What makes you stay?

It’s a question I’ve been asked more than once in the 25 years since this newspaper was born. And yet, I still fumble for an answer — not because there isn’t one, but because there are too many.

Perhaps it’s this: the DAILY TRIBUNE has never been just a place of work. It has always been a place of purpose.

The year was 2000. A band of misfits and veterans gathered around the fierce and fearless Ninez Cacho-Olivarez, drawn together by the promise of a newspaper that would tell the truth—no matter how inconvenient, no matter how unpopular. “Without fear nor favor,” we said—and meant it.

In 2018, when the couple Willie and Bettina Fernandez took over the paper’s management, the mantra would evolve to “Without Fear, Without Favor.” That’s a tweak, but the paper itself would undergo a dramatic transformation—always a work in progress, never resting on laurels, always innovating.

But that’s putting the cart before the horse.

When the paper was still taking baby steps, no one knew what lay ahead: raids, libel suits, power changing hands. Editors who refused to bow, reporters who wouldn’t flinch, designers, deskmen, and proofreaders who held the line even as the ground trembled beneath them—especially during the stormy Arroyo years.

I remember the long nights in Lifestyle—when stories didn’t just mirror trends but reflected people, passions, problems, and life. That was always the mission: To offer something different. Not just what’s happening, but what matters.

Every day brought fresh ideas, new questions: How do we do this better? How do we make it count? The early years were tough—but the people made them lighter.

It was a team bound not by comfort, but by commitment. Colleagues turned into friends, and friends became family. Disagreements happened daily—over headlines, deadlines, even lunch orders—but at the end of the day, we walked out of the newsroom smiling, often already planning the next edition.

Artist Lor Bulacan once said, “It acts like a magnet that always exerts a pull on me to stay here forever.”

That pull isn’t nostalgia. It comes from the stories—and how they are told. It’s forged in the pressure of long deadlines and in the quiet kindness of someone handing you coffee when the words won’t come.

Change came, as it must. From a scrappy broadsheet with something to prove, the DAILY TRIBUNE evolved into a multimedia platform. It kept pace with the times while holding fast to what matters most.

Dropping “The” from our name was symbolic. The values stayed. Digital fluency followed—on Facebook, YouTube, X, TikTok. The newsroom now lives in pixels as much as in print, beating with the same pulse.

This shift wasn’t about chasing trends. It’s about staying connected—to readers, to relevance, to truth. In a world of fleeting headlines and fast spins, DAILY TRIBUNE doubled down on credibility.

Through pandemics, politics, and shifting tides of public opinion, the team showed up. Always.

Recognition followed. Most recently, the 2025 Pro Patria Journalism Award from the Rotary Club of Manila placed DAILY TRIBUNE in the Hall of Fame for Journalism. An honor, yes—but more than that, a quiet affirmation that something has been done right.

Over the years, many names have been hurled—critical, combative, courageous. There have been accusations, attacks, even a police raid. But also: Trust. Respect. Loyalty.

This place has remained what it was always meant to be: a platform for voices, a space for truth, and a team that shows up—even when it’s hard, especially then.

So, what makes me stay?