Fil-Am group launches website to expose, disarm Facebook trolls
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 4) — A Filipino-American group launched a website that will expose deliberate spreaders of disinformation and pressure Facebook to take down malicious accounts days before the general election.
Liz Derr, founder of Troll Exposer (trollexposer.com), on Wednesday said they have been working on dismantling troll accounts on Facebook since October 2021 — around the time of filing of candidacy for the May 9 polls.
Although Facebook only took down around 30 accounts and pages of professional trolls who maliciously redtagged presidential candidate Vice President Leni Robredo as a "communist terorrist," she said they will continue the fight against disinformation.
"The trolls don't stop and we don't stop either," she said in a media briefing by the US Filipinos for Good Governance (USFGG).
Derr said it is hard identify the funding source of troll farms, but noted that survey frontrunner Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. — the son and namesake of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos — apparently gained from online historical revisionism.
"Bongbong Marcos is benefiting from the activities of the trolls so they're his," she said.
USFGG said it exposed 100 Marcos trolls [[ https://trollexposer.com/troll-master-bong-bong-marcos/]] who have coordinated with each other through fake accounts, to spread misinformation in sustained malicious attacks against his archrival Vice President Leni Robredo.
It also said that a number of these accounts have "liked" dozens of Marcos-related pages. As an example, the group found that Facebook user Claudioketxu.Gomonit shared posts from "BBM10OFFICIAL" 312 times to 63 different destination pages. Another user shared 103 Marcos-related posts from bbmyouthiloilo official page. The activity is not visible in her profile, but it can be seen in the public groups declaring support for Marcos and his running mate Sara Duterte.
"This is troll distribution behavior, and it keeps her profile from looking like a troll," the group said.
Marcos recently denied hiring troll farms in teh wake of reports by the foreign media that he is building a web of online disinformation. He said his social media presence remains organic despite receiving offers to mobilize click armies that could help improve his public image and boost his candidacy.
Marcos, who insisted he is a victim of "fake news," challenged the media to present proof to back their reports that he is paying trolls.
"Ang sinasabing trolls, thousands, hanapan mo ako ng isa [Present one of the trolls].They don't exist," the survey frontrunner told CNN Philippines' In Private. "Show me the place where hundreds of trolls are sitting in front of computers spreading fake news, that does not exist."
Next steps vs Facebook and trolls
USFGG's Eric Lachica said they will lobby in the US Congress to investigate Facebook and CEO Mark Zuckerberg for "being complicit and enabling the rise of Duteres and the political restoration of the Marcoses."
Meta Platforms Inc. removed over 400 Facebook accounts, pages and groups in the Philippines in April in a move to guard against the possible spread of misinformation ahead of the elections.
trollexposer.com only went online on Monday, six days before Filipinos will choose their top leaders for the next six years. USFGG chairperson Loida Lewis said it took them a while to get the website running due to funding issues and their group's desire to bring in the best people for the job. The group composed of dual citizens of the Philippines and the USA, said their mission to end online disinformation will go beyond May 9.
