‘Trolls threat to future of global journalism’

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — Troll armies linked to President Duterte were cited among modern-day instruments used as “a weapon of disinformation on social media” that in a way, threaten the future of journalism in the world.

In its 2020 World Press Freedom Index, the Belgium-based press freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) cited these cyber-troll armies as among the 20 “Worst Digital Predators of Press Freedom” this year.

It said that, along with 19 other groups in the world, the Philippine “call center hubs” are “disseminating fake or maliciously edited content and fake memes, conducting targeted harassment campaigns.”   

The RSF claimed that these Philippine “call center hubs” are being used by the administration’s supporters to smear and boycott the ABS-CBN radio and TV network with the aim of blocking the renewal of its franchise.   

“They have even gone so far as to denounce an imaginary conspiracy by various media outlets to overthrow the President,” it reported.    

RSF also claims that the cyber-troll armies “support and amplify the messages of members of the government with the aim of smearing the media and manipulating public opinion.”

It said these trolls identified with the President, just like those in Russia, India and Vietnam, are threats to journalism.  

The press freedom watchdog marked March 12 as the “World Day Against Cyber-censorship” by unveiling its list of press freedom digital predators such as companies and government agencies that use digital technology to spy on and harass journalists and thereby jeopardize the ability to get news and information.

Taking into account the trolls identified with those supporting Duterte, it noted the Philippines as sliding down two notches this year to 136th from last year’s 134th place in the press freedom index.

“The absence of appropriate regulation in the era of digitalized and globalized communication has created information chaos,” it said, adding that propaganda, advertising and rumor are already in direct competition with journalism. 

It noted a growing confusion between commercial, political and editorial content which have “destabilized democratic guarantees of freedom of opinion and expression,” which encourages the adoption of dangerous laws on the pretext of restricting the spread of fake news and “facilitate tougher crackdowns on independent and critical journalism.” 

Decisive decade

RSF believes that “the decade will be decisive for the future of journalism, with the COVID-19 pandemic highlighting and amplifying the many crises that threaten the right to freely report independent, diverse and reliable information.” 

It said that the pandemic has amplified the spread of rumors and fake news as quickly as the virus itself.

The 2020 edition of the Index, which evaluates the situation for journalists each year in 180 countries and territories, said, “the next 10 years will be pivotal for press freedom because of converging crises affecting the future of journalism: a geopolitical crisis (due to the aggressiveness of authoritarian regimes); a technological crisis (due to a lack of democratic guarantees); a democratic crisis (due to polarization and repressive policies); a crisis of trust (due to suspicion and even hatred of the media); and an economic crisis (impoverishing quality journalism).”  

These five areas are now compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, it added.

“We are entering a decisive decade for journalism linked to crises that affect its future,” said Christophe Deloire, RSF secretary general.

He added that the pandemic illustrates the negative factors threatening the right to reliable information, with the pandemic itself as an exacerbating factor.   

According to RSF, there is a clear correlation between suppression of media freedom in response to the pandemic and a country’s ranking in the Index.   

China (177th) and Iran (down by three at 173rd) censored their major coronavirus outbreaks extensively, RSF said.  

In Iraq (down by six at 162nd), the authorities stripped Reuters of its license for three months after it published a story questioning official COVID-19 figures it monitored.  

“The public health crisis provides authoritarian governments with an opportunity to implement the notorious “shock doctrine” – to take advantage of the fact that politics are on hold, the public is stunned and protests are out of the question, in order to impose measures that would be impossible in normal times,” Deloire claimed.