Sen. Francis “Kiko” N. Pa-ngilinan yesterday sought an in-depth inquiry, in aid of legislation, on the proliferation of misinformation and fake news sites in social media platforms.
Seeking to stop the alarming speed of misinformation online, Pangilinan wants to penalize Facebook for fake news items if it allows to be propagated on its pages.
Through Senate Resolution 271 that will ask a particular Senate committee to undertake the probe, Pangilinan said he was inspired by German lawmakers who announced their intention to penalize Facebook for every post not properly moderated within 24 hours.
As president of the Liberal Party which is allied with the pro-Duterte majority in the 24-member Senate, Pangilinan expressed fears that the propagation of fake news stories has become an effective weapon of several political operatives to influence public opinion and national discourse.
“As a result, the level and quality of public discourse have suffered. Discerning the truth from the lies has become more difficult every day as manipulation of information and blatant fabrication of stories have become increasingly rampant,” he said. (Mario B. Casayuran)