A journey to 30
STAR looks back at 29 milestones reached leading to its 30th year
A mid the echoes of triumphant shouts and chants that toppled a dictator, The Philippine STAR, the leading broadsheet newspaper in the country, was born. On July 28, 1986, three pioneering journalists from the Mosquito Press era – Betty Go-Belmonte, Max Soliven, and Art Borjal – decided to establish a newspaper that espouses responsibility, fairness and truth in journalism, as conveyed by its motto, “Truth Shall Prevail”.
It was also a medium that heralded the need to move a country forward after wallowing in 20 years of authoritarianism and economic stagnation. Even now, it continues to be a leading exponent of a growing, developing Filipino nation.
Defining printed news
Since its first publication, The STAR not only shaped the reading public with its comprehensive, credible news items, enlightened and insightful opinions, and colorful inspiring features. It also grew and expanded to offer a wide variety of useful content and introduced innovations that defined printed news.
In 1987, just well over a year after its first issue, The STAR launched its own Sunday magazine, STARweek. Initially launched as a Sunday version of the newspaper, it served as a summary of the news events of the week. After the debut of STAR’s Sunday issue, it evolved to provide a variety of curated content such as personality profiles, places to travel, food, among others. In 1993, the newspaper added a magazine-sized comics section in its Sunday issue, supplying much- needed humor to a serious news week.
Meanwhile, to satisfy the interest of a growing population of young lifestyle enthusiasts, STAR’s Lifestyle section launched its Friday Young Star section, which the youth quickly embraced. Expanding its reach to the Visayas-Mindanao region and to provide content generally catered to the region’s growing population, the publication acquired in 2004 the multi- awarded, Cebubased newspaper, The Freeman. More recently, it acquired a majority stake in its sister publication BusinessWorld, thus strengthening the latter’s presence in the industry and enhancing the former’s role as the leading news source in the Philippines. As a trailblazer in printing technology,
The STAR adopted a number of printing innovations that improved the quality of newspapers in the country. In 1995, it began full-color printing, accompanying the new slogan, “The only paper you read from cover to cover!” Five years later, in 2000, it pioneered the use of computer-to-plate systems in newspaper printing in the country.
But perhaps, two of STAR’s biggest achievements are with regard to its leadership. One is its successful passing of the legacy established by its founder Betty
Go-Belmonte to her son Miguel, who in 1998 became president and CEO of the newspaper. The other was the company’s successful entry last year into the MediaQuest family led by businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan. With the vision and leadership of these two distinguished movers, STAR remains viable in the future.
Excellence in journalism
As it grew in terms of content and reach, the newspaper also showcased its excellence in journalism. Several of the newspaper’s writers and columnists, and the newspaper itself, have been awarded by various awardgiving bodies.
In 1990, STAR columnist Teddy Benigno was named “Best Opinion Writer” by the Catholic Mass Media Awards. Two years later, he was hailed “Print Journalist of the Year”. He would go on to have a prolific career in broadcast media, hosting the public affairs show Firing Line.
Max Soliven, another distinguished pillar of the newspaper, was hailed Rotary Club of Manila Columnist of the Year in 1991. His column By The Way was one of the most read columns in the country.
The STAR was also known for its comprehensive motoring section, which updated the country’s automobile enthusiasts with the latest news in the automotive industry. Through intuitive articles from columnists such as Manny delos Reyes, James Deakin, and Ray Butch Gamboa, the publication went on to win the Henry Ford Award for motoring journalism in 2001. Because of its excellence in printed news, The STAR was also a winner of several Newspaper of the Year awards from the Rotary Club of Manila — in 2005, 2012, and 2013. These accolades were further affirmed by the publication’s continuous market leadership. In 2006, it was named Agora Awards Marketing Company of the Year by the Philippine Marketing Association (PMA). The following year, it became market leader in print advertising sales. By 2008, it dominated the newspaper market in terms of readership, according to the Nielsen Media Index.
STAR’s prominence can be attributed to a number of highly effective and successful marketing campaigns and ventures. One of the newspaper’s warmly-received marketing campaigns was STAR Trivia, wherein the newspaper published trivia questions, and readers would win cash prizes by submitting correct answers. In 2003, the publication pioneered breakfast tie- ups with Jollibee Food Corporation, giving free copies of the newspaper to the fastfood chain’s customers. STAR also saw an opportunity to tap into digital media, partnering with Smart Communications in 2014 to launch Smart Ads, a new suite of mobile advertising services that can deliver time- and location-sensitive ads to mobile phone users.
STAR gives back
More than being a media company, STAR also transitioned into a publication that directly impacts its readers through its corporate social responsibility arm, Operation Damayan. It started in 1989 as an open- door project for sick children who sought medical assistance, with funds pooled from generous readers. Throughout the next two decades, it would extend help in the aftermath of almost every major calamity in the Philippines, including the 1990 Luzon earthquake, the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption, and Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. It was also involved in providing education to the poorest of the poor through its alternative school, ABAKADamayan, and its Adopt-a-School project.
Evolving to reach new horizons
As it inches closer to its 30th year, The STAR continues to evolve into new platforms, engaging more audiences. This evolution, however, started much earlier with the debut in 1997 of Star-i, the newspaper’s first venture in cyberspace and a precursor to phistar.com. With the advent of cellular phones and short messaging system (SMS), the publication also pioneered opinion polling and televoting with the launch of Hotline 2000 in 1999, thereby providing its readers with a faster means to speak their minds about current events.
The STAR also caught up with the digitization trend, launching social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and allowing its content to be read on iOS and Android devices via its own mobile apps and content aggregators such as Press Reader, Scoop, Buqo, etc. In 2013, in keeping with its commitment to provide readers with richer content and reading experience, it pioneered augmented reality in Philippine newspapers with the Read It! Live It! mobile app.
The STAR also hopped into the lively lifestyle and entertainment scene of millennials with the launch of a website that is quickly establishing itself as the go- to site for the concert-going crowd, with content on topics of interest such as music, movies, travel, fashion, art and food – everything that concerns their lifestyle.
Another horizon which The STAR also began to explore is broadcast media. It started in 2009, tying up with ABS-CBN’s Boto Mo, I-Patrol Mo to bring its election coverage from print to TV. The following year, it ventured into radio, providing news and information to DZRJ’s Voice of the Philippines, an all-English AM radio station.
Finally, in 2015, as television becomes an ever- more profitable platform due to digitization, The STAR decided to fully tap into the medium by launching PhilstarTV, wherein several of the newspaper’s well-loved and much-read sections developed their TV incarnations. It began with STAR’s Saturday Modern Living section, which now airs on ANC as Modern Living TV hosted by Bianca Gonzalez and Stephanie Zubiri-Crespi. This was followed by the premiere of WheelsTV on ABS-CBN Sports+ Action, featuring the publication’s formidable team of motoring columnists and TV host Matteo Guidicelli. In the coming months, PhilstarTV is set to debut more shows suited to its audience’s tastes. It’s amazing how 29 years fly so fast. Once, The STAR was just a humble, eight-page newspaper, and now, it is one of the most profitable and highly successful media ventures in the country. With each milestone, the company continues to grow and deliver to its readers the best news and content possible, in keeping with its premise, “Long Live the Printed News.”
This would not have been possible without the unrelenting and tireless efforts of the men and women who made up the great publication. Now that we’ve reached this 29th marker in our journey, take a while to catch your breath and say, “Look how far we’ve come!” for in no time, The STAR is set to reach even further heights.