One step forward in the fight against disinformation
Facebook recently announced that it had removed networks of more than 400 accounts, pages, and groups in the Philippines as part of its efforts to weed out disinformation few weeks ahead of the May 9 elections.This is one good step in protecting the Philippine electoral process.
According to UNESCO, disinformation is information that is false and deliberately created to harm a person, social group, organization, or country. Scholars agree that disinformation is particularly dangerous “because it is frequently organized, well resourced, and reinforced by automated technology.” Advocates of truthful communications noted that the most debated disinformation campaigns are those carried out with a view to promote political and electoral gains. (https://tinyurl.com/ypfjfmwm)
It is as clear as the blue sky that the May 9, 2022 Philippine elections suffer from the adverse effects of disinformation. According to the UNESCO report, disinformation campaigns, however, must be understood beyond electoral narratives.They are promoted by a variety of malicious agents with the intention to cause harm – beit to influence electoral processes, to promote authoritarian and populist agendas, to foment polarization and promote discrimination and hatred against marginalized communities, to undermine human rights defenders and human rights processes, or to discredit science.
While there is an inherent difficulty in spotting disinformation, social media companies such as Meta that owns Facebook have all the modern tools in detecting disinformation. Hence, when it recently announced that more than 400 accounts, pages, and groups were removed based on their behavior rather than the content, we have to commend this action and give credence to their decision to remove the accounts.
Facebook and other social media companies must make a proactive stance in protecting the public from the pernicious effects of disinformation.
However, it is noteworthy to point out that Facebook’s aggressive move was done a few weeks before the elections. A wolf in sheep’s clothing may have long accomplished his or her objective. Many may already be singing hallelujah to a false god. The next worst thing to happen is for a misled electorate to wake up to the reality that our country is ruled by a tyrant or a plunderer.