INQToday: Chinese-named X accounts spread fake news to defend Dutertes 鈥� group
Here’s a quick roundup of today’s top stories:
Inflation settled at 2.9 percent in January, unchanged from December, after a negative rice price growth offset the increase in the cost of other food items and utilities, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Tuesday.
But the January reading was higher than the 2.8 percent median estimate in an Inquirer poll of 14 economists last week.
An independent news group has uncovered a network of X accounts with Chinese names that have been spreading fake news and fueling discord among Filipinos, especially when members of the Duterte family are being criticized.
During a House of Representatives tri-committee hearing, PressOne.PH multimedia editor Niceforo Balbedina revealed that as of 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, they had discovered 107 accounts that were originally from Spanish-speaking nations but were converted to display Chinese names.
Article continues after this advertisementSagip party-list Rep. Rodante Marcoleta’s remarks on the West Philippine Sea did not sit well with the designated Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesperson on matters regarding the western section of the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Article continues after this advertisementCommodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, denounced Marcoleta’s remarks during a House tri-committee hearing on the prevalence of fake news on Tuesday.
President Donald Trump made an extraordinary proposal for the United States to “take over” the Gaza Strip, as he hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for crucial talks on the truce with Hamas.
Trump also doubled down on his call for Palestinians to move out of the war-battered territory to Middle Eastern countries like Egypt and Jordan, despite the Palestinians and both nations flatly rejecting his suggestion.
