Young people use social media apps on their mobile phones and computers as they attend  the forum, Keeping the Flame of Freedom Alive: Case Study of Percy Lapid Mabasa, at the CMC Auditorium Plaridel Hall UP Diliman Quezon City on October 3, 2023. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File

MANILA — As disinformation and misinformation continue to populate social media platforms following the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte, a media literacy advocate on Tuesday suggested tapping one's "emotional intelligence" to avoid falling victim to false content meant to "exploit" emotions.

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Marlon Nombrado, co-founder of Out of The Box Media Literacy Initiative, said that for nearly a decade now, the approach in combatting disinformation has always been focused on one's cognitive abilities.

"For the past how many years, naririnig natin lagi't laging fact checking yung critical thinking, verification... Nalilimutan natin yung other important elements to dealing with disinformation which is pag-police and monitor ng ating emotions," Nombrado said.

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"Isa sa mga realizations ng academics is that doubling down or insisting on the facts ay maaaring hindi naman talaga ito yung solusyon," he added. 

Founded in 2014, Out of The Box is an NGO that works to "mainstream media literacy practices in the Philippines."

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Nombrado said that while fact checking is important, it should not be the "end all be all" solution especially after the "post-truth" era.

"Ang tawag ng mga academic dyan yung post-truth era na sa panahon ngayon, kung ano yung pinaniniwalaan mo, yun yung totoo para sayo," he said.

"Kasi nga marami sa disinformation na nasasagap natin ay mina-maximize nya talaga ay yung emotional connection natin sa isang content so ang kailangan na matututunan o ma-develop ng isang tao ay yung tinatawag na emotional intelligence o yung kapasidad natin na kilalanin, pangalanan, at kontrolin yung mga emosyon natin," he added.

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He said now could be the time for educators to include such approach to combat disinformation. 

"Sa kasalukuyan, hindi pa gaanong binibigyan ng emphasis ng ating curriculum yung social and emotional learning... Paano mapo-promote sa sambayanan yung ganong klase ng behavior na hindi sila agad-agad tumatalon sa conclusion bago sila mag-share ng information online," he said. 

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Out of The Box is also opposed to banning websites or platforms to prevent the proliferation of false information. 

"Sa amin sa mga media literacy at digital rights advocacy organization, hindi namin sinusulong yung banning ng mga website o yung tinatawag na internet shutdown o take down website dahil ito ay usapin din ng freedom of expression o freedom of speech," Nombrado said.

Most Filipinos say 'fake news' on internet a 'serious' problem — SWS

A recent SWS survey commissioned by Stratbase Group, revealed that 59 percent of Filipinos considered the spread of fake news on social media to be a serious issue, while 20 percent believed it was not serious. 

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