In 2024, an estimated 18.96 million Filipino junior and senior high school graduates were found to be functionally illiterate—able to read but with limited comprehension skills.
This was revealed during a Senate Committee on Basic Education hearing, which discussed the results of the 2024 Functional Literacy, Education, and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS) conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
A key factor contributing to the apparent rise in functional illiteracy compared to the 2019 report is the redefinition of “functional literacy.”
Under the previous definition, a person was considered functionally literate if they could read, write, compute, and comprehend or if they had completed at least junior high school.
The PSA, however, has since updated the criteria—removing the automatic assumption that junior or senior high school graduates are functionally literate. Now, only those who can demonstrate the ability to read, write, compute, and comprehend qualify.
“Under the old definition… we had 79 million constituents considered functionally literate. But with the current definition—excluding junior and senior high school—the number dropped to 60 million.
That’s a difference of about 18.9 million,” said committee chairperson Senator Win Gatchalian.
With this data in mind, it becomes clearer why fake news is so prevalent in the country—and why vloggers and influencers are increasingly trusted over professional journalists.
Which is easier to digest?
When comparing vloggers and influencers to journalists, it’s easy to see why the former attract larger audiences.
Their content is often unfiltered, emotional, and sensational, whereas traditional media adheres to rules of journalism: order, discipline, structure, and factual accuracy.
In psychology, “amygdala hijack” is a term coined by Daniel Goleman. It describes moments when the brain’s emotional center (especially the amygdala) overrides the logical brain, leading to impulsive and emotional reactions.
In short: emotion kicks in before logic.
Vloggers and influencers—knowingly or unknowingly—leverage this emotional vulnerability. Their content often stimulates outrage, empathy, or tribal loyalty, keeping viewers hooked regardless of truth or accuracy.
Fake news by design
Social media platforms are engineered for engagement, not truth. Their algorithms promote content that receives the most interaction—likes, shares, or comments—whether true or false.
If a user engages with fake news, the algorithm reinforces it by suggesting similar content, deepening confirmation bias.
For example, if someone interacts with pro-Marcos content, the algorithm will likely flood their feed with similar posts.
Over time, users may build their own reality, shaped entirely by what they’re algorithmically fed—not by facts.
When literacy comes in
The nearly 19 million functionally illiterate Filipinos face difficulties in understanding complex news articles, commentaries, and academic discussions. For many, vloggers and influencers become a more accessible and relatable source of information.
In a debate hosted by News5 between journalists and vloggers, vlogger Banat By (Byron Cristobal) offered a nuanced view:
“Mayroong mga vloggers na matino, mayroong mainstream media na nagpapakalat din ng fake news. So sana po huwag natin i-generalize ang salitang fake news o salitang bayaran.”
He has a point—not all vloggers are peddlers of fake news, and not all mainstream media are free of bias or error. However, the deeper issue lies in the public’s inability to distinguish which is which.
So then, the final question remains: Which one is Banat By?
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