Indira Lakshmanan Moderates International Journalism Festival Talk by the Rappler's Maria Ressa

Disinformation and democracy: how information operations and new gatekeepers have weakened democracies around the world. Case study: the Philippines. In a little over a year, the government filed eleven legal cases against startup Rappler. One of its founders, Maria Ressa, was arrested twice in a little more than a month, forced to post bail eight times to remain free. Top-down government harassment was preceded by a systematic attack on social media on journalists and news groups.

Rappler has adapted, growing its investigative and research teams to use technology to map information operations. That, in turn, has helped create a new business model. Rappler joined Pulitzer Center Executive Editor Indira Lakshmanan for a conversation on these issues.