A recent study conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) found that Filipinos disagree with Maria Ressa’s “assault on press freedom” fear mongering. Most of the major Big Corporate media outlets reported this consistently. Here is a rundown of the key headlines issued by these major media organisations.
(Photo source Twitter)
Note how one of them, albeit one not of the same standing and profile in the industry and professional community, begs to differ.
And here are the links to the above headlines:
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Freedom of speech ‘very strong’ under Duterte admin — SWS – Inquirer
SWS: Pinoys ‘very strongly’ agree they have personal freedom of speech – PhilStar
Pinoys agree: Freedom of speech ‘very strong’ – SWS – Manila Times
SWS: Most Pinoys find freedom of speech ‘very strong’ under Duterte – ABS-CBN News
SWS: 6 in 10 Filipinos feel free to speak up under Duterte administration – CNN Philippines
Amidst all that traditional media firepower, here, in contrast, is what the Rapplerettes at Rappler think:
Majority of Filipinos think it’s dangerous to publish anything critical of Duterte admin
Sofia Tomacruz, author of the above “report” quotes Mahar Mangahas, president of SWS, asserting that…
SWS assessed respondents’ fear not by asking them their fear of being a victim of extrajudicial killings, but by asking them to agree/disagree with the following statement: “I can say anything I want, openly and without fear, even if it is against the administration.”
Tomacruz refers to Mangahas’s noting of the difference in survey responses to a question framed in different ways. She lays out a rather convoluted story that cuts across opinion pieces written by Mangahas and former Inquirer editor John Nery last week to describe statistical nuances that she uses to support the preferred headline of her Rappler editor.
There is a point in there, perhaps. But it is lost in Tomacruz’s incoherent forced spin of a finding potentially damaging to the personal “activism” of their CEO Maria Ressa.
Webmaster of Get Real Philippines