Jimmy Kimmel's suspension shows that dictators follow a playbook

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Filipino American journalist Maria Ressa with Jon Stewart compare the attack on free speech.

All this talk about free speech spurred by the Jimmy Kimmel suspension  is starting to look uncomfortably familiar.

One of the highlights of my journalism career is when I learned that I was among the journalists with an arrest warrant issued by the government of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos. I was so proud.

As managing editor of the San Francisco-based Philippine News my name was included along with PhilNews publisher Alex Esclamado and the other editors of the Filipino American weekly. The newspaper was noted for its strong anti-Marcos stance amid the coverage of Filipinos in the US, from baby births, weddings to discrimination against Filipino Americans and the Filipino-instigated Grape Strike.

But whatever we did at the newspaper, it was nothing when compared what our peers in the Philippines were experiencing under the strongman Marcos.

When Marcos declared martial law in 1972, he didn't just target political opponents. He went after something just as powerful: the free press. And he didn't do it quietly. He did it with a methodical, ruthless precision that left no room for dissent.

Here's the scary part, the stuff that should make you wake up at night because of what is happening in the US today under the Donald Trump dictatorship is uncomfortably similar.

In 1972, in Manila newsrooms, the lights went out.

It started in the dead of night, just as martial law was being declared. Marcos had his military forces shut down the biggest media outlets in the country: newspapers like the Manila Times, magazines like the Philippine Free Press, and even TV stations like ABS-CBN. Can you imagine? The Philippines press was noted as having one of the most vibrant journalism in Asia. One day, there was a vibrant, messy, free-wheeling, public conversation happening, and the next day, it's just gone. Poof.

The media void wasn't left empty for long. Marcos and his cronies—his buddies, his business partners—created their own media empire. Outlets like the Daily Express and the Bulletin Today popped up, and they all served the same master: Marcos. Their job wasn't to inform. It was to glorify. They sold the "New Society" myth, painting a picture of progress and peace while the reality was far, far darker. It was a lie, and they were the ones who made sure you believed i

Journalists who dared to question the narrative were rounded up and thrown in jail. Sometimes, they were tortured. Some of them never came back. Marcos wasn't just killing the message; he was killing the messenger. 

Some of the most influential media figures at the time were immediately taken into custody. These included:

• Teodoro Locsin Sr., publisher of the Philippines Free Press
• Chino Roces, publisher of the Manila Times
• Eugenio Lopez Jr., owner of ABS-CBN
• Prominent writers Luis Beltran, Maximo Soliven, Amando Doronila, and Juan Mercado.
•  Many journalists were held in military stockades for years.
• 34 Filiilpino journalists were killed during the Marcos regime.

This is the playbook of every authoritarian regime. When you can't win an argument, you make sure no one is allowed to present a counter argument. Hitler did it. Stalin did it. Putin and X are doing it. And, Trump wants to do it. 

Emergence of the "Mosquito" press

But here's the thing about a good story—it finds a way to get out. A small, underground "mosquito press" emerged despite the censorship and Marcos' strongarm tactics. These brave individuals published their stories in secret, and their whispers became a chorus of defiance.

At the Philippine News, visitors from the Philippines would smuggle out these stories which the PhilNews reprinted. Then, we mailed the newspaper to key members of Congress and open-minded members of the media.

The legacy of Marcos's attack on the press lingers to this day. We still see echoes of his tactics in the way the media is threatened and attacked. But we also see the spirit of the mosquito press in those who continue to fight for the truth, no matter the cost.

Most recently, disgraced President Rolando Duterte tried to silence Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa and Rappler, the online news outlet she helped found in Manila. Ressa was hit with several arrest warrants and convicted of cyberlibel. In 2021, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her defense of press freedom.

After ABC suspended Kimmel's show, Jon Stewart hosted Ressa on his Daily Show during which Ressa told Stewart, "I told you so."

In an earlier interview Ressa issued a warning that the US was in danger of following the Philippines during Duterte's rule including legal harassment, arrests, revoking licenses.

In that earlier interview, Stewart countered that the institutions in the US were more stable and the bullying of a free press could not possibly happen here. Sadly, he was wrong and that's why he invited Ressa back to his show. 

Comedian Jimmy Kimmel returned to his show Tuesday.

Kimmel reinstated

Although Disney CEO Bob Iger allowed Kimmel to return to ABC today, the Trump threat to media outlets remains. Sinclair and Nexstar, which together own about 20% of the ABC affiliates, said they would still not air Kimmel's show on their stations.

Although not well known by the general public, the Kimmel situation brought them into the spotlight exposing their undue influence in the information industry and disproves the GOP assertion of the so-called "liberal "leanings of mainstream media. If they are successful in having the FCC approve their expansion, the two corporations operate hundreds of television outlets and thus control the direction of news dissemination and our national conversation.

In his opening monologue Tuesday evening, an emotional Kimmel thanks his supporters in the entertainment industry and the thousands of ordinary Americans who were angry at Trump's attack on the First Amendment. 

"But I don't wanna make this about me because — and I know this is what people say when they make things about them — but I really, this show is not important," said Kimmel.

"What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this. I've had the opportunity to meet and spend time with comedians and talk show hosts from countries like Russia and countries in the Middle East who tell me they would get thrown in prison for making fun of those in power, and worse than being thrown in prison. They know how lucky we are here. Our freedom to speak is what they admire most about this country."

"We have to speak out against this bully," Kimmel warned. "He’s not stopping. And it’s not just comedy. He's gunning for our journalists, too. He's suing them, he's bullying them."

The intense outcry against ABC and the Disney Corporation saved Kimmel, this time. But Trump, Carr and his FCC said that this won't be the last attack against free speech.

The dismantling of America's free press is happening right before our eyes in real time. Yesterday they went after Steve Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel. Tomorrow it could be Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers or the all-woman panel of The View, all critics of the Trump regime.

"I think we're going to test ABC out on this. Let's see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million," Trump said in reference to the network settling his lawsuit over comments made by anchor George Stephanopoulos.

Trump, like dictator Marcos, systematically works to undermine public trust in journalists and media institutions that published critical reports. 

Trump popularized terms like "fake news" and repeatedly called the media "enemy of the people" to label unfavorable press coverage and outlets. What that constant barrage of negativity does is erode public trust in one of America's institutions and creates an environment of chaos. 

Democracy needs an informed citizenry in order for it to work. It is incumbent on us educate ourselves by continuing to demand and fight for a free press. As ABC and Disney has learned from the pressure they received in temporarily silencing Kimmel, the American public demands a free press, an essential weapon to fight corporate complicity. and authoritarianism.

So beware. The Jimmy Kimmel episode is only Round One.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. 

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accusations of “fake news” and flooding the information void with manufactured news, lies and their own twisted version of "fake news." 

 So, remember this: the freedom to speak is a muscle you have to exercise. If you let it atrophy, you'll find it's too late to use it when you need it most.

Free press wins as Maria Ressa acquitted of another trumped up charge

Maria Ressa overjoyed after the court acquits the Filipino American journalist.

Chalk up another win for democracy and the free press in the Philippines.

Nobel laureate Maria Ressa and her online news outlet Rappler were acquitted by the Philippines Regional Trial Court Tuesday (Sept. 12, 2023) on the final criminal tax charge leveled against them by the regime of former President Rodrigo Duterte.

Ressa , 59, had a smile on her face as the judge delivered the acquittal, said AFP news agency. "You gotta have faith," she told journalists after the verdict was rendered.

"The acquittal now strengthens our resolve to continue with the justice system, to submit ourselves to the court despite the political harassment, despite the attack on press freedom," added the Fillipino American journalist Ressa, who spent part of her youth in New Jersey and graduated from Princeton University. She frequently visits family who still reside in New Jersey.

The judgment comes after a legal battle lasting nearly five years. If they had lost the case, Ressa could have been jailed for up to 10 years, while Rappler would have faced a fine.

“This verdict underlines that it is possible for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to chart a different course to his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte, who waged a relentless campaign of media repression,” said the Hold The Line Coalition Steering Committee, an international coalition of free press advocates.

“We hope this judgment signals a revival of judicial independence in the Philippines after the previous administration’s instrumentalization of the courts as a means to erode press freedom and discredit independent reporting,” the Hold the Line Coalition said.

Ressa and Rappler were charged in connection with an alleged failure to accurately report financial details on their tax return pertaining to an amount of approximately US$ 11,000. But they have already paid twice that amount in bail and travel bonds associated with the charge.

In January, Ressa and Rappler were acquitted of four tax evasion cases before the Court of Tax Appeals in Manila in an emphatic victory.

While the verdict represents another reprieve, Rappler and Ressa, still face a sustained campaign of legal persecution and online violence, with 23 individual cases against them opened by the government since 2018.

Rappler and Ressa have maintained their innocence and continue to fight three other cases, including Ressa’s 2020 conviction on a trumped-up charge of criminal cyber libel, currently in the final phase of appeal before the Supreme Court. In that case alone, Ressa faces a seven-year jail sentence.

In an historic precedent, Rappler was officially issued a shutdown order in June 2022, reinforcing an earlier decision to revoke the outlet’s license to operate. The order was the first of its kind for the issuing agency and for Philippine media. The threat of shutdown lingers.

“This is a victory not just for Rappler but for everyone who has kept the faith that a free and responsible press empowers communities and strengthens democracy,” Rappler said in a statement.

“As an immediate next step, we call on the government to abandon all remaining cases against Rappler and Ressa, and in doing so, put a long-overdue end to their persecution,” in a statement issued by the Coalition.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me at Threads.net/eduardodiok, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Philippine court clears Maria Ressa of tax charges

AFP

Philippine court clears Filipino American Maria Ressa of tax evasion charges

Nobel laureate Maria Ressa was cleared of tax evasion charges by a Philippine Tax Court. 

"Today, facts win. Truth wins. Justice wins," said journalist Ressa, a former CNN correspondent who co-founded Rappler, a Philippine online news outlet that was targeted by former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte because it criticized his policies.

In an 80-page ruling, the court ordered the acquittal of Ressa and Rappler for “failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.”

"These charges were a brazen abuse of power, political harassment against journalists trying to hold power to account," she said in a statement. "This is where business, capital markets, and press freedom meet. So this victory is not just for Rappler, it’s for every Filipino who has ever been unjustly accused.

"It’s a ray of sunshine, hope – for those like journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio, who begins her fourth year in prison in February and Leila de Lima, who begins her seventh year in prison in February as well," Ressa continued.

"I had a good feeling about today – not only because not one shred of evidence supporting these charges was presented in court – but also because of the way Justice Catherine Manahan ran the trial. She was tough. When I testified, she was joined by Justice Bacorro-Villena."

The court's decision was a major victory for the Filipino American journalist, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021, but it is not the end of her legal troubles in three other cases.

Ressa and former researcher Reynaldo Santos Jr. are appealing their conviction for cyber libel pending at the Supreme Court, the lone tax case at the Pasig City RTC, and the appeal on the closure of Rappler pending at the CA.

In the US, the National Press Club issued a statement: "We are overjoyed tonight to learn that Maria Ressa and her news site Rappler were acquitted in a case of tax evasion by a Philippine court. The case was an example of harassment by government prosecutors who were trying to stop Ressa and the journalism of Rappler. This is huge victory for journalism and for one of its most determined and inspiring leaders. We are overjoyed for Maria Ressa and we know she will press forward."

"You know, Martin Luther King says, yes - it will take time," Ressa told the BBC. "But as I was reading through the decision, and there was no reason to take us to court... we're not tax evaders - we never were… This was an incredibly important day because it would have set a direction for which way the Philippines was going."

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a developing story. Check back later for updates. For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

Emmy awarded to "A Thousand Cuts' documentng Maria Ressa's fight for press freedom

MARIA RESSA

A Thousand Cuts, the documentary following Filipino American journalist Maria Ressa, won the award for Outstanding Social Issue Documentary at the 43rd News and Documentary Emmys held in New York City last Sept. 28.

“Thank you, Academy. And (Frontline PBS). and of course (Maria Ressa) and (Rappler) and everyone of our Philippine team!” tweeted Diaz, a resident of New Jersey.

The feature had its US broadcast premiere on Frontline in January 2022. Directed by Filipino American Ramona Diaz, the documentary follows Nobel Peace Prize winner Ressa as she fights for press freedom during the administration of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. It is a powerful examination o the threat of disinformation spread by social media.

Ressa, who co-founded the online news network Rappler, has had a ongoing battle with the Duterte administration, especially over its war on drugs, where thousands of alleged drug dealers and users were executed by overzealous law enforcement, military and vigilantes.

Philippines court found the New Jersey-raised Ressa guilty for libel, which she is appealing.

Ressa was awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize earlier this year for her defense of press freedom in the Philippines.

A Thousand Cuts is a Concordia Studio, Motto Pictures, and CineDiaz production developed in association with Topic for Frontline.

The full documentary can be viewed online for free on the YouTube channel and website of PBS Frontline, which acquired the rights to the documentary in June 2020.

For a complete list of Emmy winners, click here.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

'A Thousand Cuts' documentary earns two Emmy nominations

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The documentary "A Thousand Cuts" centers on Filipino American journalist and her fight for press freedom.

The documentary "A Thousand Cuts," about Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's efforts to muzzle journalist Maria Ressa, was nominated for two Emmy's.

In “A Thousand Cuts,” Filipino American filmmaker Ramona S. Diaz follows the crusade of Maria Ressa and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, as she exposes Duterte’s war on drugs, the extrajudicial killings and the corruption surrounding him.

RELATED: 'Squid Games' lead other Asian and Asian American nominees

The “thousand cuts” refers to chipping away at democracy through lies, misinformation and death threats until nothing is left.

Ressa, who grew up in New Jersey, is free on bail after being convicted of cyber libel by the Philippine courts.

The documentary, fresh after winning the Peabody Award, was nominated in Outstandin Documentary and Outstanding Social Issue categories as announced by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences on Thursday, July 28. It was among the 13 News and Documentary Emmy Award nominations received by Frontline one of the top investigative news programs in the US..

The 43rd News & Documentary Emmy® Awards will be presented in two individual ceremonies September 28 and 29, both live at the Palladium Times Square and live streamed on Watch.TheEmmys.TV and The Emmys ® app. 

To see the full list of nominees click here.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

'A Thousand Cuts," documentary on Maria Ressa, wins Peabody Award

Two Jersey girls making waves: journalist Maria Ressa, left, and filmmaker Ramona Diaz.

As journalist Maria Ressa fights off attempts of the Philippine government to muzzle her online news site Rappler and to jail the Nobel Peace Prize winner, a documentary of her fight for freedom of the press won the prestigious Peabody award.

A Thousand Cuts — Frontline’s 2021 documentary on the escalating war between the government and the press in the Philippines — was honored with a George Foster Peabody Award in the documentary category.

Directed by Filipino American filmmaker Ramona S. Diaz, the award-winning feature-length documentary follows renowned journalist Maria Ressa, CEO of the independent news site Rappler and a top target of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on press freedom. In December 2021, Ressa went on to be named a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Like Ressa, Diaz immigrated with her family as a young girl and grew up in New Jersey.

As one of the most prominent Filipino American filmmakers in the US, Diaz is the director of numerous feature documentaries including: 

• Spirits Rising (1996), about Corazon Aquino and the People Power Revolution, which won a Student Academy Award and the Ida Lupino DGA Award; 
• Imelda (2004), the definitive portrait of the infamous former First Lady of the Philippines, which won the Sundance Cinematography Prize for director of photography; 
• Ferne Pearlstein (full disclosure: my wife); and 
• Motherland (2017), a cinéma vérité portrait of a hospital in one of the poorest parts of Manila, home to the busiest maternity ward on earth, which won a Special Jury Award at Sundance.

In the Peabody Award jurors’ citation, A Thousand Cuts was recognized for its “astonishing access and chilling precision” and was honored as “a journalistic profile in courage for our time and a cautionary tale for global press freedom straining against the rise of populist autocracies around the world.”

A Thousand Cuts premiered on PBS in January 2021 following a decorated theatrical release in the summer of 2020 by PBS Distribution. Most recently, the film was awarded a 2022 Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award in the International TV category.

“We are thrilled to see Ramona Diaz’s A Thousand Cuts be recognized by the George Foster Peabody Awards,” said Frontline Executive Producer Raney Aronson-Rath. 

“At a time when the critical practice and public service of journalism is increasingly under attack in countries across the globe, we are proud to share Maria’s courageous story with our PBS audiences. We share this honor with our production partners at CineDiaz, Motto Pictures and Concordia Studios, and we will continue to champion Maria and other journalists in pursuit of the truth.”

In the last days of the Presidency of President Rodrigo Duterte before he handed over the  government to incoming , the Philippine government ordered Rappler to stop its online operation. Two weeks later, the Court of Appeals upheld libel charges against Ressa which carries with it a six-year prison. sentence.

Meanwhile, Ressa remains free on bail and Rappler is continuing to operate as appeals are being made to the newly installed government of President Bongbong Marcos to drop the charges against the news site and the journalist.

“I’m very honored to receive a Peabody Award for A Thousand Cuts,” said Diaz. “It’s been a privilege to be able to tell Maria Ressa’s story. She has been sounding the clarion call for social media disinformation and its effects on democracy since 2016. This important recognition from Peabody goes a long way in helping us amplify this universally resonant story.”

Since 1940, the prestigious George Foster Peabody Awards have honored excellence in broadcasting. The awards now recognize excellence in digital storytelling as well.

Including the award for A Thousand Cuts, Frontline — which is produced at GBH in Boston and airs nationwide on PBS — has garnered 27 Peabody Awards to date. 

Stream A Thousand Cuts below.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

World press condemn attacks on Philippine news site Rappler and co-founder Maria Ressa

Journalist Maria Ressa faces jail time

The Philippine government's attempts to shut down the online news site Rappler strikes at one of the pillars of democracy: a free and truthful press.

As the administration of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was preparing to transfer power to the newly elected President Bongbong Marcos, it delivered two vicious blows against Rappler and its co-founder Maria Ressa, the 2021Nobel Peace  laureate.

On June 28, the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission affirmed its 2018 decision to revoke Rappler’s certificates of incorporation, effectively confirming its shutdown. 

Less than two weeks later, Ressa lost an appeal against a 2020 conviction for cyber libel, putting her one step closer to serving up to nearly seven years behind bars.

Rappler drew Duterte's wrath for its regular scrutiny of former Duterte’s self-proclaimed “war on drugs” – echoing serious concerns by the UN human rights office, OHCHR, about the widespread and systematic killing of thousands of alleged drug suspects.

The online news website also explored the spread of disinformation over the internet and social media, which heavily influenced the last two Philippine Presidential elections by the use of anonymous accounts that trolled social media, the news source for many Filipinos. 

Irony upon irony, the international media is calling on the new Philippine President Bongbong Marcos to revoke those rulings. Marcos is the son of Ferdinand Marcos, the dictator who ruled over the Philippines for 20 years, 1965 to 1985. When Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law, the first thing he did was to seize control of the media, once the boldest and most aggressive free press in Asia.

"I continue to appeal to the incoming administration, work with journalists, we’re here to help you give a better future for the Philippines. We’re not your enemies," said Ressa.

In a letter to the new president, Jodie Ginsberg, president of the Committee to Protect Journalists, wrote:

"To start with, your administration should end the relentless persecution of journalist and Nobel Peace laureate Maria Ressa, a global beacon of press freedom. CPJ calls on your government to immediately drop all pending charges against Ressa, her colleagues, and the Rappler media group. These cases range from trumped-up tax charges to cyber libel accusations that threaten to shutter Rappler and carry potential prison penalties for those charged ...

"As the Philippines’ newly elected leader, you have the mandate to reassert your country’s damaged democratic credentials by forthrightly promoting and protecting press freedom. We urge you to seize this important moment and state clearly from the outset that journalists will be free to report without fear of reprisal, intimidation, or imprisonment during your tenure."

June 30 "is a new day in the Philippines with a new Administration coming to office and we call on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to quickly reverse the decisions to shutter Rappler and allow the newsroom and its journalists to operate unimpeded," wrote Jen Judson, president of the National Press Club and Gil Klein, president of the National Press Club Journalism Institute,

"We view this as an opportunity for the new Marcos government to make a good faith demonstration of its support for a free and secure democratic Philippines, of which a robust and independent press is a vital cornerstone. We look forward to a return to the rule of law in the Philippines as it relates to Rappler. We expect this will be the case. We stand by Maria Ressa," concluded their joint appeal.

Since Duterte took office six years ago, Rappler and Ressa have faced harassment at hands of Philippine authorities under President Duterte. The harassment and intimidation campaign took the form of online attacks, arrests and legal charges. Ressa has also been slapped with a series of civil and criminal cases, including charges of tax evasion, three cyber libel cases and violations of foreign ownership rules. At one point, Ressa faced up to 100 years in prison cumulatively in various cases.

Speaking on the issue, International Press Institute Deputy Director Scott Griffen said, “The Philippines’ decision to shut down Rappler is a flagrant attempt to silence a critical media outlet and a serious violation of press freedom, which has rapidly eroded under the Duterte administration.”

IPI executive board chair Khadija Patel said, “This decision is deplorable and is testimony to the legacy of an administration that has actively impeded press freedom throughout. As we call for this order to be overturned, we also call on the newly elected president to uphold the rule of law when it comes to news media in the country and stop harassment of critical journalists.”

While its actions against Rappler and Ressa are the highest profile incidents, Duterte has had a running war against the media during his entire time in office.

Duterte shut down the biggest and most influential television network ABS-CBN in 2020. Although, the independent network continues to broadcast online, the loss of its operating franchise has decimated its national television audience.

"We also urge your government to cease the “red-tagging” of journalists, the wrongful and dangerous labeling of reporters as supporters of the banned communist insurgency," urged the CPJ. "Duterte’s administration made red-tagging de facto government policy and employed the practice to threaten, harass, and jail journalists. Red-tagging is especially dangerous considering the Philippine military’s alleged role in extrajudicial killings and torture of accused communists.

The Philippines is also one of the most dangerous places for journalists to work, notes the CPJ. "More broadly, we implore your government to prioritize ending the enduring culture of impunity in the killing of Filipino journalists," based on CPJ’s latest Impunity Index, a quantitative measure of the number of unsolved journalist murders as a percentage of the population.

As Rappler's case is appealed in the Philippines' courts, the news site continues to operate. "It's - our only defense as a journalist is to actually shine the light," the New Jersey-raised Ressa told NPR. 

"So when you get, like, what is equivalent of a shutdown order, do you stay quiet about it and wait, or do you tell people about it, you tell your community about it? We chose to tell our community, and we are working business as usual. We covered the inauguration of President Marcos, and we continue to do our jobs."

Ressa, meanwhile, is out on bail as she awaits the new Marcos regime's position on a free press.

"Who knows what the new administration will do?" Ressa told Axios editor-in-chief Sara Kehaulani Goo. "If the rule of law wins, these cases (against me and Rappler) will be thrown out. I look forward to a new administration and their upgrading of the rule of law." 

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

Maria Ressa blasts social media as she receives Nobel Peace Prize

Maria Ressa warned against the role of unfettered social media in spreading lies and division.

The crucial role of journalism in a free democratic society was the message of  the two journalists -- Maria Ressa and Dmetry Murotov -- who received the Nobel Peace Prize Friday.

"Our greatest need today is to transform that hate and violence, the toxic sludge that's coursing through our information ecosystem, prioritized by American internet companies that make more money," said Filipina American Ressa as she received the coveted award.

She accused U.S. social media giants like Facebook of spreading a "flood of toxic sludge" sowing division and hate through their platforms.

"Our greatest need today is to transform that hate and violence, the toxic sludge that's coursing through our information ecosystem," said Ressa, the first Filipino American to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

The 58-year old co-founder the online news outlet Rappler in the Philippines has long been a vocal critic of social media that she accused Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte of weaponizing by hiring trolls to spread lies and half-truths against her and Rappler because of their criticism of Duterte's extrajudicial was on drugs that has fostered vigilante violence throughout the Philippines.

READ or WATCH Maria Ressa's Nobel Peace Prize speech.

"The attacks against us in Rappler began five years ago when we demanded an end to impunity on two fronts: Duterte's drug war and Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook," she said.

“These American companies controlling our global information ecosystem are biased against facts, biased against journalists,” she said. “They are — by design — dividing us and radicalizing us.”

The 2020 elections in the U.S. and the upcoming Presidential election in the Philippines in 2022 are war zones with democracy in the two countries at stake, she has warned earlier.

"You have to know what values you are fighting for, and you have to draw the lines early -- but if you haven't done so, do it now: where this side you're good, and this side, you're evil," she told her Nebel audience in Oslo, Norway. "Some governments may be lost causes, and if you're working in tech, I'm talking to you: How can you have election integrity if you don't have integrity of facts?"

The social network has been under intense scrutiny in recent years for how its algorithms promote content. CEOs and representatives of Facebook, Twitter and other media giants have been grilled by Congressional committees for their role in spreading false information. U.S. civil rights organizations have tried to convince Facebook leadership that it must address the use of its platform to spread voter disinformation, to intimidate and incite hate against vulnerable populations, and to otherwise undermine democracy. 

Ressa and her family immigrated to the U.S. when she was a young girl became an American citizen in 1973. She worked for CNN before founding Rappler.

Murotov, 60, is the editor in chief of Novaya Gazeta, Russia’s most outspoken national newspaper, for more than 25 years. He warned about the escalation of war rhetoric and the rise of authoritative leaders.

“The world has fallen out of love with democracy,” Muratov said in his acceptance  speech. “The world has become disappointed with the elites in power. The world has begun to turn to dictatorship.”

Asian American journalists applaud Maria Ressa's Nobel Peace Prize

Beth Frondoso | Rappler

Filipino American Maria Ressa returned to the Philippines as the CNN bureau chief.

The Nobel Peace Prize for 2021 is being awarded to Filiipino American journalist Maria Ressa and Russia's Dmitry Muratov for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.

Ressa and Muratov are receiving the Peace Prize for their courageous fight for freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia. At the same time, they are representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal in a world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasingly adverse conditions, says the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

Ressa is the first Filipino to win a Nobel Prize. Born in the Philippines, Ressa immigrated to the U.S. in 1973 at the age of 10 with her mother. Her  family settled in New Jersey. She graduated cum laude from Princeton with a degree in English.

"Maria is an inspiration to journalists across the globe, and of every generation,” said Michelle Ye Hee Lee, president of the Asian American Journalists Association.

“The AAJA community is beyond proud and encouraged that her pioneering leadership in journalism and in championing press freedom, and the role that press freedom plays in holding governments accountable to the people they serve, have been recognized by the Nobel committee," said Lee. 

Her campaign to protect press freedom in the Philippines has garnered worldwide attention. She was named one of Time magazine's Person's of the Year for 2018 and last May was named the 2021 laureate of the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize.

Ressa called the prize “a global recognition of the journalist’s role in repairing, fixing our broken world,” and said “it’s never been as hard to be a journalist as it is today.”

The last time the first Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to journalists was in 1935 when Carl von Ossietzky won it for revealing Germany's secret post-war rearmament program.

“The AAJA community is beyond proud and encouraged that her pioneering leadership in journalism and in championing press freedom, and the role that press freedom plays in holding governments accountable to the people they serve, have been recognized by the Nobel committee. Maria is an inspiration to journalists across the globe, and of every generation,” said Michelle Ye Hee Lee, president of AAJA.

An AAJA-Asia statement expressed, “We thank the Nobel Prize committee for shining a light on freedom of expression and the role of journalists, particularly at a time when nearly all of the countries in Southeast Asia have fallen to the bottom of the World Press Freedom Index.”

The Nobel Peace Prize will be presented on Dec. 10, the anniversary of the death of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, who founded the awards in his 1895 will.

In selecting Ressa to share the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, the committee issued the following statement:

Maria Ressa uses freedom of expression to expose abuse of power, use of violence and growing authoritarianism in her native country, the Philippines. In 2012, she co-founded Rappler, a digital media company for investigative journalism, which she still heads. As a journalist and the Rappler’s CEO, Ressa has shown herself to be a fearless defender of freedom of expression. Rappler has focused critical attention on the Duterte regime’s controversial, murderous anti-drug campaign. The number of deaths is so high that the campaign resembles a war waged against the country’s own population. Ms Ressa and Rappler have also documented how social media is being used to spread fake news, harass opponents and manipulate public discourse.

“This relentless campaign of harassment and intimidation against me and my fellow journalists in the Philippines is a stark example of a global trend,” the 58-year old Ressa told The Associated Press.

Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda. The Norwegian Nobel Committee is convinced that freedom of expression and freedom of information help to ensure an informed public, notes the Nobel committee. These rights are crucial prerequisites for democracy and protect against war and conflict. The award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov is intended to underscore the importance of protecting and defending these fundamental rights.

Without freedom of expression and freedom of the press, it will be difficult to successfully promote fraternity between nations, disarmament and a better world order to succeed in our time. This year’s award of the Nobel Peace Prize is therefore firmly anchored in the provisions of Alfred Nobel’s will, says the Nobel committee.

Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, described Ressa and co-winner Dmitriy Muratov as “representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal in a world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasingly adverse conditions.”

For years, ahead of Congressionial hearings held last week that heard the testimony of a former Facebook employee who accused the social media platform of favored  divisiveness and agry discourse to encourage "hits," which helps the company's profits. Ressa accused social media giants like Facebook as a serious threat to democracy,  saying “they actually prioritized the spread of lies laced with anger and hate over facts.”

“I didn’t think that what we are going through would get that attention. But the fact that it did also shows you how important the battles we face are, right?” she said. “This is going to be what our elections are going to be like next year. It is a battle for facts. When you’re in a battle for facts, journalism is activism.”

AAJA expresses gratitude to Maria for inspiring AAPI journalists over the years. In 2019, Maria Ressa was the keynote speaker for AAJA’s annual convention gala dinner. Speaking on misinformation, “This is the battle of our generation. This battle for truth. A lie told a million times becomes a fact,” Ressa said.

"AAJA has stood by Ressa during her arrest and conviction on cyber libel charges, and we continue to proudly support her, fellow awardee Dmitriy Andreyvich Muratov, and all journalists who do the brave work of bringing the truth to their communities," the AAJA stated.

“As the first Filipina to win the Nobel Peace Prize and first woman to be honored this year (and only 18th woman in history), Maria is making and will continue to make history. We are grateful for her example and her constant support and encouragement throughout the years as AAJA continues to train up future generations of journalists as public servants,” said Naomi Tacuyan Underwood, executive director of AAJA.

World Press Freedom Day -- Maria Ressa recognized by UNESCO

TWITTER / MARIA RESSA

Filipino American journalist Maria Ressa accepted her award virtually.

Investigative journalist and media executive Maria Ressa of the Philippines has been named as the 2021 laureate of the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, following the recommendation of an international jury of media professionals. 

“Maria Ressa’s unerring fight for freedom of expression is an example for many journalists around the world. Her case is emblematic of global trends that represent a real threat to press freedom, and therefore to democracy,” said Italian investigative journalist Marilu Mastrogiovanni, chair of the Prize’s international jury.

The Award Ceremony took place on May 2 in Windhoek, Namibia, on the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day Global Conference.

In her acceptance speech, delivered online, Ressa warned about the virus of untruths infecting democracies around the world.

"The virus of lies is highly contagious. They infect real people, who become impervious to facts. It changes the way they look at the world. They become angrier, more isolated. They distrust everything," she said.

"In this environment, the dictator wins, crumbling our democracies from within."

The rich and powerful, she said, have to choose and act. "Silence is complicity," she said.

"Whether you’re at the UN or heading a nation or a corporation, or you’re a politician, human rights worker, a journalist, or a citizen, fight – and win – your individual battle for integrity," she concluded.

Over a career spanning more than 30 years, the Filipino American journalist, has worked as CNN’s lead investigative reporter for Asia and the head of ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs.

Her campaign to protect press freedom in the Philippines has garnered worldwide attention. She was named one of Time magazine's Person's of the Year for 2018 and has been nominated for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Ressa has also been involved in many international initiatives to promote press freedom. In recent years, she has been the target of online attacks and judicial processes relating to her investigative reporting and status as manager of online outlet Rappler.

She has been arrested for alleged crimes related to the exercise of her profession, and has been subject to a sustained campaign of gendered online abuse, threats, and harassment, which at one point, resulted in her receiving an average of over 90 hateful messages an hour on Facebook.

Born in the Philippines, Ressa immigrated to the U.S. in 1973 at the age of 10 with her mother. Her  family settled in New Jersey. She graduated cum laude from Princeton with a degree in English.

The $25,000 Prize recognizes outstanding contributions to the defence or promotion of press freedom especially in the face of danger. It is named after Guillermo Cano Isaza, the Colombian journalist who was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper El Espectador in Bogotá, Colombia, on Dec. 17, 1986. It is funded by the Guillermo Cano Isaza Foundation (Colombia), the Helsingin Sanomat Foundation (Finland) and the Namibia Media Trust.

The 2021 World Press Freedom Day Global Conference Began April 29 and continues to May 3.

This year’s theme “Information as a Public Good” serves as a call to affirm the importance of cherishing information as a public good, and exploring what can be done in the production, distribution and reception of content to strengthen journalism, and to advance transparency and empowerment while leaving no one behind. The theme is of urgent relevance to all countries across the world. It recognizes the changing communications system that is impacting on our health, our human rights, democracies and sustainable development.

The conference also tackled ways to promote and support independent media struggling to survive a crisis worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, at a time when national and local media everywhere face financial instability and other pressures threatening their survival and their journalists’ jobs.

Int'l Women's Day: Social media attacks against journalist Maria Ressa appear coordinated

Maria Ressa (center) was arrested in Manila as soon as she got off the airplane.

As people in the United States know too well from the last four years of the Trump presidency, damaging the credibility of the news media with accusations of "fake news" is a prime strategy for sowing disinformation and chaos.

Press freedom in the Philippines, once the most free-wheeling and aggressive in Asia, has been under attack since the days of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

Under the regime of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, at the center of the media storm is Maria Ressa, a Filipino American journalist who  returned to the Philippines to use her pen to rail against the human rights abuses of the Duterte presidency.

Ressa lives at the core of a very 21st century war against press freedom, especially against outspoken women journalists. It is a furor of disinformation and attacks - one in which credible journalists are subjected to online violence with impunity; where facts wither and democracies teeter.

"She is not only attacked for being a journalist. She is attacked for being a woman. For the color and texture of her skin. For her American citizenship. And for her sexuality," says the report.

New research released on March 8, which marks International Women’s Day, provides the most comprehensive assessment to date of the online violence against Ressa, reports the Centre for Freedom of the Media , a global research agency for media freedom and maintaining journalistic standards.

The research which was published by the International Centre for Journalists (ICFJ) and conducted by CFOM members Julie Posetti, Diana Maynard and Kalina Bontcheva, consists of a big data analysis “of the torrent of social media attacks on internationally celebrated digital media pioneer Maria Ressa over a five-year period (2016-2021).”

The research “detail[s] the intensity and ferocity of this abuse, and demonstrate[s] how it is designed not only to vilify a journalism icon, but to discredit journalism itself, and shatter public trust in facts”. It is also shown how “[t]hese attacks (…) created an enabling environment for Ressa’s persecution and prosecution in the Philippines” where Ressa “faces a barrage of baseless lawsuits that seek to criminalize her work and expose her to a century in prison” according to Caoilfhionn Gallagher QC, the co-lead of Ressa’s international legal team.

The research further shows how “the furor of disinformation and attacks” targeting the former CNN war correspondent and UNESCO World Press Freedom Prize jury chair Maria Ressa is emblematic of “a very 21st century storm (…) – one in which credible journalists are subjected to online violence with impunity; where facts wither and democracies teeter”.

Key research findings show that: “almost 60% of the attacks on Ressa … extracted from Facebook and Twitter for analysis were designed to undermine her professional credibility and public trust in her journalism”.

Attacks intending to harm Ressa’s credibility or reputation “frequently deployed disinformation tactics and abuse conflating Ressa and her journalism with “fake news” (e.g., “Queen of Fake News”; “LIAR”; “#Presstitute”)”.

Moreover, “[o]ver 40% of the attacks in the combined datasets targeted Ressa at the personal level” and “14% of all abuse and 34% in the category of ‘personal’ attacks against Ressa could be classified as misogynistic, sexist and explicit abuse”.

The research also finds “evidence that some of the attacks on Ressa are coordinated or orchestrated – a hallmark of State-led disinformation campaigns.”

These are the 11 key findings of the case study examining online violence against Ressa:

1. Almost 60% of the attacks on Ressa we extracted from Facebook and Twitter for analysis were designed to undermine her professional credibility and public trust in her journa
2. Credibility or reputation-based attacks frequently deployed disinformation tactics and abuse conflating Ressa and her journalism with “fake news” (e.g., “Queen of Fake News”; “LIAR”; “#Presstitute”).
3. Over 40% of the attacks in the combined datasets targeted Ressa at the personal level - often viscerally.
4. 14% of all abuse and 34% in the category of ‘personal’ attacks against Ressa could be classified as misogynistic, sexist and explicit abuse.
5. The use of abusive memes and manipulated images, which ‘fly under the radar’ of detection, is commonplace.
6. There is evidence that some of the attacks on Ressa are coordinated or orchestrated - a hallmark of State-led disinformation campaigns.
7. Much of the abuse and threats are fueled by President Duterte’s public statements demonizing Ressa and Rappler as criminals, and pro-Duterte bloggers/social media influencers.
8. Lightning rods for attacks include: Rappler’s investigative journalism; Ressa’s reporting and commentary on State-linked disinformation; Ressa’s high-profile media appearances; her industry accolades; and her court appearances.
9. Facebook is the main vector for the online violence Ressa faces. It is also the most used social media site in the Philippines - a country which spends more time online than any other.
10. Both Facebook and Twitter have promised to address the attacks on Ressa, but Facebook has failed dismally to effectively stem the tide of hate against her. Ressa says she feels “significantly safer” on Twitter.
11. For every one comment supportive of Ressa on her Facebook page, there were about 14 comments attacking her.

There is direct evidence that the online violence targeting Ressa has offline consequences. It has created the enabling environment for her persecution, prosecution and conviction. It also subjects her to very real physical danger.

The study identifies key recommendations for action based on the case study of online violence against Ressa. These point to the need for:

• Political actors to be held accountable for inciting violence against women journalists;
• States to review and adapt legal and regulatory frameworks designed to uphold freedom of expression and equality, to ensure they can be applied effectively online as well as offline;
• News organizations to provide integrated digital and physical security, alongside psychological and peer support for women journalists targeted online; for social media companies to create specialist teams to respond swiftly to attacks on women journalists;
• Law enforcement and the judiciary to ensure gender-sensitive and digitally-literate responses to online violence against women journalists.

READ the full report here.