Manila: A Filipino senator wants certain social media sites punished, allegedly for enabling the spreading of fake information for political ends.
Senator Francis Pangilinan, in a statement on Thursday, said the spread of false information on the internet had become alarming, and such articles were already having an impact on public opinion.
He said the development had pulled down the level of public discourse.
“The propagation of fake news stories has become an effective weapon of several political operatives to influence public opinion and national discourse,” Pangilinan, the leader of the Liberal Party said.
“As a result, the level and quality of public discourse have suffered,” he added.
“Discerning the truth from the lies has become more difficult every day as manipulation of information and blatant fabrication of stories have become increasingly rampant.”
Pangilinan said he wanted Facebook penalised for allowing fake news items to be propagated on its pages.
The legislator filed Senate Resolution 271 on Wednesday.
The measure seeks to punish propagators of fake and malicious information on the internet.
Philippine social media is littered with political propaganda, some subliminal but most overt, analysts say.
Although interest groups have been accused of spreading biased information, no other groups had been accused of using so-called “trolls” than supporters of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Pangilinan said Facebook and other social media platforms played a crucial role in the practice of democracy.
“More than being an online platform, Facebook may be described as a de facto media company or publisher that should be responsible and accountable for the content it distributes and allows to be distributed, in order to protect the national discourse from fabricated and false news,” he said.
“Some are now considering social media as the fifth pillar of a democratic republic, as it plays a crucial role in the participation of citizens in governance,” Pangilinan said, adding: “We must also ensure that our people are well-equipped with media literacy skills so that they are able to discern what is factual and what is not.”
Pangilinan’s suggestion that Facebook be taken to task for allowing over fake news was inspired by German legislators, who have announced their intention to penalise the social media giant for every post not properly moderated within 24 hours.
The Filipino senator’s resolution seeks to direct the appropriate Senate committee to conduct an inquiry in aid of legislation on the proliferation of misinformation and fake news sites in social media platforms and to possibly amend the 2012 Cybercrime Law and other laws, in accordance with respect for freedom of speech and of the press.
The proposal to impose sanctions on Facebook for malicious posts has drawn support.
Ato Jimenez, a former army officer who is active in social media, said he suspects some of the so-called trolls were not acting on their own.
“Although social media activities are largely spontaneous, still a grand orchestrator is needed to harness and direct this spontaneity to overwhelm and stifle dissent as well as to window dress the image of the benefactor,” the former Lt. Col, who is now employed abroad as an information technology professional said.
In 2016 the Philippines had 59.2 million internet users, with more than 22 million actively engaged on Facebook during the May 2016 national elections.
