| Trusted since 1898 | |
 | |
.jpeg) Front page on January 12, 2018 | |
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner | Dante Ang |
| President | Blanca C. Mercado |
| Managing editor | Leena Calso Chua Lynette O. Luna, Executive Editor, Chin Wong[1] |
| News editor | Danton Remoto |
| Sports editor | Emil Noguera |
| Photo editor | Rene H. Dilan |
| Founded | October 11, 1898; 127 years ago (1898-10-11) (46,429 issues) |
| Political alignment | Centre-right |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | 409 A. Soriano Avenue,Intramuros,Manila,Philippines |
| Country | Philippines |
| Circulation | 120,700 (2012)[2] |
| ISSN | 0116-3558 |
| OCLC number | 31041091 |
| Website | www |
The Manila Times is the oldest extantEnglish-language newspaper in thePhilippines. It is published daily by The Manila Times Publishing Corp. (formerly La Vanguardia Publishing Corporation) with editorial and administrative offices at 2/F Sitio Grande Building, 409 A. Soriano Avenue,Intramuros,Manila.
It was founded on October 11, 1898, shortly after news that theTreaty of Paris would be signed, ending theSpanish–American War and transferring the Philippines from Spanish to Americansovereignty.[3] It presently bills itself as having the fourth-largest circulation of the newspapers in the Philippines, beating theManila Standard, but still behind thePhilippine Daily Inquirer, theManila Bulletin andThe Philippine Star.
The currentpublisher and president and chief executive officer (CEO) and executive editor is Dante Francis "Klink" Ang II. On May 1, 2017, its chairman emeritusDante Ang was appointed by PresidentRodrigo Duterte as special envoy of the President for international public relations.[4]
The Manila Times was founded by Thomas Gowan, an Englishman who had been living in the Philippines. The paper was created to serve mainly the Americans who were sent to Manila to fight in theSpanish–American War. At the time, most of the newspapers in the Philippines were in Spanish and a few others were in the native languages. Shortly after the paper's founding, reports reached Manila about the Paris Conference that would lead to the treaty where Spain ceded its claim over the Philippines to the United States.[3]
The first issue ofThe Manila Times on October 11, 1898, had a sheet of two leaves, or four pages, measuring about 12 by 8 inches, each page divided into two columns. The first page was taken up by announcements and advertisements. Page 2 was the editorial page. It contained the editorials and the more important news of the day. Page 3 was devoted to cable news from Europe and the United States all bearing on the Spanish–American War.[3]
In 1899, George Sellner acquiredThe Manila Times from Gowan, who joined the paper as business manager.[3] In 1902, an American businessman acquiredThe Manila Times, reacquired by Sellner in 1905.[3] In 1907, Thomas C. Kinney acquiredThe Manila Times from Sellner.[3] On July 25, 1914,The Manila Times moved its headquarters from theEscolta Street to the Cosmopolitan Building.[3]
In 1919,Manuel L. Quezon, the futurePhilippine President during theCommonwealth period, acquiredThe Manila Times and he owned until 1921, when sugar magnate George Fairchild acquired the paper.[3] In 1926, Jacob Rosenthal acquiredThe Manila Times from Fairchild.[3] On December 10, 1928, the Cosmopolitan Building was destroyed by a fire andThe Manila Times headquarters were moved toIntramuros.[3] On March 15, 1930,The Manila Times was shut down for the first time until 1945, when the paper re-opened afterWorld War II and was later sold toChino Roces.[3] By 1950,The Manila Times became the largest circulating newspaper in the Philippines.[5]
On September 23, 1972, PresidentFerdinand Marcos declaredmartial law withProclamation No. 1081, he ordered the closure of media establishments throughout the country, includingThe Manila Times, it marked the second time the newspaper closed since 1945 and its owner Chino Roces was arrested.[3] On February 5, 1986,The Manila Times re-opened, several days before thePeople Power Revolution that ousted Marcos and installedCorazon Aquino as president.[3] Roces died on September 30, 1988, and in 1989, the paper was acquired by businessmanJohn Gokongwei.[3][6]
In 1999,The Manila Times faced controversy when it published a story about PresidentJoseph Estrada, who was described as an "unwitting godfather" in a deal between theNational Power Corporation (NAPOCOR) and Argentine firmIndustrias Metalurgicas Pescarmona Sociedad Anonima (IMPSA) [es].[7][3] On March 9, Estrada filled alibel suit againstThe Manila Times; the owners printed an apology on its front page, triggering the resignation of the paper's editors and writers.[8][9][3][10]
On July 20, 1999,The Manila Times was acquired by Katrina Legarda and Reghis Romero and then shut down for the third time on July 23 and later re-opened on October 11.[11][3][12] Mark Jimenez acquired the paper on May 14, 2001 until he sold it toDante Ang, a publicist for PresidentGloria Macapagal Arroyo, on August 8, 2001.[3] Ang's maternal grandfather had previously worked as alinotypist atThe Manila Times, with Ang visiting the offices as a child in the 1950s to borrow money from him.[13]
In July 2006, Ang established a monthly supplement for the newspaper calledThe Moro Times, which catered to a Muslim ("Moro") readership.[14]
In April 2025, the newspaper was sued by House Majority LeaderMannix Dalipe for cyberlibel in reporting the existence of a document reportedly signed by him detailing a plot by theHouse of Representatives titledOplan Horus to undermine former presidentRodrigo Duterte, who was being investigated by the chamber over thePhilippine drug war, and Vice PresidentSara Duterte, who wasimpeached by the same body.[15]
