Rappler, Vera Files as FB fact-checkers opposed

MANILA - Malacañang on Monday, April 16, opposed Facebook's decision to tap news outlets Rappler and Vera Files for a third-party fact-checking program in an effort to stamp out the proliferation of fake news among Filipino users of the social media platform.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said Facebook's move to partner with the two local media entities was the social media giant's own "solution" to counter the spread of false information.

He lamented that the "chosen police of the truth," referring to Rappler and Vera Files, were "sometimes partisan themselves."

"There are those who are complaining that the chosen police of the truth, so to speak, are sometimes partisan themselves. And of course, this is the

problem with truth that can be subjective, depending on your political perspective," he told a press conference.

"And that is why I commiserate with those who object to the selection of Rappler and VERA files because we know where they stand in the political spectrum," he added.

Facebook announced on April 12 its partnership with Rappler and Vera Files to factcheck content sharing sites to prevent false news from spreading on the popular social media page.

Communications Undersecretary Lorraine Badoy, in a separate statement, said the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) would raise its objection to the choice of fact-checkers by Facebook when it has the chance to meet the social media giant's executives "soon." SunStar Philippines