Rappler’s downfall

Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revoked Rappler’s certificate of registration citing the online news site’s violation of the Foreign Equity Restriction of the Philippine Constitution. After the release of SEC’s decision, Rappler immediately called out to the public to defend the freedom of the press, saying that the decision is an attack to that same freedom and was orchestrated by the current administration.

As we all know, Rappler is known for being vocal against the Duterte administration, to the point that its cohorts make a big deal of every single move the President and his admin make.

But in case it is not clear yet, Rappler losing its SEC license does not have anything to do with its staunch opposition to the current admin, but simply because it broke a crucial law on media ownership. It turns out that after going all out against what they are saying is a Duterte dictatorship, Rappler is apparently owned by a foreign entity. I find it really funny because these people behind Rappler who are calling out to “defend press freedom” are said to be giving control to an American company, Omidyar Network, LLC. So who’s the puppet now?

Is defending Rappler tantamount to defending press freedom? Does this “freedom” give them the excuse to go against the Constitution? Is Rappler really “holding the line” for the freedom of the press or is Rappler just using this to defend not the concept of press freedom itself, but just saving their company’s face for breaking the law? In this context, is the freedom of the press being threatened, or is Rappler just making it look that way to hit on the current administration that they wrongly accuse of being involved in their dilemma?

We are all familiar with the saying that no one is above the law, and apparently, this is one big lesson Rappler should take to heart. They can enjoy all the press freedom they want – which is what they have been doing all this time – but they don’t have freedom to violate the law.

We have witnessed how Rappler uses its resources to prey on government officials, regardless if they did something wrong or not. Just take a look at what happened after SEC released its decision on revoking Rappler’s license: in such suspicious timing, the news site released a malicious article attacking Special Assistant to the President Bong Go. In their article, SAP Bong Go allegedly intervened in the Philippine Navy’s P18-billion Frigate Acquisition Project even without solid evidence. Former FOIC Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana denied the allegation, which just increased Rappler’s reputation as the real peddler of fake news. While Rappler’s motives for releasing such article are unknown, it is necessary to question who is really under threat here. Is the government undermining the country’s press freedom or is Rappler just showing off that they are indestructible by tainting a government official’s image without any concrete evidence?

As for me, I stand with the freedom of the press and the freedom of speech, but I also believe that these freedoms should not be used to go against the law. It is our duty to defend the freedom of speech, yes, but at the same time it is our duty as Filipinos to defend and stand with the rule of law.