Asian crackdown on ‘fake news’ sparks alarm
Inflammatory stories masquerading as real news pose a particularly toxic threat in Asian countries with long-standing religious and ethnic divides, but promises by some regional leaders to tackle the problem carry equal menace.
Borrowing from US President Donald Trump’s political playbook, government heads with an authoritarian streak are using the mantra of “fake news”
to shield themselves from negative media coverage, and push legislation that critics say is aimed more at stifling dissent than punishing fabrication.
The problem they profess to be addressing is a genuine one.
Internet penetration is now so extensive – even in the poorest areas – that fake stories dressed up as fact can go viral on social media overnight and reach massive audiences with often dire consequences.
In India last year, seven people were killed by a mob after a false story spread on WhatsApp that they were child-traffickers, while in Myanmar, doctored photos and bogus reports shared on Facebook have fuelled the persecution of Rohingya Muslims.
A number of Asian leaders have tapped into the resulting public concern and launched campaigns that claim to target malign rumor-mongers but, experts say, actually serve to turn the screws on critical media and political opponents.
“This vague notion of ‘fake news’, which has been used and abused by US President Donald Trump, is a boon for governments who want to muzzle overcurious independent voices,” Daniel Bastard, head of the Asia-Pacific desk at Reporters Without Borders (RSF), told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte – who once memorably warned media that “just because you’re a journalist, you’re not exempted from assassination” – has regularly accused news outlets critical of his deadly war on drugs of peddling fake news.
He has openly attacked a top newspaper and broadcaster, while the biggest target of the media clampdown has been news website Rappler.
Some countries are seeking to legislate against fake news, sparking concerns that the laws will be used to stifle dissent.
Clarissa David, a media expert at University of the Philippines, warned that any such law in the Philippines may become “a tool for censorship” that could be used to “silence legitimate news organizations from covering stories that are unfavorable to groups in power.”
Michael Vatikiotis, a Southeast Asia expert, said that legislating against fake news “puts journalists in deeper peril.”
“Unlike normal justifications for curbing media freedom, fake news is a broad, catch- all definition that is wholly subjective,” Vatikiotis, an author and former journalist, said.