Notice what’s wrong with this picture? Look at Ambassador Hilario Davide‘s flag.

I got an interesting email today (June 14) from a journalism professor who is now pursuing a master’s degree in New York on a scholarship. He also included the picture above.

Sir Danny 

I recently saw on the front page of Filipino Express, a Filipino newspaper here in New York, a picture of Consul General Cecilia Rebong and Hilario Davide waving Philippine flags during the Philippine Independence Day Parade here.  What struck me was that Davide was waving the flag upside down.  It’s as if we are at war.

Do you think the newspaper was right in printing this photo when it surely caused embarrassment to Davide?  Or were the editors remiss in not pointing out to the readers that Davide was waving a flag upside down?

The picture can also be found at http://www.filipinoexpress.com/.

I think there is nothing wrong with printing this picture, even if it might be embarrassing to Davide (or to the Macapagal-Arroyo administration, for that matter). It’s a public event and the attendees, particularly the high-ranking officials, should expect to be photographed there. The printing of this photo only becomes unethical if it were digitally altered.

In any case, the editors of Filipino Express should have included this faux pas in the caption. A short news article could have also been written about it with the objective of getting Davide’s comments. Was it an honest mistake or a political statement? I’m sure the readers want to know.