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Chapter 1
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-1298-2.ch001
ABSTRACT
In the Philippines, the assault on the press has gone digital. While Filipino journalists continue to face
physical, verbal, and legal threats and attacks, cyber-attacks and online harassment/trolling were identifed
in 2018 as the second worst threat against them, after low wages and poor working conditions, accord-
ing to the International Federation of Journalists and the Southeast Asia Journalist Unions. Websites
of news outlets have also been hacked and taken down. These challenges make the press vulnerable to
self-censorship and may even lead to fatal outcomes. This chapter seeks to fll the gap in the literature on
the digital types of assault on the Philippine alternative press, focusing on the experience of alternative
news media outlets—independent media particularly critical of the government. It explores the range
of such threats and attacks and the responses, legal frameworks, and remedies in place that are used to
combat dangers of this nature.
INTRODUCTION
This chapter explores the digital threats and attacks against alternative media outlets in the Philippines,
with a particular focus on the experiences of Bulatlat and Kodao Productions, which made headlines
in 2018 and 2019 following the distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks on their news websites.
While the Philippine press as a whole has continued to face physical, verbal, and legal threats and
attacks, the digital forms of assault have increased. Cyber attacks and online harassment/trolling were
Digital Threats and Attacks on
the Philippine Alternative Press:
Range, Responses, and Remedies
Ramon R. Tuazon
Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication, Philippines &
Asian Media Information and Communication Centre, Philippines
Therese Patricia San Diego Torres
Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication, Philippines