Stop the Spread of Misinformation with the Fake News Fly

BBDO Guerrero has launched a campaign on Facebook in partnership with the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) and the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR), warning internet users about the spread of false information.

Given the ever-changing nature of fake news online, the team developed a solution that can work on mobile devices and by using free-data messenger. The result is a Facebook chatbot that is able to check if news is from a suspicious source. Users can submit links that the chatbot can check based on various factors such as bylines, photo credits, and publishing date among others.

This is all the more important given the spread of misleading and outright false information about the corona virus or COVID-19. And NUJP, CMFR and BBDO Guerrero wanted to advocate the fight against disinformation – false information intended to mislead the public.

“Disinformation is a timeless problem that’s been pestering our news feeds,” says NUJP national capital region chairperson Jonathan de Santos. “It’s high time that we strengthen the fight against it by targeting where it mostly is – social media.”

BBDO Guerrero creative chairman David Guerrero adds, “We hope this tool will prove to be useful in preventing the spread of misinformation. We look forward to developing it further with NUJP to allow people to connect with each other more safely. This is just the beginning of a bigger battle and we cannot wait for everyone to join in.”