TAGAYTAY CITY (PIA) — The government would neither engage nor allow the state media to be used in peddling lies, says Presidential Communications Secretary Cesar Chavez.
Speaking before government communicators, Chavez cited the need for the state media to combat fake news even as he hinted at measures for the state media to be vigilant and cautious over information coming from various sources.
“PCO’s thrust is not to become instruments or peddlers of fake news,” Secretary Chavez said during the four-day National Information Summit in Tagaytay City during a discussion on state media and the shifting media landscape.
Chavez, a broadcast journalist by profession, admitted that the PCO and its attached media agencies are bound to commit mistakes too, for which the PCO chief finds it extremely necessary to check information and validate its sources as a matter of policy.
This comes as he vowed to tap the private sector for capability building such as media and information literacy for state media workers to help them navigate through misinformation, disinformation, and fake news given the so-called “artificial intelligence.”
Among the measures that he described as necessary include the formation and designation of fact-checkers in all the state media agencies, including those at the regional and provincial levels, in detecting and thwarting fake news both on government and private information platforms.
To start with, Chavez tapped Prof. Rachel Khan of the UP College of Mass Communications and Gemma Mendoza of Rappler for the four-day summit, who both discussed AI and combating fake news.
The Secretary asked whether it was possible for UP and Rappler to provide a short course on fact-checking and MIL for state media outfits.
“We can have a crash course on fact-checking or how to avoid becoming peddlers of fake news, especially with the emergence of black propaganda in the 2025 polls,” he added.
For her part, Khan said UP is open to collaboration with the state media, citing previous online training it has provided for media entities such as the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas and the Philippine Press Institute on basic fact checking, fake image detection, and use of tools.
Mendoza, on the other hand, said Rappler has started fine-tuning its MIL training program.
She noted basic things to be observed in media training, such as media and society; digital hygiene; how to secure privacy; verification; and research tools.
“Government communicators need to be concerned about disinformation. When you manipulate, there’s intent to deceive. Misinformation and disinformation bring real-life consequences,” she said.
Mendoza asked, “Would a regulatory approach work? None of the people who circulated fake news during the pandemic were punished. There must be accountability, but so much more needs to be done.”
Organized by the PCO, the summit seeks to promote interoperability and collaborative operations for state media outfits, namely the People’s Television Network; Philippine News Agency; Philippine Information Agency; Radyo Pilipinas; and the Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation.
Over a hundred state media practitioners gathered for the summit, comprising agency executives, news heads, station managers, reporters, and editors from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
The conference also delved into the 2025 national elections media coverage and issues on the West Philippine Sea. (PIA-DMD)
