Camille Naredo

Young people use social media apps on their mobile phones and computers as they attend  the forum, Keeping the Flame of Freedom Alive: Case Study of Percy Lapid Mabasa, at the CMC Auditorium Plaridel Hall UP Diliman Quezon City on October 3, 2023. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File

Young people use social media apps on their mobile phones and computers as they attend  the forum, Keeping the Flame of Freedom Alive: Case Study of Percy Lapid Mabasa, at the CMC Auditorium Plaridel Hall UP Diliman Quezon City on October 3, 2023. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

MEDIA-KILLINGS

Job Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/174262107394720231003-percy-lapid-forum-JC-4561.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Young people use social media apps on their mobile phones and computers as they attend  the forum, Keeping the Flame of Freedom Alive: Case Study of Percy Lapid Mabasa, at the CMC Auditorium Plaridel Hall UP Diliman Quezon City on October 3, 2023. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Young people use social media apps on their mobile phones and computers as they attend  the forum, Keeping the Flame of Freedom Alive: Case Study of Percy Lapid Mabasa, at the CMC Auditorium Plaridel Hall UP Diliman Quezon City on October 3, 2023. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA -- An analyst on Saturday warned that the country&#x27;s problem on misinformation &quot;could get worse&quot; amid the upcoming midterm elections and urged the public to practice critical thinking when encountering politically-charged social media posts.</p><p>Prof. Renato de Castro, an international relations expert at the De La Salle University, said the political divide from the social media personalities&#x27; posts might be part of a &quot;cognitive warfare.&quot; </p><p>&quot;Expect it to be worse. Tinitingnan lang natin &#x27;tong vloggers na ito as individuals. Ang question doon, sino ba ang nasa likod nila? What makes them focused on vlogging?&quot; said De Castro. </p><p>&quot;They might also be part…of cognitive warfare lalo na&#x27;t may issue tayo om the west philippine sea, we cannot discount politics, we cannot discount the fact na may strategy. May malice yan, they are being backed by a state actor that has all the resources, and has the strategic mindframe, and of course the goal, the goal is to demoralize, to create division,&quot; he added. </p><p>Aside from this, the analyst described the Philippines as a strategic geopolitical position, which was why &quot;elections do really matter.&quot;</p><p>This was why he said the public should be vigilant when encountering social media posts. </p><p>&quot;Titingnan mo ang news saan yan nanggagaling and pangalawa is critical thinking. &#x27;Yan din ang i-impart natin sa educational system regarding how do we determine the truth? Na we don&#x27;t accept things as they are. We have to look into the motive, we have to subject it sa internal or external criticism,&quot; he said. </p><p>&quot;Nakita natin last election in Taiwan, kung paano nag-apply ang Tsina ng cognitive warfare to influence the ordinary Taiwanese. That is very crucial, lalo na part tayo ng geopolitical game na nangyayari ngayon,&quot; he said. </p><p>On Friday, several social media personalities attended a hearing on fake news and trolls at the House of Representatives, where they apologized and admitted to some faults.</p><p>Lawmakers criticized some of their politically-charged posts on social media, which they described as bordering on unverified information.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/3/21/showbiz-reporters-content-creators-say-sorry-during-house-hearing-on-fake-news-2109">READ: Content creators say sorry during House hearing on fake news</a></div><p>During the same hearing, former Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Sec. Trixie Cruz-Angeles admitted that Filipino social media influencers have attended a state-sponsored seminar in China. The Chinese government allegedly covered all expenses of the vloggers, mostly pro-Duterte social media influencers, according to Cruz-Angeles.</p><div><a class="fr-strong fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/3/21/china-funded-seminar-for-filipino-social-media-influencers-ex-pco-chief-admits-2354">FULL STORY: China funded seminar for Filipino social media influencers, ex-PCO chief admits</a></div><p>Meanwhile, a recent SWS survey commissioned by Stratbase Group revealed that 59 percent of Filipinos considered the spread of fake news on social media to be a serious issue, while 20 percent believed it was not serious. </p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/3/21/-ikaw-ang-t-a-lawmaker-calls-out-vlogger-over-misinformation-2152">READ: &#x27;Ikaw ang t****a&#x27;: Lawmaker calls out vlogger over misinformation</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZpGRlPEqeTI?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2IY76XgEECM?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Prof. Renato de Castro, an international relations expert at the De La Salle University, said the political divide from the social media personalities' posts might be part of a "cognitive warfare."</p>

Prof. Renato de Castro, an international relations expert at the De La Salle University, said the political divide from the social media personalities' posts might be part of a "cognitive warfare."

Analyst says PH's problem on fake news 'can get worse' amid #Halalan2025

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Analyst says PH's problem on fake news 'can get worse' amid #Halalan2025

Job Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published March 22, 2025 01:27 PM PHT

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Halalan 2025

fake news

Renato de Castro

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