Editorial

Information consumption

Apart from vaccination and adherence to health protocols, information consumption is also vital to withstand the current health crisis. Due to the rise of misinformation in social media platforms, many Filipinos were victimized by false information about ways to combat the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). From the “banana diet” to the intake of anti-parasitic drug Ivermectin, a significant portion of the population were forced to believe these false and debunked information (through science and research), just to become immunized from COVID-19. Given this dilemma, there is certainly a need for Filipinos to only consume appropriate information and trust news agencies to never be deceived again by unverified and erroneous information. 

Recently, key findings of the 10th edition of Digital News Report released Wednesday, June 23, by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, the most comprehensive global analysis of news consumption trends present that Filipinos has increased trust in news but has lessened interest in news products. The research polled 92,000 people in 46 media markets, where 2,209 Filipinos, ages 18 and above, participated in the survey conducted in late January to early February by UK-based market research agency YouGov. Aside from its positive implications of increased trust and credibility of news, the research findings encourage Filipinos to consume news products to increase their knowledge about social issues and enhance their capacity to fact check and validate existing information. But how?

Subscribe to local newspapers. The best way to acquire timely, valuable, relevant information about local and national events is by subscribing to local newspapers. Not only that these news products are receptive to the local context of the readers, but also creates a community of informed and equipped citizenry. Though it may seem more convenient to access information from social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and others, but these spaces are prone to misinformation and disinformation. This claim is supported by one of the key findings of the aforementioned research where 59 percent of the sample expressed their “concern about what is true and false on the internet.” In contrary, every information on print newspapers is fact-checked and verified carefully by editors and writers to ensure veracity and correctness of reporting.

Value community journalism. It is known that “reader trust” is important in journalism and reporting. This can flourish between the readers and news agencies by localizing media and amplifying the stories of people in the community. Given this, local stories and contexts, which may not be captured comprehensively by mainstream news agencies, are deeply investigated and explored. Also, by practicing community journalism, principles of trust such as completeness, accuracy, balance, transparency, and presentation are achieved since information is shared directly between journalists and members of the community.

In these turbulent times, information can truly save lives. But information consumption has to be consciously and prudently done. Apart from the COVID-19 pandemic, the ongoing infodemic has to be addressed. And the only way to do it is by treating information consumption as a social responsibility, which is equally important as following health protocols.