Course:JRNL503B/Media Framing of the 2022 Philippine National Election

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Introduction: Why does this matter?

In a time when democracy and journalism are disrupted, how do journalists in the Philippines frame the democratic exercise of electing a president? Our group studied this unique phenomenon in a country where both conditions exist outside North America.

In the last national elections in the Philippines, all these pressures played upon the media. Political institutions were changing drastically. The leading candidate Ferdinand “Bong-Bong” Marcos (aka BBM) did not currently hold public office and was the son of the deposed dictator. He was always ahead in the polls, was better funded, and had a well-oiled social media army.

The challenger was the incumbent Vice President Leonor Maria Robredo (aka VP Leni), who the administration sidelined, had no funding, and no machinery. The current administration, under President Rodrigo Duterte, held sway over the judiciary, the senate, and the police but it was not clear if they would throw this influence behind BBM.

Both legacy and new media were in a state of disruption not only because of the changing economics in the media industry, and the operational distress created by COVID but also because President Duterte was silencing and sidelining critics of his government by closing down media organizations, threatening journalists, and building media channels he could control.

Pressured from many sides, how did the largest legacy print media organization, The Philippine Daily Inquirer, frame this election as compared to one of the leading online news portals, Rappler www.rappler.com?

What is the context in which the 2022 Philippine Presidential Elections take place?

“On May 9, the Philippines will elect its next president … by far the most divisive and consequential electoral contest in the Philippines” —— Andrea Chloe Wong, Pacific Forum CSIS non-resident Fellow. [1]

The 2022 Philippines presidential election was said to be the most game-changing moment in the country’s recent history. [2] [3] Amidst a battered economy after the COVID-19 pandemic, alarming human rights situation and shifting diplomatic agenda from siding with the US to China instead, the election is pivotal to both local politics and global development. [4] [5] The presidential election was also significant given its insinuation into other electoral contests around the globe that face similar challenges as the Southeast Asian nation, from rising social media consumption of voters that tests the news media’s role of providing information and shaping public awareness, the growth of online media to mounting populism and attack towards the press. [6] [7] [8]

Election system and candidates  

With more than 65 million registered voters [9], the top leader of one of the world’s largest democracies [10] [11] was decided by whoever obtained a simple plurality [12] [13], in other words, whoever wins the most votes. Political parties do not make a list of approved candidates for the open seats on the ballot during election campaigns, contributing to party fragmentation. [12] [14] Rather than serving as ideological alliances, political parties in the Philippines are candidate-centric. [15] [16] In recent years especially, illustrated by Rodrigo Duterte’s victory in 2016 credited to his “strongman” image amplified by social media campaigns, the focus of a candidate’s campaign narrative centred around charisma and mass appeal as opposed to policy platforms and track record. [17] [18]

Among the 10 candidates vying to replace Rodrigo Duterte as president, the leading contenders were Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, son of ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos and a Duterte ally who at the time of campaigning did not hold public office [15] [19], and Maria Leonor "Leni" Gerona Robredo, human-right-lawyer-turned-vice-president the Duterte government had sidelined. [20] [21]

When will the winners be known?

Vote-counting starts after polls close and there can be a strong indication of who will be the new president within a few hours via a live, unofficial vote count.

The election commission is aiming to announce most of the winners by the end of May and those will soon after be confirmed by a proclamation of the current legislature.

The president-elect has seven weeks before being sworn in, during which time their transition team will work out policy plans and sound out potential cabinet members.

Are Philippine Elections Credible?

Although vote-buying, political violence and occasional glitches with electronic voting machines have been problems in the Philippines, fraud on the level that would cast doubt on the credibility of polls or their outcome is very unlikely.

Independent poll monitors the Asian Network for Free Elections concluded that each of the most recent Philippines elections was generally free and fair, with turnout remaining high at about 80%. [22]

Polling: Where were the leading candidates before and after the voting?

Bongbong Marcos was seen as the frontrunner early in the race, leading the poll with more than 30 percentage points over his main rival Leni Robredo in December 2021, two months after the two politicians filed candidacy for the presidential election. [23] He maintained the wide lead, scoring 56% despite a polling surge by Leni Robredo in March, even though he was only present in one of the three presidential debates media organizations held in February [24] and continued the advantage in the last opinion poll conducted by Pulse Asia Research Inc. in March, one month before the presidential race. [25]

Bongbong Marcos eventually won the presidency receiving 31.6 million votes, the most ballots ever cast for a candidate in the Philippines presidential election, which that year also saw the highest turnout (83%) since 1988. [9]

Social Media Usage and engagement over election

“Across the whole population, television remains the most popular medium in the Philippines, but this year’s Digital News Report confirmed a steady growth of online news consumption including heavy news use on a range of social platforms. Facebook remains the most widely used (73% for news weekly) but the biggest leap comes from TikTok, used by a mere 2% for news in 2020 and now by 15%. News organizations correspondingly moved into the platform, especially in time for the elections.” [26]

A 2017 survey led by communications agency EON found that Filipinos with internet access trust social media more than mainstream media. Among those who had online access, 87.3% trust social media as compared to 73.4% who trust traditional media. [27] [28] The Philippines topped both the world internet usage index with an average of nearly 11 hours a day and social media usage with an average of over 4 hours a day. [29] [30] [31] Over 80% of the Philippine population was on Facebook as of 2021. [32] [33] Social media consumption was so ingrained in Philippine society that scholars said the capability of an election campaign to utilize social media effectively and thus dominate digital spaces would be instrumental in shaping national opinion. [34] [35] Therefore, politicians were inclined to do anything to grasp the public’s attention. [36] [37]

A collaborative fact-checking project for the 2022 elections, Tsek.ph, found Marcos' campaign employed a similar approach in utilizing social media, that his camp responded to things quickly. The fact-checking coalition also noted disinformation on social media softening the Marcos family’s history and significant attacks on Robredo. [38] [8] 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Rappler's CEO Maria Ressa also argued in her book How to Stand Up to a Dictator: The Fight for Our Future that The Philippines is the "ground zero", or "Petri dish" of "weaponised social media" with disinformation, ambiguity news and questioning authority posting horrendous effects on national institutions, culture and thoughts of citizens, and Philippinos are "Geniea pigs before the United States," alleging then-president Duterte working "hand-in-hand" with Facebook to amplify the influences in the election and social issues with social media. [39] [40]

The Marcos Dynasty

The Marcos surname is notorious in the Philippines and carries an immense amount of history and violence. Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was president of the Philippines from 1966 to 1986, the first president in history to be re-elected for a second term, in which he ran an authoritarian regime that came under fire for suppression of democratic processes, economic inequalities between the rich and the poor, and government corruption. [41]

Most notably, Marcos Sr. is remembered for enacting martial law on September 21, 1972. During this time opposition activists, academics, journalists, priests, nuns and students were arrested. [42] Marcos Sr. blamed “communist and subversive forces” for accelerating the “crisis” in which “opposition politicians were jailed and the armed forces became an arm of the regime”. [41]

Under martial law, the Marcos regime had the ability to arrest citizens without reason, also known as habeas corpus. Prior to lifting martial law in 1981, Marcos Sr. made force amendments to the constitution and legislations to ensure his grip on power, which included “restoring executive power to the president, direct election of the President was restored, an Executive Committee composed of the Prime Minister and not more than fourteen members was created to “assist the President in the exercise of his powers and functions and in the performance of his duties as he may prescribe,” and the Prime Minister was a mere head of the Cabinet”.

Shortly after calling for the presidential elections in 1986, the Marcos family fled the country for Hawaii on February 25, 1986, due to a standoff between military supporters of Marcos and Corazon Aquino, the presidential candidate of the opposition, who later became president after the 20-year dictatorship under Ferdinand Marcos Sr. [43] [44]

What Laws Govern the Media in the Philippines?

Print and online media, unlike broadcast TV, do not require a congressional franchise to operate or a certificate to operate from the National Telecommunications Commission or NTC. [45]

Rappler and the Inquirer are covered by The Philippine Constitution requirement that ownership and management of mass media be by wholly-owned Filipino corporations. [46]

Ownership and corporate structure fall under the purview of the Securities and Exchange Commission or SEC. These two laws on congressional franchises and foreign ownership are important in understanding what legal justification Pres. Duterte used in pressuring media companies to bend to his will.

What is the relationship of the government to the press leading up to the 2022 elections?

In 2017 Duterte complained that the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Estrella and Löffelholz describe the Philippines' media landscape as full of contradictions. News organizations have a strong tradition of watchdog-adversarial journalism but are operating within a political system that is being more and more authoritarian. [47]

Since 2016, President Duterte has been making public threats and throwing insults at media organizations and journalists. Duterte’s allies in Congress revoked the franchise of ABS-CBN, the largest broadcast network in the Philippines. [48] Reuters Institute's Digital News Report stated, "Over the past year, a number of Filipino journalists have been dogged by ‘red-tagging’, where they are labeled as state enemies, subversives or communists by the police and military, including via social media. [49]

Along with ABS-CBN owned by oligarchs, specific to the Prieto-Rufino family that owned the Inquirer, Duterte declared that he would recover Philippine property that was allegedly leased through a sweetheart deal to the owners of the Inquirer. The government took back the property in August of the same year. [50]

In a series of speeches, he said ABS-CBN, the Inquirer, and the Catholic Church are the cause of what ails Filipino society, that the newspaper was "twisting" his words, and that he would go after the owners of the Inquirer and file tax cases – even plunder charges, a criminal offense punishable by life imprisonment or death but only applicable to public officials. [51] On July 18, 2017, the Inquirer owners announced that they were negotiating the sale of the paper to billionaire Ramon Ang – who Duterte claims supported his presidential campaign. [52] In Nov 2017, Ang announced that the deal was completed. [53]

The Inquirer had a strong reputation for defending press freedom since its founding. It has been critical of presidents in the past. Ang said that he will continue this legacy, “The publication will continue to uphold the highest journalistic standards and make a difference in the society it serves." [53]

In the next year, Duterte went after Rappler. On July 11, 2018, the SEC found cause to revoke Rappler’s SEC registration and cease its operations. [54] In June 2020 courts convicted Maria Ressa of eight criminal charges whose sentences add up to almost 100 years. [55]

The administration pressured the owners of the Inquirer to sell to a Duterte ally. Rappler was being subjected to the same political pressure. Would these factors affect how the two organizations framed the elections in 2022?

Did the business environment exert any pressure?

A study conducted by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism reveals the public opinion on government and business pressure on the media. Only 26% believe that media are independent of undue political or government influence. Only 27% believe they are independent from business or economic influence. [26]

However, an analysis of the economic and media situation in the Philippines shows that for Rappler and the Inquirer their market positions placed them to take advantage of economic and industry trends rather than be pressured adversely by them. They both had a leading presence in social media and were positioned to take advantage of the growing audience and Ad spend that was moving there from traditional media.

TV viewership was going down and was replaced by online consumption. [56] This online audience continued to increase as internet penetration went up to 68% from 48% in 2015. Total Ad spend was growing at 9.7% yearly and the amount allocated to digital increased to almost 20% in 2021 and is projected to increase to almost 30% in 2025. [57] [58]

Filipinos are one of the biggest audiences of online media. They not only logged on for entertainment but also for news. In Southeast Asia, the Philippines was among the top five countries with the highest online media market value. Print media has slowly lost its relevance in the media market and has transitioned to digital distribution. Social media and streaming services grew to become substitute sources of both news and entertainment. [59]

While Inquirer was still the largest distributed broadsheet in a shrinking market, its new leaders scaled down operations, shifted assets online, and reshifted its strategy to respond to changing market conditions.

“The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted economies and affected the business environment in the Philippines. The newspaper industry has been hit particularly hard as COVID-19 curtailed distribution. The Philippine Daily Inquirer (Inquirer), one of the biggest dailies, offered early retirement to employees, let go of several columnists, shut down its Metro section, and shrank the number of its pages. Earlier, it closed its free paper Inquirer Libre and tabloid Bandera, keeping the latter only online. In March, Inquirer launched a digital subscription package where its Inquirer Plus mobile app combines access to one of eight local newspaper partners. It says this strategy "will help local journalism remain sustainable and is in keeping with the growing subscription model worldwide.” [49]

The industry was changing for everyone but for Rappler and the Inquirer they were positioned to take advantage of this shift to digital to capture the growing audience and adspend migrating online. While there was business pressure, it did not influence their coverage of the 2022 elections.

Media Coverage Discussion

We analyzed the framing of the elections at three key points: when the leading candidates officially filed their Certificates of Canvas (COC) with the Commission on Elections, the coverage of the last debate held on April 3, 2022, and the coverage of the last official rally known as the Miting de Avance.

How did Inquirer and Rappler frame the official filings of the candidacy of BBM and VP Leni?

Inquirer Rappler
Headline & Link COC filing week: The old, the new, and the future COC filers for president in 2022 polls down from record-high number in 2016
Summary of Framing Procedural changes upon Covid and quantitative visualization statistics comparison with the previous election, plus who will run the elections Decrease of candidates from 2016 with notable names, COC screening nuisance candidates
Images Data, data, and data for analytics COC Staff meeting press
Propaganda & Persuasion Coverage of who will run presidential election Lead stress on screening of "nuisance candidates”
Imagined Audience Mass Public with explainer Mass Public but with certain discontent with government
Verification & Sources Used Commission on Elections (Comelec), interviews Commission on Elections (Comelec)
Metrics on Facebook (# of likes, comments, shares) Post not in Facebook 30 Likes, 11 Haha, 2 Love
Sentiment of top 10 comments on each story on Facebook Post not in Facebook Nuisance candidate and distaste among candidates esp. Marcos

With the official filings of the candidacy of Bongbong Marcos Jr. and Leni Robredo, Inquirer opted for a detailed analytical approach by including the changes of the process due to COVID-19, graphs to showcase the increase/decrease of the number of candidacy filings from the previous presidential election, and categorized each candidate under familiar or popular. On the other hand, Rappler offered a digestible amount of information regarding the candidates and the number of senators running for each government position (i.e. president, vice president, congressmen, and senators).

Since thematic framing is “focusing on trends over time, and highlighting contexts and environments,"[60] this would apply to the Inquirer's use of comparing and contrasting the 2022 Philippine national election statistics with the previous presidential election. Through images, the Inquirer was very data-driven and exhibited a couple of graphs and charts. While Rappler opted for a single image of Comelec spokesman James Jimenez facilitating a press briefing at the start of the filing of COC at Sofitel's Harbor Garden tent in Pasay City.

The Inquirer also included a “surprises” section which outlined the history of new or returning candidates. Notably, the Inquirer included a commentary on the previous defeat of Bongbong Marcos Jr. in 2016 when Leni Robredo was first elected as vice president.

Debate Inquirer Rappler.png

How did these two news organizations frame the last official debate organized by the Commission on Elections

Inquirer Rappler
Headline & Link Prexy bets tackle root cause of corruption in PH Presidential bets call for due process, end to killings in drug war
Summary of Framing Thematic framing of the debate. Focus on the question if corruption in the Philippines is caused by weak laws & systems or weak leaders. Listing each candidate’s answer tries to differentiate one candidate from another. Thematic framing of the debate. Focus on candidates' universal call to end drug war and killing, human rights, closing remarks by candidates on South China Sea
Propaganda & Persuasion The Inquirer creates salience with this question to report on. Corruption issues are attached to the Marcos name making this choice of topic pointed.


The picture used was propaganda for the organizers of the debate.

The Drug war is Duterte’s signature campaign promise and the controversial issue of his administration that has merited attention from the International Criminal Court.


Rappler makes salient the most recent president’s abuse of power. None of the candidates said there must be an investigation of abuses only that they should stop moving forward.

Images Line up of all presidential candidates present with moderators on stage. It’s a “class picture” or "attendance check” of those present. BBM was the only candidate not present. Families of victims of drug-related extrajudicial killings and human rights advocates post pictures of some of those killed in Duterte’s drug war.
Imagined Audience Readers who will look at the platforms of candidates to make a choice. Public who will evaluate candidates based on a candidate’s response to Duterte’s drug war.
Metrics on Facebook (# of likes, comments, shares) 2.7k Love, 2.5k Like, 1.1k Haha, 97 Care, 65 Angry, 43 Wow, 32 Sad 107 Like, 31 Haha, 17 Love, 2 Care
Sentiment of top 10 comments on each story on Facebook
  • VP Leni promotion and call for a vote (5 comments by 3 parties)
  • BB Marcos should be present
  • Criticism to SMNI
  • Promotion of Mayor Isko
  • Disbelievers of the candidates’ promise over drug control

In the last debate, both new organizations chose one issue to report on setting an agenda by creating salience. The headlines and the pictures reveal the thematic frame (Pan & Kosicki 1993) [61]

The Inquirer chose to report on the candidates’ answers to the question “Is corruption caused by weak laws and systems or by weak leadership.” Reporting on each candidate’s answer does two things: (1) the story reports on who was in attendance; and (2) the piece tries to differentiate one candidate from the other for the reader. It’s an attempt at competition framing by differentiating one candidate by their answers to one question. The chosen topic also creates salience for the issue of corruption. Of all the candidates, the issue of corruption is strongly associated with the Marcos family: BBC reports “Bongbong Marcos: The man attempting to revive a corrupt political dynasty", [62] Forbes reports that the amount of corruption is between US$5-10 B. [63]

The lexical choice (Pan & Kosicki 1993) [61] of photo draws attention to the size of the last official debate by showing that almost all presidential candidates were present on the stage of the event.

Rappler chose to make salient the issue that has hounded Pres. Duterte’s administration: extra-judicial killings. The publication draws attention to the unlawful killings of civilians under Duterte’s administration that has drawn interest from the International Criminal Court to investigate the nature of the killings. On the debate, the online news platform chose to highlight the thoughts of each candidate on the drug war and extra-judicial killings. The outlet then provides a thematic frame of the issue by reporting on the lack of due process and the interest of the International Criminal Court. Rappler makes clear the role of media as watchdog (Schudson 2008) [64] to speak truth to power and challenge voters to look at the candidate’s answers in light of seeking justice for victims and investigating extra-judicial killings. [65] [66]

The visual element or image chosen (de Vreese, 2005)[67] highlights the human rights abuse by showing a set of pictures victims of extra-judicial killings mourned by family members and human rights activists.

How did these two news organizations frame the last rallies (i.e., the Miting de Avance) of BBM and VP Leni?

Inquirer Rappler
Headline & Link The presidential campaign trail: Final week Marcos, Robredo wage final campaign battle in NCR
Summary of Framing Episodic framing. Six major candidates' final rally schedules Thematic framing. Major candidates Bongbong Marcos Jr., and Leni Robredo to run final rally in NCR area
Propaganda & Persuasion Informative on the final rally, Informative on the final rally, scale and importance to candidates
Images Headshots
Campaign Inquirer.png
Huge rally scene with matching overcast to candidates’ clothes
Rappler last week top image.png
Imagined Audience Mass Public
Metrics on Facebook (# of likes, comments, shares) Post not in Facebook 1552 Likes, 1005 Love, 140 Haha, 19 Care, 6 Wow
Sentiment of top 10 comments on each story on Facebook Post not in Facebook Campaigning for Leni Robredo for "Best man for the job is women", 50-70 reactions

In its coverage of the last rallies of Bongbong Marcos and Leni Robredo, Inquirer leaned towards episodic framing. On the contrary, Rappler employed thematic framing, which provided more context and highlighted the differences between the top two candidates.

Inquirer listed the campaigning events of six major presidential candidates in point form, with one quote from each candidate highlighting their respective political promises or ideologies. The news article did not analyze and contextualize where and how the candidates make their final pitches, nor did it rate or fact-check whether each candidate's political promise was feasible. Meanwhile, the news article to a large extent put equal emphasis on the six candidates. Its feature image was a collage of all their headshots in the same size. The only candidate that was given more coverage was Bongbong Marcos. On top of his campaigning schedule and a soundbite, the section on Bongbong Marcos also included his strong polling performance over other candidates.

VP Leni campaign messages seen in Rappler's Facebook post on Miting de Avance

Overall, the article is largely impartial, balanced, and informative, showing no favouritism by giving similar treatment to all the featured candidates. However, it could also be argued that the news outlet was subtly giving Bongbong Marcos an advantage. In the Philippines' presidential election system, which is decided by a simple majority, the two leading contenders' performances made the most difference to the election result. By portraying Leni Robredo, Marcos's major rival, in the same league as other trailing candidates, especially in the last leg of campaigning, the Inquirer was, in effect advancing the status quo of Marcos's lead. By not fact-checking the feasibility and track record against the candidates' election promises, the paper also gave the benefit of the doubt to Bongbong Marcos, who was accused of disinformation in his campaign.

On the other hand, Rappler employed thematic framing, focusing on the two top candidates Bongbong Marcos and Leni Robredo, with detailed context and analysis. The article opened with a graphic split vertically, with the face and huge rally scene of the two candidates occupying one side each. In contrast with the concise, point-form presentation of the Inquirer, the Rappler's coverage was a long comprehensive article, centering on how the top two candidates strategize their final pitches to voters.

The article first broke down the registered voter size of the region where they held their final rally. Afterward, it contextualized the political connotation of the region, as well as the media exposure rallying at the region would bring. Then, the article examined the correlation between the venue of their respective miting de avance, and the endorsement the two candidates received or wished to win over. Under such framework, Bongbong Marcos was portrayed as a powerhouse with support from a list of political figureheads and setting sight to solidify support in the last rally held in an affluent neighbourhood. Alternatively, Leni Robredo was the challenger who attempted to draw reference from the People Power Revolution that overthrew Bongbong Marcos's father.

Same as the Inquirer, Rappler's article included the pre-election polling. However, it took a different approach to present the numbers. Rather than underscoring the fact that Bongbong Marcos maintained a big lead among fellow presidential candidates continuously as the Inquirer did, the Rappler highlighted Leni Robredo's climbing poll numbers, further consolidating her image as the challenger.

Another aspect that was absent in the Inquirer but was featured in Rappler's article was the number of volunteers working at each camp. The Rappler attributed Leni Robredo's rising popularity to her large number of volunteers who "devoted their time to house-to-house campaigning." This implied Leni Robredo had the support of the common people, as opposed to Bongbong Marcos, who had the backing of political leaders and the upper class.

The Rappler's article, which underscored the Marcos Vs. Leni battle portraying Leni as a challenger, received an overwhelming response on Facebook, with over 1500 Likes, 1000 Love, and over 160 combined reactions of other positive emotions. Although the article was impartial, the top comments were all Leni supporters. On the other hand, the Inquirer did not post the article, which was advancing the status quo of Marcos's lead, on Facebook.

Summary

What did the framing of the Inquirer and Rappler look like?

As the leader of issue-specific framing, Inquirer took a detailed, moderated, analytical, data-driven neutral tone and employed episodic theming in covering the 2022 presidential election. Although the Inquirer had a strong reputation for defending press freedom since its founding and being critical of presidents, the new owner Ang assured to continue the legacy.[53] But as Ang is seen as an ally to Duterte[68], the newsroom might take a “safer” approach to avoid criticism from both sides.

Comparatively, Rappler takes more issue-specific frames (De Vreese 2005)[67] in covering the election. As a long-time critic of the Duterte administration and facing closure decisions from company regulators, plus criminal charges over the founder Maria Ressa with cumulative jail sentences of up to 100 years [69] [70], Rappler maintained its critical view of all candidates, especially the human rights issues, the drug war, and economic issues.

Over the last debate, both new organizations chose one issue to report on setting an agenda by creating salience to set the thematic frame. (Pan & Kosicki 1993) [61]

The Inquirer chose to report on the candidates’ answers to corruption, with Rappler choosing to highlight the thoughts of each candidate on the drug war and extra-judicial killings. As watchdogs, both media seek to engage the readers to understand the most concerning issues in the debate (Schudson 2008) [64], with Rappler decision in picking the visual element or image chosen (De Vreese 2005) [67] highlights the human rights abuse by showing a set of pictures victims of extra-judicial killings mourned by family members and human rights activists.

However, Inquirer shifted back to episodic framing over the coverage the final week of rally. It attempted to give a clear image of each candidate in by picking a “key message” - Catchphrases (Gameson & Modigliani 1989) [71] defining the overall impression:

- Trust in public to call for change

  • Vice President Leni Robredo selling “no evil tactics”

- Continuation of current administration

  • Bongbong Marcos persuading continuation of Marcos-Duterte tandem

Inquirer coverage was seen as lacking of analyze and contextualize where and how the candidates make their final pitches, nor did it rate or fact-check whether each candidate's political promise was feasible. In contrary, Rappler does not shy from giving detailed analysis to readers and engaging them in discussing, investigating and reading into specific issues - a role-switching between advocacy and institutional media is seen in various articles covering the election.

However, selecting the loaded term “nuisance candidate” in covering COC filing [72], and focusing on the “drug war” [73] did not lead to much audience engagement: Less than 200 likes on a page with 5.3M followers should be considered a failure in terms of the reception-oriented approach of engagement (Nelson 2021) [74]. The mass public is seen as more interested in campaigning for candidates in coverage of miting de avance - with Rappler choosing buzzwords of “wage” and “show of force” to link emotional compassion to readers.

Framing vs Polling

News media played a definitive role in shaping the current democratic Philippines. For running reports critical of then president Ferdinand Marcos, Inquirer was among the few publications that played a major role in ousting Marcos through the February 1986 People Power Revolution by leading public opinion over the corruption of the Marcos family [75][52], taking an active role in the agenda building and setting as described by McCombs & Shaw (1972)[76].

Both Inquirer and Rappler rank top 5 of online weekly reach of news in Reuters Institute’s 2022 Digital News Report, Inquirer ranks second at 65% trust in the brand, with Rappler at 46% and 32% of distrust, the highest among all covered media.[26]

Bongbong Marcos has been leading the poll with more than 30 percentage points over his main rival Leni Robredo in December 2021[23] [77]. With the world’s top average of nearly 11 hours a day for Internet and social media usage with an average of over 4 hours a day[78], the Philippines also relies heavily on Facebook as news consumption platform. Both media shift to digital to capture the growing audience and advertisement expenditure migrating online.

As 32% of the nationals feel the media institutions are politically far apart, among the top 5 in Asia-Pacific after India[79], the Philippines peoples are more likely to seek media matching their political stance and profile.[26]

A very steady polling number for VP Leni was observed over the election campaign, even with Rappler attempting to run numerous features and mass of comments on social media for Leni, and highlighted Leni's climbing poll numbers, further consolidating her image as the challenger and rising popularity to her large number of volunteers.

On the other side, Inquirer gave BBM section stressing his strong polling performance over other candidates at the last week of election coverage.

Faced criticism and blame from other candidates and both media for their disappearance in presidential debates, BBM maintained the wide lead with 56% despite a polling surge by Leni in March, even though he was only present in one of the three presidential debates media organizations held in February and continued the advantage in the last opinion poll conducted by Pulse Asia Research Inc. in March, one month before the presidential race.[24]

Inquirer Rappler
Framing of Official Filing of Candidacy Procedural changes upon Covid and quantitative visualization statistics comparison with the previous election, plus who will run the elections Decrease of candidates from 2016 with notable names, COC screening nuisance candidates
  Poll numbers Oct 11–18     Publicus Asia with 1500 ±2.6% [80]

BBM: 49.3%

VP Leni: 21.3%

Framing of final debate Thematic framing. Focus on the question if corruption in the Philippines is caused by weak laws & systems or weak leaders. Listing each candidate’s answer tries to differentiate one candidate from another. Thematic framing of the debate. Focus on candidates' universal call to end drug war and killing, human rights, closing remarks by candidates on South China Sea.
  Poll numbers Apr 19–21     Publicus Asia with 1500 ±3.0% [81]

BBM: 57%

VP Leni: 21%

Framing of the Last Official Rally Episodic framing. Six major candidates final rally schedules Thematic framing. Major candidates Bongbong Marcos Jr., and Leni Robredo to run final rally in NCR area
  Poll numbers May 2–5     Publicus Asia with 1500 ±3.0% [82]

BBM: 54%

VP Leni: 22%

Conclusion

No clear and distinct relationship could be drawn over the media framing of candidates over the presidential election affected the polling and election results. In reverse, one may argue the candidates might not rely on traditional news media to gain their votes. A further study would have to be carried out to examine and discuss how such effect occurred.

References

  1. ↑ Wong & Wong, A. & C. (2022 May 4). "Marcos vs. Robredo: A showdown for the next Philippine president". Asia Media Centre | New Zealand. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  2. ↑ Buenaobra, Maria Isabel T. (2016 April 27). "Social Media: A Game Changer in Philippine Elections". The Asia Foundation. Retrieved 2022 November 23. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  3. ↑ Wee, Sui-Lee (2022 May 9). "It's the most consequential election in the Philippines in recent history". The New York Times. Retrieved 2022 November 23. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  4. ↑ Hazbi, Amelia, & Hakim, M., S., & A. U. (2021 August). "The Philippines in Deterioration? 'Imagined Strategy' as Prospects for the Philippines Democracy and Accountability in the Era of the COVID-19 Pandemic" (PDF). Perpustakaan Waqaf Ilmu Nusantara. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ "Philippines: Elections must be 'game-changing' moment for human rights". Amnesty International. 2022 April 6. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  6. ↑ Beauchamp, Zack (2022 May 17). "The Philippine election is the latest example of illiberalism's popularity". Vox. Retrieved 2022 November 28. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  7. ↑ Grounds & Koff, Kelly & Madelyn (2022 May 5). "Disinformation, Disruption, and the Shifting Media Ecosystem in the 2022 Philippines Election". Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. Retrieved 2022 November 28. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Vittoria, Elliott (2022 May 8). "The spread of misinformation on TikTok may have impacted the Philippines' presidential election — and researchers are keen to learn what that might mean for democracies around the world". Business Insider. Retrieved 2022 November 28. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Number and Turn-Out of Registered Voters and Voters Who Actually Voted by City/Municipality". Republic of the Philippines Commission on Elections. 2022 Aug 5. Retrieved 2022 November 23. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  10. ↑ Ong, Jonathan Corpus (2022 May 10). "The World Should Be Worried About a Dictator's Son's Apparent Win in the Philippines". Time. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  11. ↑ Kurlantzick, Joshua (2021 March 31). "In Asia's 3 Biggest Democracies, COVID-19 has Entrenched Inequality and Democratic Regression". The Diplomat. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Choi, Jungug (May/June 2001). "PHILIPPINE DEMOCRACIES OLD AND NEW: Elections, Term Limits, and Party Systems" (PDF). Asian Survey. 41(3): 488–501. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ↑ "Electorial System: First Past the Post". The Electoral Knowledge Network. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  14. ↑ Kasuya & Teehankee, Yuko & Julio C. (2020 November 6). "Duterte Presidency and the 2019 Midterm Election: An Anarchy of Parties?". Philippine Political Science Journal – via Brill. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Petty, Martin (2022 May 8). "Explainer: A guide to the Philippines election". Reuters. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  16. ↑ Chad, de Guzman (2022 April 21). "How Philippine Presidential Elections Became All About the Entertainment Factor". Time. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  17. ↑ Wong, Andrea Chole (2022 February 7). "Philippine elections and the politics behind it". Lowy Institute. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  18. ↑ Teehankee, J., & Thompson, M. (October 2016). "The Vote in the Philippines: Electing A Strongman". Journal of Democracy, 27(4), 124-34. 27(4): 124–34 – via Project MUSE.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  19. ↑ Filseth, Trevor (2022 May 10). "Duterte Ally 'Bongbong' Marcos Dominates Philippines Election". The National Interest. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  20. ↑ "Candidates in presidential election urged to promise to free jailed senator". LICAS.news. 2022 February 23. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  21. ↑ Johnson & Johnson, Howard & Jonathan (2022 May 7). "Leni Robredo: The woman leading the Philippines' 'pink revolution'". BBC. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  22. ↑ "2022 Philippine National and Local Elections: A Vibrant Democracy amid Systemic Challenges"". The Asian Network for Free Elections. 2022 August 17. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "December 2021 Nationwide Survey on the May 2022 Elections". Pulse Asia Research, Inc. 2022 December. Check date values in: |date=, |archive-date= (help)
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "March 2022 Nationwide Survey on the May 2022 Elections". Pulse Asia Research, Inc. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  25. ↑ "April 2022 Nationwide Survey on the May 2022 Elections". Pulse Asia Research, Inc. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 Chua, Yvonne T. (2022 June 15). "Philippines | 2022 Digital News Report". Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  27. ↑ Tapsell, R (2021). "Social Media and Elections in Southeast Asia: The Emergence of Subversive, Underground Campaigning". Asian Studies Review. 45(1): 117–134.
  28. ↑ Ballaran, Jhoanna (2017 August 29). [Online Filipinos trust social media more than traditional media — poll "Online Filipinos trust social media more than traditional media — poll"] Check |url= value (help). The Philippines Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  29. ↑ Lamb, Kate (2019 February 1). "Philippines tops world internet usage index with an average 10 hours a day". The Guardian. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  30. ↑ Dixon, Emily (2019 February 1). "People in the Philippines spend the most time online, global report finds". CNN. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  31. ↑ "Internet usage in the Philippines - statistics & facts". Statista. 2022 November 17. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  32. ↑ Kemp, Simon (2021 February 11). "Digital in the Philippines: All the Statistics You Need in 2021". Datareportal. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  33. ↑ "Leading countries based on Facebook audience size as of January 2022 (in millions)". Statista. 2022 July 26. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  34. ↑ Arugay, Aries A. (2022 April 14). "Stronger Social Media Influence in the 2022 Philippine Elections". Fulcrum. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  35. ↑ Arugay & Baquisal, A. & J. K. (September 2022). "Mobilized and Polarized: Social Media and Disinformation Narratives in the 2022 Philippine Elections". Pacific Affairs. 95(3): 549–573.
  36. ↑ "Filipinos lead the world in time spent on social media, internet". ABS-CBN News. 2021 February 1. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  37. ↑ "Social Media Misinformation and the 2022 Philippine Elections". Center for Strategic and International Studies. 2021 November 22. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  38. ↑ Papa, Micaela (2022 May 8). "Philippines election: 'Politicians hire me to spread fake stories'". BBC. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  39. ↑ Ressa, Maria (2022). How to Stand Up to a Dictator: The Fight for Our Future. United States: Harper. ISBN 978-0063257511.
  40. ↑ Davies, Dave (2022 November 30). "Journalist Maria Ressa explains 'How to Stand Up to a Dictator'". NPR. Retrieved 2022 December 1. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 "Ferdinand Marcos". Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  42. ↑ "Ferdinand Marcos". RELIGION AND PUBLIC LIFE, Harvard Divinity School. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  43. ↑ "Corazon Aquino". Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  44. ↑ "The 1987 Constitution: A chronological narrative". The Philippines Official Gazette. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  45. ↑ Tomacruz, Sofia (2018 January 18). "How media outlets get their license to operate". Rappler. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  46. ↑ Maria Concepcion P. Simundac and Mandy Therese M. Anderson. "Easing Restrictions on Foreign Participation: The Philippine 11th Regular Foreign Investment Negative List". V&A Law. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  47. ↑ "Media Landscape | Philippines". European Journalism Centre. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  48. ↑ Gutierrez, Jason (2020 July 10). "Philippine Congress Officially Shuts Down Leading Broadcaster". The New York Times. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  49. ↑ 49.0 49.1 Nic Newman with Richard Fletcher, Anne Schulz, Simge Andı, Craig T. Robertson, and Rasmus Kleis Nielsen (2021 June). "Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021" (PDF). Reuters Institute. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  50. ↑ "'DI KO MASIKMURA' | Duterte threatens to squeeze PDI and ABS-CBN". interaksyon. 2017 April 28. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  51. ↑ "Duterte hits EU, Catholic Church, PDI, ABS-CBN anew". ABS-CBN. 2017 March 30. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  52. ↑ 52.0 52.1 Venzon, Cliff (2017 July 18). "Blasted by Duterte, Philippine Daily Inquirer owners opt to sell". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  53. ↑ 53.0 53.1 53.2 Jiao, Claire (2017 November 22). "Ang completes Inquirer deal". CNN Philippines. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  54. ↑ Tomacruz, Sofia (2018 January 29). "TIMELINE: The case of Rappler's SEC registration". Rappler. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  55. ↑ "Facing possible jail time totalling 100 years, journalist Maria Ressa says she won't stop fighting for justice". CBC Radio. 2020 June 18. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  56. ↑ San Sebastian, WESLEY (2022 September 21). "Navigating the Philippine media and advertising trends in the now normal". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 2022 November 29. no-break space character in |title= at position 15 (help); Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
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  58. ↑ Sih, Mariah (2022 June 10). "10 Biggest Digital Marketing Trends in the Philippines for 2022". Spiralytics. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  59. ↑ "Media in the Philippines - statistics & facts". Statista. 2021 December 8. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  60. ↑ FrameByte. "Episodic vs. Thematic Stories". FrameWorks Institute. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  61. ↑ 61.0 61.1 61.2 Pan, Z., & Kosicki, G. (1993). "Framing analysis: An approach to news discourse". Political Communication. 10(1): 55–75.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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  63. ↑ "The World's All-Time Most Corrupt Leaders". Forbes. 2015 January 30. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  64. ↑ 64.0 64.1 Schudson, M. (Summer 2008). "News and democratic society: past, present, and future". The Hedgehog Review. 10(2) – via GALE.
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  66. ↑ Gutierrez, Jason (2020 December 15). "Court Finds Evidence of Crimes Against Humanity in the Philippines". The New York Times. Retrieved 2022 November 29. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  67. ↑ 67.0 67.1 67.2 De Vreese, C. (2005). "News Framing: Theory and Typology". Information Design Journal. 13(1): 51–62 – via ResearchGate.
  68. ↑ Dela Paz, Chrisee (2017 July 23). "Meet Ramon Ang, Filipino billionaire and Duterte's friend". Rappler. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  69. ↑ "Maria Ressa faces extended jail sentence in the Philippines". Reporters Without Border. 2022 July 8. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  70. ↑ Khan, Irene (2022 July 14). "Philippines: UN expert slams court decision upholding criminal conviction of Maria Ressa and shutdown of media outlets". Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  71. ↑ Gamson & Modigliani, W.A. & A. (1989). "Media Discourse and Public Opinion on Nuclear Power: A Constructionist Approach". American Journal of Sociology. 95(1): 1–37 – via JSTOR.
  72. ↑ de Leon, Dwight (2021 October 10). "COC filers for president in 2022 polls down from record-high number in 2016". Rappler. Retrieved 2022 November 25. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  73. ↑ Gavilan, Jodesz (2022 April 3). "Presidential bets call for due process, end to killings in drug war". Rappler. Retrieved 2022 November 25. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  74. ↑ Nelson, J. L. (2021). "The next media regime: The pursuit of 'audience engagement' in journalism". Journalism. 22(9): 2350–2367.
  75. ↑ "Philippine Daily Inquirer | Media Ownership Monitor Philippines 2016". Media Ownership Monitor Philippines 2016. 2016 December 14. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  76. ↑ McCombs & Shaw, M.E & D.L (Summer 1972). "The Agenda-Setting Function of Mass Media". Public Opinion Quarterly. 36(2): 176–187 – via OUP.
  77. ↑ "EXECUTIVE SUMMARY – FINDINGS OF 2021 PAHAYAG QUARTER 4 SURVEY : December 6-10, 2021". PUBLiCUS Asia Inc. Retrieved 2022 November 13. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  78. ↑ Licsi, A. (2022 February 2). "Filipinos spend the most time online and on social media at almost 11 hours per day-study". The Philippine Star. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  79. ↑ Fletcher, Dr Richard (2022 June 15). "Have news audiences become more polarised over time?". Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Check date values in: |date=, |archive-date= (help)
  80. ↑ "Executive Summary — Findings of 2021 Pahayag Quarter 3 Survey : October 11–18, 2021". PUBLiCUS Asia, Inc. Retrieved 2022 November 13. no-break space character in |title= at position 62 (help); Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
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