The University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) listed recommendations for the administration's Media and Information Literacy (MIL) campaign.
The Department of Broadcast Communication (BC) under the UPD College of Mass Communication (CMC), in a statement issued on Monday, Sept. 4, urged President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. to consider its suggestions for an “honest-to-goodness” MIL program.
UPD-BC also wanted the program to focus on upholding the “freedom of the press, expression, and assembly, as enshrined in the Constitution and amendments to policies from past dispensations.”
It also suggested allowing legitimate media firms as the "fourth estate free rein to do its oversight functions and demand accountability, including necessary fact-checking."
Moreover, the Department recommended that the administration should adopt a “holistic and systemic” approach to all levels of education programs when it comes to “critical media literacy.”
The Marcos administration was also encouraged to engage with the academe and civil society in the continuous crafting of policies and programs.
For the Department, the campaign should “join the global movement that advocates much-needed change in the social media spheres and greater accountability from big tech companies that have been shaping the current media and information landscape.”
Mere 'effrontery'
To combat misinformation and disinformation online, the Presidential Communication Office (PCO) launched the Marcos administration's MIL Campaign Project on Aug. 14.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2023/8/14/marcos-fight-for-the-truth
However, the Department also raised some concerns on the PCO initiative.
UPD-BC said it was “perturbed by the temerity” of the Marcos Jr. administration to launch such a project under the PCO.
For the Department, the campaign was “merely an effrontery.” They noted that “a more discerning and educated media-making and usage for all does not absolve it from being built by disinformation and misinformation, as various exposés and scholarship substantiate.”
Given this, UPD-BC hoped that if the administration genuinely supports a “media-literate citizenry,” the communication must always be a matter of speaking truth to power on whatever platforms.
"Duplicitous initiatives cannot create contexts and environments of information where critical thinking, dialogue, and responsibility are the norms," the Department said.
It also emphasized that the “abuse and misuse” of information and media encompass not only twisting facts and disseminating inaccurate data but also have the potential to harm lives and hinder the path to a sustainable future.
Source: Manila Bulletin (https://mb.com.ph/2023/9/4/upd-calls-for-honest-to-goodness-media-information-literacy-under-marcos-jr-admin)
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