She’s a Nobel Prize winning journalist who’s not only put her career, but her life on the line in the name of telling the truth.
"When facts are undermined, and lies spread faster...you say a lie a million times, it becomes a fact. And if you don't have facts, you can't have truth," said Maria Ressa.
She is a Filipino-American journalist who has covered Southeast Asia for more than three decades. She was a CNN reporter who founded her own media company called Rappler. It’s the leading online news source in the Philippines.
Her work covering corruption angered the Filipino government, especially former President Rodrigo Duterte. She was arrested multiple times on cybercrime, and cyberlibel charges.
"I have a total of 10 criminal cases against me," said Ressa. "I just kept having to post bail."
Journalists around the world condemned the actions which were seen as acts of threats and intimidation.
Ressa says what happened in the Philippines is happening around the world. The journalist says technology is in effect allowing lies to spread faster than the truth can counter them.
"The reason why we are here is because the information ecosystem shifted gatekeepers," said Ressa. "Two groups abdicated responsibility when that happened. It would be the tech companies, and democratic nations which have left us exposed."
She said these companies are making so much money by design their goal is to just keep us scrolling.
Ressa said the good news is that in the Philippines, a new Presidential administration has tried to tackle some of the widespread corruption. She said she and her news organization were acquitted by the nation's Supreme Court of some of the charges she was facing.
In 2021, Ressa was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to safeguard freedom of expression. The Nobel Prize committee wrote that what she is fighting for is a precondition for democracy, and lasting peace.
But, Ressa thinks technology is threatening democracy, because of the flood of lies, and misinformation being spread. She said it is literally overwhelming the truth.
She talks about it in her book, “How To Stand Up To A Dictator.” The journalist says this issue with the spread of misinformation is a global one, citing what's happened in the United States during the last few years as a prime example.
Maria Ressa will speak at UC Santa Barbara’s Campbell Hall Thursday night.The 7:30 p.m. event is sponsored by UCSB’s Arts and Lectures.
