In the final round of the Miss Universe pageant, the question was: “What was the most important development in the world, in the past ten years?” For many the best answer is: INTERNET. A new era was heralded when the advancement of internet technology, voices of ordinary citizens or netizens on Facebook or Twitter, or any other apps, published ON-LINE, along with the established journalists in the tri-media. The use of social media by opinion makers, commentators, critics or activists have effectively attracted followers, who follow their “ AT THE MOMENT (ATM)” posts and messages are posted free from official oversight. But, concerns are now starting to put the social media into close scrutiny, since many political leaders or propagandists are deploying social media to disseminate propaganda to promote their advocacy or partisan views, regardless of its veracity.
Back in 2012, as Facebook prepared for its IPO, Mark Zuckerberg wrote a letter to investors touting the company’s role in helping ordinary citizens hold their leaders accountable. “By giving people the power to share, we are starting to see people make their voices heard on a different scale from what has historically been possible,” he wrote. “These voices will increase in number and volume. They cannot be ignored. Over time, we expect governments will become more responsive to issues and concerns raised directly by all their people.” But, Facebook has metamorphosed, beyond all the good intentions which Zuckerberg intended.
It appears that some of those persons who posts, are called “TROLL”defined by Urban Dictionary, as “ one who posts a deliberately provocative message by means of social media or message board, with the intention to cause maximum disruption or argument, or to influence the perception of the truth. Sometimes, it takes the form of “fake news, fake facts or alternative truths,” or sometimes referred to “post truths”. It is the buzz word of the day, which Oxford dictionary selected as the word of the year in 2016. Some authoritarian leaders, employ a vast and effective “keyboard army”, of TROLLS, that their backers have mobilized to silence dissenters and create the illusion that authoritarian leader enjoys widespread public support. Each day, hundreds of thousands of supporters–both paid and unpaid–take to social media to promote the political agenda of their sponsor., to to spread negative jokes or stories of opponents. No topic is off-limits, talking points, quotes, or jokes , with no censorship.
“For authoritarian states, social media censorship will increasingly be seen as an essential aspect of the security apparatus,” says Eric Jensen, a sociologist at the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, who specializes in online public engagement. “There has been a pattern of civil society embracing opportunities for more open communication, such as social media–followed inexorably by a gradual colonization of those communication channels by corporations and government.”
It is reported that online trolls are paid, up to $2,000 a month to create fake social media accounts and flood the digital airwaves with propaganda. With the median age of only 23 years old, the Philippines seem tailor-made for this kind of propaganda machine. Almost half of its 103 million citizens are active social media users. Access to Facebook is provided free with all smartphones, but Filipinos incur data charges when visiting other web sites, including those of newspapers. As a result, millions of citizens rely on social media for virtually all of their news and information, consuming a daily diet of partisan opinion that masquerades as fact.
BEWARE OF TROLLS!
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Author’s email: whelmayap@yahoo.com
