ABSTRACT

Engaging with the special issue theme of media freedom ‘from below,’ this article contributes ethnographically grounded and comparative research of two democratic Southeast Asian countries dealing with urgent threats to media freedom and democracy: Indonesia and the Philippines. Our research identifies the main disinformation work models in Southeast Asia, most notably through the use of buzzers (Indonesia) and trolls (the Philippines). Our research examines the increasingly gray area between trolls, buzzers and disinformation, and their increasing relationship to political elites. By explaining recent practices of political disinformation campaigns and journalist harassment, we aim to deepen understanding as to how these campaigns are organized in order to prevent them in the future. This article ultimately calls for a critical collaboration with diverse stakeholders in countering 'fake news' by examining four dominant disinformation work models.

摘要

本文以“自下而上”的媒体自由这一特刊为主题，对处理媒体自由和民主面临的紧迫威胁的两个民主东南亚国家（印度尼西亚和菲律宾）进行了民族志基础和比较研究。我们的研究确定了东南亚主要的虚假信息工作模式，最明显的是通过使用蜂鸣器（印度尼西亚）和巨魔（菲律宾）。我们的研究探讨了巨魔、蜂鸣器和虚假信息之间日益增长的灰色地带，以及它们与政治精英之间日益密切的关系。通过解释最近政治虚假宣传活动和记者骚扰的做法，我们旨在加深对这些活动的组织方式的理解，以防止它们在未来发生。