Chiong case in social media

It is no coincidence that the era of social media has also ushered in a revitalized age of historical revisionism. The speed and accessibility that social media offers in spreading information add to the potency of the toxic mix of keyboard armies, fake accounts, fake news, propagandists, and gullible publics.

Academics cite as an example the near-win of vice presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos in 2016. Personalities and families waging a battle for redemption in the public eye have found hope in the online platform. In the case of Marcos, it was spreading the notion that the Marcos years were a golden age for the country.

Recently, Thelma Chiong, mother of 1997 murder-rape victims Jacqueline and Marijoy Chiong, has decried the opening of old wounds brought about by social media comments regarding the case. I’ve observed such posts and comments among youngster friends in my social media feed myself, and these lean toward casting doubts about the court conviction of one or some of the accused in the case.

When I say “youngster friends” I mean those who were either still kids or not yet born during the celebrated Chiong murder trial. Their point of view is in contrast to where I was coming from as a spectator in the case.

I was a broadcast news correspondent for a local TV station when news about the arrest of the suspects broke out. Scenes of the suspects’ inquest before the city prosecutor’s office and their subsequent court appearances are still vivid in my mind. Though I was no longer in media as the trial of the case dragged on toward its conclusion, like many of the Cebuano public at that time, I was closely following the case through Cebu’s credible newspapers and broadcast media.

Then in 2012, a potent documentary film entitled “Give Up Tomorrow” took to task the Philippines’ flawed judicial system. In particular, it raised doubts about the guilt of Francisco “Paco” Larrañaga, one of the prominent convicts in the Chiong case. This time around, people’s memory and feelings about the case had already faded.

If only we can put God in the witness stand during the trial of the Chiong case, we would never have to entertain doubts about its outcome. But I don’t fault either side for pushing their own versions of the story surrounding what was once dubbed as Cebu’s “trial of the century.”

What is unsettling, however, is in how so many people can easily make conclusions based on what they read and watch in social media, including what their friends share there. The crisp conciseness and engaging audio-visual elements of multimedia made accessible through the social media platform could trump everything else written about a murder trial, including a thorough and well-written Supreme Court decision reviewing the trial.

This lack of critical judgment as to information served or shared in social media should now push schools to strongly promote critical perspectives in the area of new media communication. The youth of today must be armed with the various theoretical lenses for them to be able to critically evaluate various communication issues and contexts.

Historical revisionism in the context of truth-seeking is not bad per se. What is bad is when truth-seeking can easily be hijacked by lack of ethical and moral standpoints, where media consumers, especially the young, lack the critical-thinking skills to evaluate information and information sources.