GMA News Online editor-in-chief Howie Severino emailed last Tuesday night, taking issue with a paragraph I wrote in my last piece about Krip Yuson’s plagiarism:

When I first called up Rey Joble to inform him about the apparent plagiarism, I asked him if he was going to file a complaint to his boss, GMA News Online editor-in-chief Howie Severino, about the matter. Joble responded in the negative; he said he was apprehensive about speaking up about the issue because he knew that Yuson was good friends with his boss, and that he was afraid that making a bigger deal out of it would jeopardize his career. He was ready to just let it pass if it meant that he could just go on with his job quietly – understandable, in this day and age, when most people, even sportswriters, are just concerned about making sure that there’s food on the table for their families.

Howie was angry because I did not ask for his version of the events. According to him, what I wrote left readers the impression that either he or GMA was coddling Krip Yuson, which was not the case. He felt that my account cast aspersions on his reputation.

I contended that I was merely reporting Rey Joble’s personal feelings about the matter – feelings that were true and remained true from the time I first wrote about the plagiarism until my last post on the matter. I wasn’t making any comment about the nature of the relationship between Howie and Krip, but merely trying to demonstrate how Rey Joble – the victim of the plagiarism – felt throughout the whole ordeal.

It certainly wasn’t my intention to put into question Howie Severino’s character and reputation. I am humble enough to admit that what I wrote may have left the door open for people to jump to the conclusions that Howie had feared, even though most readers didn’t jump to that conclusion – most of them were preoccupied with the Krip Yuson’s plagiarism and jackassery, which was the main focus of my piece in the first place. There was one comment expressing dismay over the silence of GMA News Online about the issue, and I have forwarded that comment to Howie.

In any case, I apologize to Howie Severino for that paragraph, for any aspersion it may have cast on his reputation, and for any ill will it may have caused him personally. I am truly sorry, and I want to say that it was never my intent.

Howie is, deservedly, one of the country’s most respected journalists, and an imperfectly-written paragraph shouldn’t in any way blemish his impeccable career. I have a long professional and personal history with him – as a colleague at GMA (where I actually taught him how to blog) and at the PCIJ (where he still serves on the center’s Board of Editors), as a supporter of my writing (he was actually the very first person to leave a comment here), and as a friend – and he has never given me any reason to think that he would not treat this matter fairly and justly. If I gave any of my readers a different impression, I hope this corrects that.

To clarify any remaining misconceptions, let me say that Howie and GMA have taken several steps to deal with the Krip Yuson plagiarism issue. On April 11, they convened a meeting along with Krip Yuson and Rey Joble to look into the issue, and they have forwarded the case to the network’s ethics committee, which is currently deliberating on the matter. As of today, Krip Yuson is no longer listed as editor-at-large at GMA News Online.

UPDATE: GMA Network management has decided not to renew Krip Yuson’s contract as editor-at-large for GMA News Online after the ethics committee investigation. Yuson’s contract expired in mid-April, according to the report.