The Presidential Communications Office yesterday said it is studying the possibility of establishing a regulatory body to monitor and evaluate social media content to address the problem of misinformation and disinformation.
This as Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Monday said the department is reviewing existing laws to strengthen the campaign against fake news.
“Fake news is something that should not be tolerated because it is actually a great disservice to the country, and making people believe things that are false. I think that is a sin against our country,” Remulla said.
He said the DOJ is looking at cyberlibel and other cyber laws to find out if there is a need to amend existing laws after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. cautioned the public against the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation as the campaign period began.
For his part, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Jay Ruiz recalled instances where false narratives have caused harm, citing cases of cyberbullying and baseless allegations that have damaged reputations.
“We are studying that (regulatory body),so that it (fighting fake news) can happen – at least somehow – especially regarding the sensitive issues that are not truths,” Ruiz said. “A lie told a thousand times can drown out the truth.”
“Even lawmakers have been victimized by fake news, and they can’t do anything about it. So, what more for an ordinary person who is being destroyed online? Where can they turn to?” he said.
He said legal action may be pursued in extreme cases.
“Spreading false information about class suspensions is one thing, but what if someone falsely claims there is a bomb threat? How can authorities ignore that?…The point is, if you’re a vlogger or a social media influencer, you should be responsible for the information you put out to the public.”
“We will study this further, but we have a legal team that can act, if necessary. We must take action. This is one of the reasons I am determined to fight fake news—it has gone too far,” Ruiz added.
Remulla added the DOJ is not setting a target date when the review would be finished, nor does it have a deadline in filing cases against purveyors of fake news.
“There is no target date. It’s a case-to-case basis. For every news, there should be a study to look at how fake it is, and how we can prove it is fake news and what actual penalties can be imposed on these actions,” the Justice chief said.
Earlier, lawmakers proposed that social media platforms should have “legislative franchise” from Congress, just like mainstream TV networks, if only to substantially lessen and if not totally eradicate the proliferation of fake news.
Lawmakers Joseph Stephen Paduano, Robert Ace Barbers, and Jose Aquino II – officials and members of the Tri Comm investigating the proliferation of fake news – underscored the need for a regulation.
“I think it would be best if these social media platforms secure a legislative franchise in this Congress. If you are under the franchise of this Congress, then you will be subject to the regulation that will be imposed under the law,” Barbers said.
Paduano suggested an “amendment” to the Public Service Act (Republic Act 11659), calling on the National Telecommunications Commission to include social media platforms in its list of “public utilities.”
Aquino, who heads the Committee on Public Information, proposed that both the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkasters sa Pilipinas as well as the Movies Television Review Classification Board “update and upgrade” their mandate for purposes of regulating social media.