UPV launches 1st day of Democracy and Disinformation Conference

“Taking Root: Campus Journalism and Beyond” launched the 3rd National Conference on Democracy and Disinformation hosted by UP Visayas with its first session on the “New Normal, New Media: The Emerging Challenges of Disinformation in the Philippines” on February 22, 2021.

In this session, Endy Bayuni, Senior Editor of the Jakarta Post and member of the Oversight Board for Facebook, emphasized that “Campus journalism can help redefine journalism in the digital era, and restore the role of journalists as gate-keepers.” He talked about this, as he went on to address the participants from various parts of the country through zoom.

Chancellor Clement Camposano, in his lecture, asserted the importance of having awareness and understanding when sifting through vital information. This allows one to recognize fake information. According to Camposano, “Disinformation threatens democracy from within, using the very same tools that have kept democracy alive in the past. There are no quick fixes for something so malignant. There is no vaccine for this kind of plague. Our only effective defense is information literacy. That is, long-term immunity through developing capabilities to search for, assess, and use information in various platforms.”

Other speakers for Session 1 were Dr. Ma. Diosa Labiste and Prof. Yvonne Chua, both of the UP Diliman College of Mass Communication; and John Nery, Convenor of the Consortium on Democracy and Disinformation and Opinion Columnist of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

The conference will continue its 2nd and 3rd Sessions on Wednesday, February 24, from 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM, and Friday, February 26, from 8:30 – 5:00 PM, respectively.

This conference is made possible by the collaboration between the Consortium on Democracy and Disinformation, UPV Division of Humanities, UPV Information and Publications Office (IPO), DYUP 102.7 FM, the Daily Guardian, and Rappler’s MovePH. (Anna Razel L. Ramirez/IPO)