‘Duterte had to neutralize the nationwide and global operations of the huge network in preparation for Bongbong Marcos’ presidential run this year.’
WHEN he forced the closure of ABS-CBN, President Duterte was not merely getting back at the network for its failure to air most of his political ads during the 2016 elections and after the Lopezes were found to be allegedly deficient in the payment of the network’s taxes.
Duterte had to neutralize the nationwide and global operations of the huge network in preparation for Bongbong Marcos’ presidential run this year.
Everyone knows the Lopezes have a big ax to grind against the Marcoses and they would most probably launch the most massive and relentless media campaign against Marcos’ candidacy. There was little doubt that ABS-CBN’s technological capacity in numerous media platforms and its abundant resources would be formidable to bring down Bongbong Marcos and his political allies in any political exercise.
The chilling effect of ABS-CBN’s sudden shutdown, throwing about 11,000 jobless employees out in the streets in both broadcast and print media, virtually gave free sway to the propaganda and disinformation spearheaded by the Marcos and Duterte camps.
Unfortunately, the expected backlash from the fate of ABS-CBN under this administration failed to materialize from much of media itself and from the millions of followers of the leading broadcast network. On the local level, the vast majority seemed to have forgotten the act of tyranny of the so-called representatives of the people who had trampled on our democratic institutions and should be held accountable through the ballot.
Evidently, many young Filipinos subjected to historical revisionism and social and political fabrications and enticed by an enormous war chest have turned to front-running alternatives with miserably little to show.
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From Pulitzer Prize Awardee for Journalism Manny Mogato on FB: “Legacy media could be partly to blame for the information ecosystem the country has now. The media cowered in fear under Duterte and did not make enough push back until early this year when they courageously banded together to launch a fact-check activity. But it was too late; the disinformation has taken root and majority of the people had believed in the lies and untruths about Marcos. The media could be partly blamed if Marcos wins. Wait, majority of newspapers and broadcast networks are controlled or owned by people who are either related to the Marcoses or have close relations with the family. Still, the media failed to play its role to inform, educate and crystallize an informed opinion to shape the country’s democracy.”
