The Philippine Daily Inquirer, popularly known as the Inquirer, is the most widely read broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines, with a daily circulation of 260,000 copies. It is one of the Philippines' newspapers of record. It is a member of the Asia News Network.
History
The Philippine Daily Inquirer was a daily newspaper founded on 9 December 1985 by publisher Eugenia Apóstol, columnist Max Solivén, together with Betty Go-Belmonte (wife of House Speaker Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte) during the last days of the regime of the Philippine dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, becoming one of the first private newspapers to be established under the Marcos regime.
The Inquirer succeeded the weekly Philippine Inquirer, created in 1985 by Apostol to cover the trial of 25 soldiers accused of complicity in the murder of opposition leader Benigno Aquino, Jr. at the Manila International Airport on 21 August 1983. Apostol also published the Mr & Ms Special Edition, a weekly tabloid opposed to the Marcos regime.
Beltran years (1985-1989)
As the successor to the previous Mr. and Mrs. Special Edition and the weekly Philippine Inquirer, it was founded on a budget of P1 million and enjoyed a daily circulation of 30,000 in its early days. The new daily was housed in the dilapidated one-story Star Building on 13th and Railroad streets in Port Area, Manila. It was put out by 40 editors, reporters, correspondents, photographers and other editorial employees working in a 100 square meter newsroom. Columnist Louie Beltran was named its editor-in-chief.
The newspaper was instrumental then in documenting the campaign of Corazón Aquino during the 1986 presidential elections and, in turn, the 1986 People Power Revolution. Its slogan, Balanced News, Fearless Views, was incorporated to the newspaper in January 1986 after a slogan-making contest held during the first month of the Inquirer's existence.
On July 1986, questions about finances and a divergence of priorities caused a rift among the founders which led Belmonte, Soliven, and Art Borjal's split from the Inquirer to establish The Philippine STAR. As Belmonte owned the Star Building where the Inquirer was headquartered, the newspaper amicably transferred to the Soliven-owned BF Condominium in Aduana Street, Intramuros.
Pascual years (1989-1991)
In February 1987, Federico D. Pascual, former assistant managing editor of the Daily Express, was named executive editor of Inquirer and was appointed editor-in-chief two years later. It was during his term in 1990 that the Inquirer took the lead from the Manila Bulletin to become the Philippines' largest newspaper in terms of circulation.
However, on July 1990, the Inquirer headquarters in Intramuros was damaged by an earthquake. On 5 January 1991, the newspaper transferred to the YIC building along United Nations Avenue and Romualdez Street in Malate.
Jimenez-Magsanoc years (1991-present)
Inquirer's current editor-in-chief, Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc, was appointed on June 14, 1991. She was a former columnist and editor of the "Panorama" Sunday magazine of Bulletin Today (now Manila Bulletin) who was sacked for writing articles poking fun at Marcos. She edited Mr & Ms Special Edition until the fall of the Marcos regime.
Under her term, in 1995, the Inquirer moved to its current headquarters in Makati City after transferring headquarters four times.
During the administration of president Joseph Estrada, he criticized the Inquirer for "bias, malice and fabrication" against himâ€"this charge to the newspaper was denied. In 1999, several government organizations, pro-Estrada businesses, and movie producers simultaneously pulled their advertisements from the Inquirer in a boycott that lasted for five months. The presidential palace was widely implicated in the advertising boycott, which was denounced by then publisher Isagani Yambot as an attack on the freedom of the press.
In 2007, according to the survey conducted by AGB Nielsen, the Inquirer is the most widely read newspaper in the Philippines. The Manila Bulletin and the Philippine Star followed as the second and the third most widely read papers, respectively.
Filipino of the Year
The Philippine Daily Inquirer annually names a Filipino of the Year, honoring a Filipino who has made the most positive impact on the life of the nation.
Awardees
The Inquirer Group
The Inquirer Group is a group of companies under PDI's umbrella.
Newspapers
- Bandera
- Cebu Daily News (Cebu)
- Inquirer Libre
- Tumbok (now defunct since '07-'08)
Magazines
Hinge Inquirer Publications (HIP), formerly Hinge Media Inc. (HMI), was established in 2003.
- F&B World
- MultiSport
- Cocoon
- Look
- Baking Press
- Turista
- Game!
Inquirer.net
Inquirer Interactive Inc., better known as Inquirer.net, is the official website of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. It provides comprehensive coverage of both local and international news throughout the site's channels: News, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Technology, Business, Global Nation, and its recently relaunched Sports channel, which includes the official homepage of the Philippine Basketball Association.
Radyo Inquirer
Radyo Inquirer (DZIQ 990Â kHz Manila) is the radio station of the Philippine Daily Inquirer (licensed by TransRadio Broadcasting Corporation), with its broadcast team semi-independent of the main paper editorial team as it is mostly composed of career radio people. Its first terrestrial test broadcast on radio was on August 16, 2010 with Inquirer columnist Ramon Tulfo and broadcasting veteran Jay Sonza headlining the list of broadcasters for the new station.
See also
- Inquirer Compact
- Inquirer Libre
- Isagani Yambot - Publisher of the Philippine Daily Inquirer from 1994 to 2012
- Rina Jimenez-David columnist
References
External links
- Official website
- Mobile - Pay 5 pesos for all day access
- INQUIRER.net - Philippines News and Entertainment Portal
- Bandera
- Inquirer Libre
- Cebu Daily News
- Hinge Inquirer Publications
- dzIQ Inquirer Radio 990 AM
