1 week ago
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Evelyn Macairan - The Philippine Star
March 4, 2025 | 12:00am
In this Nov. 10, 2022 photo, Justice Secretary Boying Remulla answers questions from the media after attending the Senate budget deliberation for the Department of Justice.
The STAR / Mong Pintolo
MANILA, Philippines — Amid the proliferation of fake news on social media, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is studying the possible amendment of laws governing cyberlibel and other cyber issues.
“Fake news is something that should not be tolerated because it is actually a great disservice to the country. Making people believe (something) that (is) false, I think that is a sin against our country. So, we have been studying ways to combat fake news,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said yesterday.
According to the justice secretary, the DOJ would also look into existing penalties and possible actions that can be imposed on purveyors of fake news because “for every news morsel, there should be a study to look at how fake it is.”
“Everybody who dabbles in fake news has to be investigated and charged,” he said.
Remulla’s aim is to go after fake news peddlers who are hiding behind aliases.
“If we can have a recording of what they do, then it would be easy to identify these people. We should know that as responsible people, we should be responsible for our own utterances. I think that is the most important thing,” he said.
President Marcos earlier warned the public to be circumspect about information they see on social media, especially with the ongoing election campaign.
Social media regulator eyed
Meanwhile, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) is eyeing the creation of a regulatory body that will cover social media platforms.
In an interview yesterday, PCO Secretary Jay Ruiz said it is time to have such an institution to prevent the spread of misinformation, especially relating to important issues.
“There’s a body that regulates movies. There’s also a body that regulates radio, TV. Why are we allowing fake news to appear online?” Ruiz said.
“At least even if not regulation, we should let vloggers (and) social media users know that they have a responsibility to the public,” he added.
At a press briefing, PCO Undersecretary Claire Castro said having a separate regulatory body for social media would prevent the public from “abusing” the use of the platform to “destroy” people.
“We will not stop opinions that are in line with the law – these are legitimate opinion; if there are criticisms, that should be respected. But it’s about maligning people without a basis… that’s a different thing,” she pointed out.
In the absence of a law that regulates social media, Castro encouraged the public to fact-check online content before accepting them as fact. — Helen Flores
