Tech companies should be accountable for spreading misinformation—journalist

by: Jullianne Mora and Yllonah Bago

In celebration of the 30th Anniversary of World Press Freedom Day, the fight against misinformation should continue and be stronger than ever, said Pulitzer-winning journalist and editor-at-large of independent news website PressONE.ph Manuel Mogato.

During his opening statement at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) College of Communication’s webinar titled “Breaking Barriers: Journalist as Catalyst of Freedom of Expression” on Friday, May 3, Mogato reiterated that social media is now the leading source of misinformation and disinformation.

“Fighting misinformation and disinformation requires holding tech companies accountable,” he said.

Mogato highlighted several social media networking sites such as TikTok as one of the manufacturers of misinformation online. Because of the continuous bloom of this video-sharing app and other social media sites, it is now inevitable to encounter propaganda, and misinformation online.

He cited the recent Reuters Institute survey, which showed that Filipinos consume news and information from social media platforms where misinformation and disinformation are widespread.

According to the survey — although television remains to be the leading source of news, the survey also shows steady growth of news consumption including heavy use of social media sites as their main source of information.

Facebook remained the most widely used with 73 percent for weekly news. But the biggest leap came from TikTok, used by a mere 2 percent for news in 2020 and now by 15 percent.

The Pulitzer-winning journalist also emphasized how laws have been weaponist against journalists, as they face libel laws, the anti-terrorism act of 2020, and different types of red-tagging

“Journalist is under threat and newsroom across the world is shrinking,” he said.

The violence seen in the Rey Blanco and Percy Lapid cases are just some of the more well-known examples.

Moreover, Filipino journalists in general, continue to face threats like intimidation and physical harm. The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) and the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) have documented nearly 190 journalist killings since 1986.

Also speaking was ExplainED PH Editor-in-Chief Archie Bergosa, who added that social media now has too much noise that eventually blurs the line between content consumers and content producers that causes “information wars.”

“Kahit sino pwede na gumawa ng news and mag produce ng content, that's why journalist is battling for credibility,” he said.

“Lahat kasi may kakayahan mag balita, lahat kasi kaya naman mag sabi ng storya, but only the journalist can actually report something in a factual manner and something that adheres to strict editorial and ethical standards,” he added.

Given this situation, both speakers still encourage how the public should support quality journalism to push back against the spread of misinformation.

The speakers also added how this could help journalists verify and give a platform for discussion to push the agenda of truth in both legacy and digital media.

“Journalists as catalysts of freedom of expression must first restore public trust in legacy media,” Mogato said.

With the Philippines’ current social climate where misinformation and fake news continuously grow rampant, the speakers emphasized the crucial responsibility of the journalists to become that bridge between the truth and the Filipino people.

Despite the devastating truth that journalists are persecuted for speaking the truth, the speakers said that the media still has to endure being condemned by the public, who criticize the legitimacy of the news content that they publish. Journalists must continue to produce quality and factual content to restore the people’s faith in journalism.