Fake news is the scourge of the social media-addicted society.
Fake news is defined by Collins Dictionary as “false, often sensational, information disseminated under the guise of news reporting.”
It’s also being used to discredit anything that one disdains. That’s why you hear the likes of Presidents Donald Trump and Rodrigo Duterte, known sources of fake news, accusing legitimate news organizations as peddlers of fake news.
VERA Files, which has been fact-checking since the 2016 election campaign and is one of Facebook’s third party fact-checker in the country, has come out with an analysis who benefits most from the proliferation of fake news.
The transgender influencer went by the name Georgina, 28 and a digital marketer with a computer engineering degree from one of the leading national universities.
David Kaye, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, in his video message to participants of the conference on Fake News and Freedom of Expression organized by Advocates for Freedom of Expression Coalition-Southeast Asia in Makati recently called on government officials to avoid spreading fake news.
That was one of the eight points he highlighted in a series of principles in fighting what he called the “the scourge of disinformation.”
“State actors should avoid disseminating and spreading fake news,” he said and referred to the Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and “Fake News,” issued by him, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe , Representative on Freedom of the Media, the Organization of American States (OAS) Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information, which states: “State actors should not make, sponsor, encourage or further disseminate statements which they know or reasonably should know to be false (disinformation) or which demonstrate a reckless disregard for verifiable information (propaganda).”
Southeast Asian lawyers tackle Freedom of Expression and Fake News. Photo from Ade Wahyudin Facebook.
The concern about Fake news has created another concern: in the urgent desire to solve the problem of fake news, we might end up with a cure that is worse than the disease.
Fake News has been blamed for political upsets like the decision of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union and the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States.
In the Philippines, the Duterte government maintains an aggressive presence in social media through its Duterte Diehard Supporters led by a communications undersecretary.
Collins Dictionary, which has chosen Fake News as the word for the year 2017, defines Fake News as “as false news stories, often of a sensational nature, created to be widely shared online for the purpose of generating ad revenue via web traffic or discrediting a public figure, political movement, company, etc.”
Last Friday, the Advocates for Freedom of Expression Coalition- Southeast Asia (AFEC-SEA), Center Law and American Bar Association- Rule of Law Initiative gathered lawyers, journalists and online activists from Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines ,Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam to discuss the situation as regards the rise of Fake News with the objective of forging a Southeast-Asian Response.
Former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay at the hearing of the Senate Committee on Public Information and Mass Media.
I came out of the hearing by the Committee on Public Information and Mass Media on Fake News chaired by Sen. Grace Poe Wednesday stunned by the arrogance of persons hired by the government to handle social media.
The hearing could have been moderate3d much better but the best thing from that proceedings was the statement by former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay calling our attention to another form of impunity that we are witnessing aside from the thousands of killings on our streets – the death of truth.
Hilbay narrowed down on the real problem of the toxic environment: government dishonesty. He proposed the creation by Congress of the Institute for the Integrity of Information, “a sort of Ombudsman for public information provided by government, or an information police for government officials. “
In his desperation to get back at Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, President Duterte resorts to fake news.
In last Thursday’s Senate investigation of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee of the 604 kilos of shabu that slipped through the Bureau of Customs, Trillanes presented bank accounts of presidential son Paolo Duterte, vice mayor of Davao City (totaling P104,2812.165 made in 2011 to 2015) and presidential son-in-law Atty. Manases Carpio (totaling 211,109,236 made in 2003 to 2012). The two neither confirmed nor denied the deposits invoking “right to privacy.”
Last Saturday, in a speech at the closing ceremony of the Mindanao Business Conference, Saturday said Duterte said he will also expose Trillanes’ bank accounts abroad. Pres. Rodrigo Duterte addresses 26th Mindanao Business Conference in Cagayan de Oro City on September 9, 2017. Malacanang photo by Ace Morandante.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre in a press briefing spreading fake news.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre probably thought the public would buy his tale linking opposition lawmakers to the Maute terror group which is one of the reasons for the current turmoil in Marawi City.
It only affirmed his stupidity.
As social media commenter Joel Vivas tweeted, “Kakaibang level.”
Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV
“During the security briefing, I asked Sec. Lorenzana based on their intel reports, if I or the Magdalo group is linked in any way with the Maute? He answered, ‘No, Mr. Senator. Na receive din namin ang information na galing daw kay Abe Purugganan. Hindi totoo yun. Hindi namin pinansin yun.'”
Rep. Gary C. Alejano when he filed impeachment complaint against President Duterte last March.
Rep. Gary C. Alejano of the Magdalo Party-list denounced as malicious and irresponsible the reports being spread by a former undersecretary in the Arroyo administration linking their organization to the Maute Group whose terrorist campaign in Marawi City President Duterte said compelled him to declare Martial Law in Mindanao on May 23.
“This is the height of irresponsibility of those involved in spreading this fake and malicious information especially in this trying times when our brothers and sisters in Marawi need all the support from the Filipino people. I categorically deny that Magdalo is involved in any terroristic acts or is affiliated with any terrorist groups. The intelligence community could affirm this as we have constant engagements with them,” Alejano, speaking for the group, said in a statement.
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, one of the officials of the political organization, said “it is obviously a black propaganda, a very vicious one.” He said he will address the issue after a scheduled briefing by military officials for senators on Monday.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte raises his fist as he takes the center stage during a meeting with the Overseas Filipino Workers based in Qatar at the Lusail Sports Arena in Lusail City, April 15. Malacañang photo by King Rodriguez.
Information empowers. But in the age of fake news which has found a fertile base in social media especially Facebook, lies being passed on as information have become a powerful tool for mass idiotization.
This occurred to us watching President Duterte regal the Filipino community in Saudi Arabia, with falsehoods which the audience lapped it up with gusto.
Before some 6,000 OFWs at the Lusail Sports Arena in Doha, Qatar last Saturday, Duterte repeated the false stories he had peddled before about Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and his fellow military officers stole utensil and beddings of the Manila Peninsula where they set up their base of resistance against the government of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo after walked out of a hearing in Makati City Hall on Nov. 29, 2007.
