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The very first time I encountered Marissa Flores, I was a young producer for The Probe Team, then a co-production based outside GMA Network, and had to submit a promo plug I edited to her for preview. I had no idea what she looked like, only that she was the big network boss.
I discovered that Ma’am Marissa was a lady with her hair barely combed, wearing a black sweater, black pants and sandals that looked more like house slippers. She was walking around the old newsroom, busy. I nervously presented this big U-matic tape to her — this was in the '90s — which she placed into an equally big editing machine. She watched the plug material twice, told me kindly it was OK and returned to pacing around the office. I thought to myself, this woman is serious and straightforward. No ego.
The last time I saw Ma’am Marissa in person was at dawn before the opening of the 2022 GMA Election Coverage. I screamed with joy, which she returned with the biggest smile. She was still wearing a nondescript black sweater and this time, comfy black leggings and sneakers - her hair still looked disheveled. She had the same straight shooter aura of the manager I had met decades before, except her team had grown by many hundreds. She had built the news organization into the most trusted and most awarded news and public affairs and digital news organization in the land. And by this time, I had worked closely with her for many, many years and knew her thoughts so well, I could almost picture her reaction to any situation. I could say for a fact that she was indeed studious, straightforward, and had no ego. Though she also turned out to not be as serious as I had first guessed; she has a delightful sense of humor and spot on comedy timing when she wants to show it!
Because of her no-nonsense approach to work, she would find any tributes to her odd and unnecessary. But this is precisely why she deserves not one tribute but many.
There are a few phrases that describe Ma’am Marissa best: Unquestionable integrity. Editorial sharpness. Journalistic ethics. Attention to detail. Devotion to production quality. Fairness. Humility. Unwavering faith in the “Walang Kinikilingan, Walang Pinoprotektahan, Serbisyong Totoo Lang” tagline that marks all our newscasts.
In many moments of management crisis over the years — everything from on air disasters to harassment cases to outright corruption, you name it, we’ve faced it — I would come to her office, sometimes in shock, sometimes in tears, asking what I should do. Her response was always something along the lines of “Find the truth” or “Tell the truth.” Always ending with these words: “Do what is right.” In a wide variety of situations, this consistent advice never failed.
I have been proud to work for this woman all these years because it simply was not possible for her to lead us astray. She herself would find the truth and tell the truth and do right by us on so many occasions.
During times of economic trouble, she would shell out her own funds to support some of our staff. During budget preps, she put on her magnifying glass, read the fine print and clarified the small details. During election season, she turned into a general leading her troops strategically into battle. Beyond making sure we were prepared, she always asked, “What is our edge?”
She loved our crazy ideas. She enjoyed studying what was new. She encouraged our forays into digital news, immersive graphics, reality series, game shows, talk shows, anthologies, historical dramas, soaps, films, podcasts, all the social media platforms that cropped up over the years.
She was proud of our every achievement. She took us to task, but kindly, for our many mistakes.
She was the kind of leader who cheered on the sidelines so that we could take the stage and shine.
Her retirement marks the end of an era, literally a golden era of GMA News and Public Affairs — the era of the four Peabody Awards, armfuls of New York Festival Medals, the Grand Prize at the Asian Academy Creative Awards, accolades for pioneering, top rating programs in so many different genres. She would say these were not hers but those of her people. But in so many ways, her values, her spirit — her life — has been at the heart of GMA News and Public Affairs’ long success.
I am losing my humble and excellent boss, the woman I have reported directly to for two eventful decades. I feel like an orphan at work now. I can only say how much I love her and appreciate her sacrifices for the organization and her people all these years. I also want her to know I will never forget her words in the face of future crises: Find the truth. Tell the truth. And most importantly: choose to do what is right.
"Can you do it?"
That was the million-peso question posed to me by MLF about possibly stepping into a bigger role for GMA News and Public Affairs. I'd had some success in my first couple of years within the organization, but what she was talking to me about meant an exponential increase in responsibilities.
My answer came with a caveat. "Yes, I think I can grow into the role." To be frank, even I had some doubt.
But that was all MLF needed to hear from me, and since that moment, she has empowered me to lead the country's most important digital news organization. She was never one for motivational speeches, but her guidance was there at every step: encouraging me, challenging me, and allowing me to take up the space as the digital person in a traditional television organization.
She did it not just for me, but for my whole team; she underscored our value and cherished our opinions, recognizing us as essential members of the organization, notwithstanding the fact that neither our reach nor our revenues approach that of the television side. Many organizations use "digital transformation" as a buzzword these days, but few really put their money where their mouths are. But MLF put her faith in us.
We repaid that faith with excellence and success: we have become the top source of news online for Filipinos; social media campaigns built by our digital teams have become recognized around the world as a paragon of journalism innovation in the age of Instagram and Tiktok; and our longform enterprise reporting has gained acclaim around the region.
It's amazing, but hardly surprising, because that's the culture MLF built at GMA News and Public Affairs through the decades. That the organization is able to replicate our success on television to new, emerging platforms is a direct result of her leadership and brilliance.
Hers is a quiet brilliance because at her core, she is a journalist, and has remained so through the years. Her first priority is always getting the facts right and telling the truth, her biggest concern how our productions would be of service to the people. She is always curious, about the news but also about processes and technologies and emerging platforms. And she has that gift of a true journalist of making herself small to allow other voices to emerge.
But she could also be a commanding presence. It's almost funny to think about, a studio filled to the bleachers with journalists, all quiet for once, hanging on her every word. She commands that respect from journalists because in an industry filled with glad-handers and schmoozers, she has the currency most valuable to us: unquestionable integrity.
We will miss her leadership, and we will miss her brilliance. And we will be forever grateful for her faith in us.
