''El Renacimiento'' () was a Spanish– Tagalog bilingual language newspaper. Spanish articles were published under ''El Renacimiento'', while Tagalog articles were published under ''Muling Pagsilang.'' It was printed in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

until the 1940s by the members of the Guerrero de Ermita family. It was founded as a response to the signing of the Treaty of Paris, which derailed the Philippines' struggle for sovereignty. It featured articles criticizing the United States' governance of the Philippines, including the policies of former U.S. President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

. The paper's publisher, Martin Ocampo, re-established it as the Spanish newspaper ''La Vanguardia'' and its Filipino edition ''Taliba'' on February 9, 1910 and February 19, 1910, respectively.

''Aves de rapiña''

On October 30, 1908, ''El Renacimiento'' published a Spanish-language editorial entitled "''Aves de rapiña''" ("Bird of prey"), which dealt with corruption in the colonial government. On January 23, 1909, the newspaper was sued for libel by Dean Conant Worcester, then-secretary of the interior of the Insular Government of the Philippines.'''' Worcester felt he was alluded to by the description of someone who had "the characteristics of the vulture, the owl and the vampire." According to historian

Ambeth Ocampo Ambeth Raymundo Ocampo is a Filipino public historian, academic, cultural administrator, journalist, author, and independent curator. He is best known for his definitive writings about Philippines' national hero José Rizal and on topics in Ph ...

, Worcester allegedly used his position as interior secretary to profit from the sale of diseased beef. He was also alleged to have profited from overpriced hotel concessions on government land. Worcester's lawsuit pushed the paper towards bankruptcy and subsequent closure. Kalaw and Ocampo were sentenced to prison. The majority of the remaining editorial staff were absolved of their sentences after a series of appeals from 1910 to 1912. However, Kalaw and Ocampo were given pardons in 1914 by Governor-General

Francis Burton Harrison Francis Burton Harrison (December 18, 1873 – November 21, 1957) was an American-Filipino Politics of the United States, statesman who served in the United States House of Representatives and was appointed Governor-General of the Philippines ...

. The essay has become part of the required reading list in Philippine colleges. ''El Renacimiento'' is remembered as an anti-colonial publication that fought for

press freedom Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerc ...

during the

American colonial period The Thirteen Colonies were the British colonization of the Americas, British colonies on the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic coast of North America which broke away from the British Crown in the American Revolutionary War (1775–17 ...

Known staff

* Martin Ocampo – Founder, Publisher * Rafael Palma – Founder, Director (1901–1903) * Fernando Ma. Guerrero – Director (1903–1907) * Teodoro M. Kalaw – Director (1907–1909) *

Lope K. Santos Lope K. Santos (born Lope Santos y Canseco, September 25, 1879 – May 1, 1963) was a Filipino people, Filipino Tagalog language, Tagalog-language writer and former List of Senators of the Philippines, senator of the Philippines. He is best kn ...

– Director for ''Muling Pagsilang'' * Fidel A. Reyes – Chief Editor (c. 1908) * Faustino Aguilar – Chief Editor * Wenceslao Retana – Editor * Javier Gomez de la Serna * Dominador Gomez – Editor * Isabelo de los Reyes – Editor *

Felipe Calderon Felipe is the Spanish variant of the name Philip, which derives from the Greek adjective ''Philippos'' "friend of horses". Felipe is also widely used in Portuguese-speaking Brazil alongside Filipe, the form commonly used in Portugal. Noteworthy ...

– Editor

References

Notes

External links

Scanned copies hosted at the digital collections website of the University of Santo Tomas Miguel de Benavides Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Renacimiento Newspapers published in Metro Manila Spanish-language newspapers Newspapers established in 1901 National newspapers published in the Philippines Defunct newspapers published in the Philippines Censorship in the Philippines