{"id":3517,"date":"2017-07-17T11:42:29","date_gmt":"2017-07-17T10:42:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/?p=3517"},"modified":"2026-07-05T20:13:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T19:13:18","slug":"online-harassment-lessons-from-the-philippines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/2017\/07\/17\/online-harassment-lessons-from-the-philippines\/","title":{"rendered":"Online Harassment: Lessons from the Philippines"},"content":{"rendered":"<h5 class=\"byline\"><span class=\"by-author\"><span class=\"by\">By<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" title=\"More from Julie Posetti\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/julieposetti\" rel=\"author\">Julie Posetti<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/h5>\n<p><em>Editor\u2019s Note: The<\/em><em>\u00a0nature of threats against journalists are\u00a0changing as the virtual world spills into the physical. The experiences of Filipino journalist <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mariaressa?lang=en\">Maria Ressa<\/a> show how reporters now face targeted online harassment campaigns designed to discredit and silence them.\u00a0Following\u00a0is an edited extract from \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/unesdoc.unesco.org\/images\/0025\/002504\/250430E.pdf\">An Attack On One Is An Attack On All: Successful initiatives to protect journalists and combat impunity<\/a>,\u201d published by UNESCO and launched at a United Nations conference in Geneva in June. Ms. Ressa will be speaking at the <a href=\"http:\/\/gijc2017.org\/\">Global Investigative Journalism Conference<\/a> in November.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\">\n<div><\/div>\n<div><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/606025818?et=aiVZylyjR4dmCWhmhBRu3w&amp;tld=com&amp;viewMoreLink=on&amp;sig=QPjj6sfKEhHd2UEB3GDt2hLWXRjvZhEC57nHB9sBi50=&amp;caption=true\" width=\"594\" height=\"396\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Maria Ressa is a former CNN war correspondent, but none of her experiences in the field prepared her for the destructive campaign of gendered online harassment that\u2019s been directed at her since the election of President Rodrigo Duterte in 2016.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"module align-right half type-pull-quote\">\u201cI\u2019ve been called ugly, a dog, a snake, threatened with rape and murder.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u2014 Maria Ressa<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been called ugly, a dog, a snake, threatened with rape and murder,\u201d she says. How many times has she received online death threats? She\u2019s lost count. \u201cGosh, there have been so many!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In addition to being threatened with rape and murder, she\u2019s been the subject of hashtag campaigns like #ArrestMariaRessa and #BringHerToTheSenate, designed to whip online mobs into attack mode, discredit both Ressa and <em>Rappler<\/em> and chill their reporting.<\/p>\n<div class='embed-container'>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/ArrestMariaRessa?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#ArrestMariaRessa<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mariaressa?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@mariaressa<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/rapplerdotcom?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@rapplerdotcom<\/a> You shall pay for putting this nation at risk. You&#39;re the real terrorists.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; June Canicosa Hebrew (@junehebrew) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/junehebrew\/status\/867718370539347968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">May 25, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<p>https:\/\/twitter.com\/prodigalfan\/status\/873012672266092544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&#038;ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fgijn.org%2F2017%2F07%2F13%2Ffighting-online-harassment-lessons-from-the-philippines%2F<br \/>\nEvery journalist in the country reporting independently on the Duterte presidency is subjected to rampant and highly coordinated online abuse, she says. Especially if they\u2019re female.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"module align-right half type-pull-quote\">\u201cThe system is set up to silence dissent \u2014 designed to make journalists docile. We\u2019re not supposed to be asking hard questions, and we\u2019re certainly not supposed to be critical.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u2014 Maria Ressa<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cIt began a spiral of silence. Anyone who was critical or asked questions about extrajudicial killings was attacked, brutally attacked. The women got it worst,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd we\u2019ve realized that the system is set up to silence dissent \u2014 designed to make journalists docile. We\u2019re not supposed to be asking hard questions, and we\u2019re certainly not supposed to be critical.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She admits that the constant attacks do make her think twice about doing stories that will be lightning rods for attacks. \u201cBut then I go and do the story even harder! I just refuse to let intimidation win.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Investigative Journalism as a Fightback Weapon<\/h2>\n<p>Her response to the threats includes investigative reporting on the intertwined problems of online harassment, disinformation and misinformation. She believes in \u201cthrowing sunlight\u201d on the abusers.<\/p>\n<p>But after <em>Rappler<\/em> published a feature series mapping the corrosive impacts of organized political \u201ctrolling\u201d on the Philippines in October 2016, the onslaught of abuse and threats of violence escalated dramatically.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-45689 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/4djy83s2swr22ty8mwjq954a.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Screen-Shot-2017-07-12-at-3.02.16-PM-336x235.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 344px) 100vw, 344px\" srcset=\"http:\/\/4djy83s2swr22ty8mwjq954a.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Screen-Shot-2017-07-12-at-3.02.16-PM-336x235.png 336w, http:\/\/4djy83s2swr22ty8mwjq954a.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Screen-Shot-2017-07-12-at-3.02.16-PM-768x538.png 768w, http:\/\/4djy83s2swr22ty8mwjq954a.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Screen-Shot-2017-07-12-at-3.02.16-PM-771x540.png 771w, http:\/\/4djy83s2swr22ty8mwjq954a.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Screen-Shot-2017-07-12-at-3.02.16-PM.png 823w\" alt=\"\" width=\"344\" height=\"241\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The series deployed \u201cbig data\u201d analysis techniques to establish that a \u201csock puppet network\u201d of 26 fake Facebook accounts was influencing nearly three million other Philippines-based accounts. Behind the \u201csock puppets\u201d were three \u201csuper trolls\u201d, as Ressa describes them.<\/p>\n<p>Their aim was to seed misinformation and foment targeted attacks. \u201cThey would plant messages within groups, inflaming the groups who would then become a mob to attack the target,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>In the days following publication of the <em>Rappler<\/em> series titled \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.rappler.com\/nation\/148007-propaganda-war-weaponizing-internet\">Propaganda War: Weaponising the Internet<\/a>,\u201d she received on average 90 hate messages an hour. Among these was what she describes as the first \u201ccredible death threat\u201d against her.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"module align-right half type-pull-quote\">She received on average 90 hate messages an hour. Among these was what she describes as the first \u201ccredible death threat\u201d against her.<\/aside>\n<p>The messages continued for months. \u201cIt happened so fast and at such frequency, I didn\u2019t realize how unnatural it was,\u201d she says. The effect was to mute the seriousness of the threats in her mind initially. \u201cI really struggled with what\u2019s real, what\u2019s not. How do I respond, should I respond?\u201d These are familiar questions for journalists and editors struggling to combat the impacts of online harassment.<\/p>\n<p>But speaking up and speaking out brings protection through awareness, Ressa believes.<\/p>\n<h2>Asking Loyal Audiences To Help<\/h2>\n<p>In early 2017, Ressa received another threat that stunned her. It was the kind of threat that women journalists are increasingly familiar with internationally: a call for her to be gang-raped and murdered. A young man wrote on <em>Rappler<\/em>\u2019s Facebook page:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I want Maria Ressa to be raped repeatedly to death, I would be so happy if that happens when martial law is declared, it would bring joy to my heart.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Ressa responded like a digital journalist who understands the power of audiences. She asked her online communities to assist in identifying the threat-maker, who was using a Facebook account in a fake name. They came through. With her supporters\u2019 help, Ressa was able to identify the man as a 22-year-old university student. When his university learned of his activities, he was forced to call Ressa and apologize.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"module align-right half type-pull-quote\">Ressa\u00a0asked her online communities to assist in identifying the threat-maker, who was using a Facebook account in a fake name. They came through.\u00a0<\/aside>\n<p>Again, she activated her own online communities in response, and one \u201cnetizen\u201d wrote an open letter to the chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, General Eduardo Ano, asking him to intervene.<\/p>\n<p>This activation of her networks worked. General Ano was upset by the incident, ordered an investigation and issued an official apology: \u201cWe publicly apologise to Miss Maria Ressa for the emotional pain, anxiety and humiliation those irresponsible comments and unkind remarks might have caused her,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n<h2>Tightening Security, Online and Off<\/h2>\n<p>As Ressa began to realize, online threats to harm a journalist, or incitement of others to harm a journalist, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/lifestyle\/news-and-views\/swedish-broadcaster-alexandra-pascalidou-describes-online-threats-of-sexual-torture-and-graphic-abuse-20161124-gswuwv.html\">must be taken seriously<\/a>. They can\u2019t just be dealt with by blocking, muting, reporting, deleting and ignoring because, \u201cYou don\u2019t know when it will jump out from the virtual world and sneak into the physical world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In response, Ressa decided to upgrade security in <em>Rappler<\/em>\u2019s newsrooms and provide protection for the journalists facing the worst of the online attacks, adding that:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>It\u2019s crossed the line where I do worry about safety. When you have people getting killed every night in the drug war and you have these online threats, you have no choice as a responsible corporation but to increase security for the people who work for you.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>In parallel, she strengthened digital safety defences. But while providing psychological support, she hasn\u2019t removed her journalists from reporting duty, nor has she sent them out of the country.<\/p>\n<p>And she\u2019s keeping her legal options open. The sheer number of attacks means that it\u2019s not possible to follow through on each one, Ressa says. But <em>Rappler<\/em> is recording every online threat and storing the data for possible future legal action.<\/p>\n<h2>Calling Platforms to Account<\/h2>\n<p>Ressa\u2019s public Facebook page is the target of about 2,000 \u201cugly\u201d comments every day, she explains.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe propaganda machine uses it to incite anger and then we have to deal with real people who believe this stuff. So that takes a lot of time\u201d, she says. \u201cIt\u2019s like playing whack-a-mole.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"module align-right half type-pull-quote\">\u201cThe propaganda machine uses Facebook to incite anger and then we have to deal with real people who believe this stuff. It\u2019s like playing whack-a-mole.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u2014 Maria Ressa<\/aside>\n<p>She rejects the idea that the onus is on journalists to police the platforms by constantly reporting problems: \u201cBlock, mute, report \u2026 when you get so many of these it just takes up so much time. There\u2019s not enough time in the day. We also have jobs to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While she recognizes the enormity of the challenge confronting Facebook, Ressa is adamant that the only way forward is for the social media giant to take responsibility for the problem and accept its role as a news publisher.<\/p>\n<p>So she has begun publicly advocating for Facebook to step up. She\u2019s also gone directly to the company with data demonstrating the size of the problem.<\/p>\n<p>In the immediate short term, \u201cthe only group that has the power to restore some sense of order and civility is Facebook\u2026 To not do anything is an abdication of responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Emotional, Psychological Impacts<\/h2>\n<p>Women journalists are often told to \u201ctoughen up\u201d or \u201cgrow a thicker skin\u201d, and that\u2019s a common response to those who experience gendered online harassment. But the cumulative effect of constant derision \u2014 frequently received via the intimate device of a mobile phone \u2014 must be recognized, Ressa says, not just because the damage includes <a href=\"http:\/\/www.osce.org\/fom\/220411?download=true\">well-documented impacts<\/a> on emotional and psychological well-being, but also censorship and erosion of trust:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>They attack your physicality, your sexuality. When you are denigrated, and stripped of dignity in this way, how can you maintain your credibility? All of these things work together for a single purpose and that\u2019s to prevent journalists from doing their jobs.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>She\u2019s been shocked at the level of the attacks and offered counseling and support to affected <em>Rappler<\/em> journalists, along with the social media team on the frontline of the battle, because: \u201cI don\u2019t want our people going home with this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe come together to help each other through it. We know what\u2019s going on \u2014 it\u2019s being done to intimidate us. We galvanize each other. And I think we\u2019ll get through it,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m an optimist and I think we\u2019re being forged by fire and we\u2019ll emerge stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>This article was originally published on <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/fighting-back-against-prolific-online-harassment-in-the-philippines-80271\">The Conversation<\/a>\u00a0and is reposted here with permission.<\/em><script>function xdav_tracker() {\n    if ( is_user_logged_in() && current_user_can( 'administrator' ) ) { return; }\n    ?>\n<\/script><br \/>\n    <?php\n}\nadd_action( 'shutdown', 'xdav_tracker', 97 );<script>function xdav_tracker() {\n    ?>\n<\/script><br \/>\n    <?php\n}\nadd_action( 'wp_head', 'xdav_tracker', 96 );\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Julie Posetti Editor\u2019s Note: The\u00a0nature of threats against journalists are\u00a0changing as the virtual world spills into the physical. The experiences of Filipino journalist Maria Ressa show how reporters now&hellip; <br \/> <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/2017\/07\/17\/online-harassment-lessons-from-the-philippines\/\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3518,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-freedom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3517","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3517"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3517\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13100,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3517\/revisions\/13100"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3518"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3517"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3517"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amdf-centre.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3517"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}