto, a very competent individual about agriculture. Founded, edited, and published by Manuel Artigas in February 1894, El Consultor de los Municipios was a fortnightly periodical dedicated to the protection of municipal interests.

On July 10, 1894, Isabelo de los Reyes founded El Municipio Filipino, a publication in Spanish and in Spanish and Tagalog dealing with legislation and jurisprudence. Adolfo Vallespinosa, lieutenant auditor of the war, and Francisco Iznart, chief official of the administration, also established La Legislación dealing with law enforcements and judicial procedures.

Mariano de Ciria founded El Album Militar on October 5, 1894; while Pedro Paterno founded the Boletín del Museo – Biblioteca de Filipinas on October 12, 1894. Published with permission from civil authorities, its first issue came off the press on January 15, 1895.

Unique among the weekly newspapers and periodicals were satirical publications issued during the last two decades of the Nineteenth Century. These publications included La Semana Elegante, March 1, 1884; Manila Alegre, December 6, 1885; and El Cinife, October 18, 1894. All of which were founded, edited, and published by Pedro Groizard.

Juan Atayde published Pliegong Tagalog, the first newspaper of politics, commerce, and entertainment, on May 3, 1896. Kapatid ng Bayan, the newspaper that consisted of four pages of local, regional, and national issues, was published in 1899.

The first provincial newspaper was El Eco de Vigan, founded and directed anonymously, for reasons anyone can understand, by Alcalde Mayor José Fernández Giver in Vigan3 on January 6, 1884. Rafael Monserrat and Rafael Perez de Valdelomar subsequently edited it.

Other provincial newspapers were El Porvenir de Visayas founded and directed by Diego Jimenez Frades in Iloilo, 1885; El Boletin de Cebu, founded and directed by a brother of Diego Jimenez Frades in Cebu, 1886; El Eco de Panay, founded and edited by Francisco Gutierrez Creps, then supernumerary adjutant in the Cuerpo de Montes in Iloilo, 1887, and El Eco del Sur, founded and edited by Arturo Garcia in Bicol, June 25, 1893.

Rev Fr Mariano Gil edited Patnubay nang Católico, the first newspaper published in Tagalog, in April 1890. It contains articles on tales, morality, lives of saints, and other miscellaneous articles.

Other Tagalog newspapers included Dimasalang, 1900; Pliegong Pilipino, 1900; Muling Pagsilang, 1903; Katubusan, 1905; and Ang Mithi, 1910.