Camille Naredo

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA, on March 10, 2026. Handout/PCO

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA, on March 10, 2026.
Marcos discussed the progress of peace and development in BARMM and the Philippines' priorities for its chairmanship of ASEAN. The Secretary-General recognized the Philippines' longstanding role at the United Nations as a peace builder.  PCO

Article (news)

MARCOS

Harlene Delgado

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177383089738720260311-marcos-un-antonio-guterres-PCO12.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA, on March 10, 2026. <em>Handout/PCO</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recognized the vital role of media amid global uncertainties with the escalating conflict in the Middle East or West Asia triggered by the US-Israel strikes on Iran.</p><p>This, as he urged media groups to help the public in determining truth and spotting fake news.</p><p>“In this time of global uncertainty, we lean on to our media to be the bearers of facts, to police abuse, and to be the voice of our people,” he said in his speech at the oath-taking of newly elected officers and governing bodies of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) at the Malacañang Palace Wednesday, March 18.</p><p>“With the crises and the difficulties and the shocks that the world is providing not only the Philippines but the entire globe, it is more essential than ever that we combat fake news and disinformation,” Marcos Jr. added.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/3/4/pco-establishes-anti-fake-news-desk-1823">READ: PCO establishes &#x27;Anti-Fake News Desk&#x27;</a></div><p>The chief executive further noted that the government “is in great need of help of all the media practitioners” to get valuable information on its interventions, the true situation of the world and of the country.</p><p>“And so that our people, as I have mentioned, can make the proper decisions, can go to the right – can go to the right people for assistance, and are knowledgeable about what is available in terms of what help can be provided to them,” he added.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>DANGERS JOURNALISTS FACE</strong></div><p>Marcos Jr. also acknowledged the dangers that come with the profession, noting that Philippines remains one of the most dangerous places for journalists.</p><p>He cited the 2025 World Press Freedom Index in which the Philippines ranked 116th out of 180 countries and territories which he said depicts the country as “generally having a difficult and complicated media landscape.”</p><p>It is worth noting that the Philippine’s ranking is also the highest in 21 years.</p><p>The spread of misinformation and disinformation particularly on social media also pose a “great challenge”, according to Marcos.</p><p>“Bilang lingkod-bayan na halos araw-araw na humaharap sa media, nauunawaan ko ang bigat ng inyong trabaho,” he said.</p><p>“Hindi madaling magtanong, mag-ulat, at maglahad ng katotohanan—lalo na kung may panganib na kaakibat ito,” he added. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>JOURNALISTS’ SAFETY, WELFARE</strong></div><p>The chief executive reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to safeguard Filipino journalists.</p><p>“That is why this Administration has made it clear that the safety and welfare of our journalists must be protected at all times,” Marcos Jr. said.</p><p>“Sisikapin din namin na makamit ng mga biktima at kanilang mga mahal sa buhay ang hustisya,” he added.</p><p>The commander-in-chief cited several initiatives of his administration to fight violence and threats against journalists and to combat fake news.</p><p>These include the memorandum of agreement between the Presidential Task Force on Media Security and the National Bureau of Investigation, partnership with the Public Attorney’s Office, DICT’s partnerships with Google and Meta to strengthen content safeguards and the agreement between the Presidential Communications Office with print media to implement “Oplan Kontra Fake News.”</p><p>Marcos Jr. also underscored his administration’s promotion for greater transparency and accountability in the bureaucracy which “supports [their] efforts to report facts – to have facts and truth reported”.</p><p>He mentioned his administration’s push for the passage of the Right to Information Act as included in the LEDAC Common Legislative Agenda for the 20th Congress, the launching of DPWH Transparency and Integrity Chain Portals and the Project Digital Imaging for Monitoring and Evaluation (Project DIME).</p><p>“Ang lahat ng ito ay para sa ating lipunan at ang pagpapalakas ng ating demokrasya. Kapag malaya ang pamamahayag at madaling makakuha ng tamang impormasyon, mas nagiging bukas ang pamahalaan,” he said. “Kapag responsable ang pagbabalita, mas nagiging matalino at maayos ang desisyon ng ating mga mamamayan. At kapag naman ay nagtutulungan tayong lahat – ang media at ang pamahalaan – mas napapalakas ang ating demokrasya,” Marcos Jr. added.</p>

<p>President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recognized the vital role of media amid global uncertainties with the escalating conflict in the Middle East or West Asia triggered by the US-Israel strikes on Iran.</p>

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recognized the vital role of media amid global uncertainties with the escalating conflict in the Middle East or West Asia triggered by the US-Israel strikes on Iran.

Marcos Jr. underscores role of media vs fake news, disinformation amid global uncertainties

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Marcos Jr. underscores role of media vs fake news, disinformation amid global uncertainties

Harlene Delgado,

ABS-CBN News

Published Mar 18, 2026 06:53 PM PHT

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Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas

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