House conducts third hearing on online disinfo amid surge in pro-Duterte narratives

The House of Representatives conducted its third hearing on online disinformation on Friday, March 21, focusing on the rise of false narratives supporting former President Rodrigo Duterte following his ICC arrest.

Vloggers and content creators associated with Duterte appeared before a tri-committee composed of panels on public order and safety, information and communications technology, and public information; however, known red-taggers Lorraine Badoy, Jeffrey Celiz, and social media personality Allan Troy 'Sass' Sasot were absent despite being subpoenaed.

The committee issued show-cause orders to 34 resource persons, mostly social media personalities, of whom only ten appeared at the hearing. The others received subpoenas compelling their attendance under oath for the next session on April 8.

Multiple pro-Duterte vloggers attended this hearing after skipping previous sessions; some face contempt citations if they fail to attend.

The hearing comes amid a surge in misleading content online since Duterte's arrest on March 11 and his transfer to the ICC on March 12.

Civil society groups, social media platforms like Google, Meta, and TikTok, as well as government agencies provided testimonies during the hearing, calling for stricter regulation and media literacy initiatives.