Fake News and Elections in Southeast Asia

Fake News and Elections in Southeast Asia PDF Author: James Gomez
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000820564
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 182

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Book Description
This book offers a regional analysis of the impact of fake news – misinformation, malinformation and disinformation – on electoral democracy and freedom of expression in Southeast Asia, which has taken place in the middle of a global health pandemic. The book maps the impact of social media and the internet on democracy in the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that have already been in the throes of democratic regression for some time. Including an analysis of countries that do not have national elections, the chapters provide detailed information on the extent of internet and social media penetration in each country, the laws that are deployed to reel in its political potential for critics and demonstrate the impact on democracy or the prospects for democracy. Collectively, contributors note that disinformation is a serious problem in the region that negatively impacts elections and how governments’ attempts to deal with the phenomenon inevitably lead to the targeting of dissenting voices and opposition as anti-state fake news. The deleterious impact on democracy and freedom of expression, facilitated by a citizenry that is prone to manipulation of facts, appears to be the standard modus operandi in the regional authoritarian complex. This book is the first to undertake a regional analysis of disinformation in Southeast Asia and is a significant contribution to the literature on democracy, elections and disinformation. It will be of interest to researchers in the fields of Political Science and Asian Politics, in particular Southeast Asian Politics.

Fake News and Elections in Southeast Asia

Fake News and Elections in Southeast Asia PDF Author: James Gomez
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000820564
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 182

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book offers a regional analysis of the impact of fake news – misinformation, malinformation and disinformation – on electoral democracy and freedom of expression in Southeast Asia, which has taken place in the middle of a global health pandemic. The book maps the impact of social media and the internet on democracy in the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that have already been in the throes of democratic regression for some time. Including an analysis of countries that do not have national elections, the chapters provide detailed information on the extent of internet and social media penetration in each country, the laws that are deployed to reel in its political potential for critics and demonstrate the impact on democracy or the prospects for democracy. Collectively, contributors note that disinformation is a serious problem in the region that negatively impacts elections and how governments’ attempts to deal with the phenomenon inevitably lead to the targeting of dissenting voices and opposition as anti-state fake news. The deleterious impact on democracy and freedom of expression, facilitated by a citizenry that is prone to manipulation of facts, appears to be the standard modus operandi in the regional authoritarian complex. This book is the first to undertake a regional analysis of disinformation in Southeast Asia and is a significant contribution to the literature on democracy, elections and disinformation. It will be of interest to researchers in the fields of Political Science and Asian Politics, in particular Southeast Asian Politics.

Pollwatching, Elections and Civil Society in Southeast Asia

Pollwatching, Elections and Civil Society in Southeast Asia PDF Author: William A. Callahan
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351783092
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
This title was first published in 2000: Corruption has become a major issue in East and Southeast Asia since the financial crisis of 1997, leading to widespread political change across the region. But political corruption is not a new issue in Southeast Asia. As Pollwatching, Elections and Civil Society in Southeast Asia shows through in-depth studies of Thailand and the Philippines, political corruption has been a major point of contention within South East Asian countries for decades.

Between Consolidation and Crisis

Between Consolidation and Crisis PDF Author: Aurel Croissant
Publisher: LIT Verlag Münster
ISBN: 9783825888596
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description
Between Consolidation and Crisis focuses on five countries in Southeast Asia to examine how their elections have been conducted in the past two years, their domestic implications, and how the elections have differed from one another and from elections in other parts of Asia. Case studies on Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand provide an overall understanding of the impact of elections on the consolidation or crisis of new democratic and semi-democratic polities in the region of Southeast Asia.

Justifying Digital Repression via “Fighting Fake News”

Justifying Digital Repression via “Fighting Fake News” PDF Author: SOC052000
Publisher: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute
ISBN: 9815011758
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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Book Description
Southeast Asian autocracies of Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam have politicized vague definitions of “fake news” to justify diverse tactics of digital repression. In these countries, what constitutes falseness in “fake news” has hardly been clearly articulated. The governments instead focus on the grave threats the dissemination of “fake news” could pose to national security, public disorder or national prestige. As the governments are vested with the power to bend the labelling of “fake news” to their will, they can criminalize those accused of circulating such information to safeguard public interests. There are at least four methods by which the governments have tightened the screws on cyberspace under the banner of curbing “fake news”: (i) prosecute Internet users, journalists and dissidents in particular; (ii) pressure Internet Service Providers and social media platforms to block and remove content; (iii) expand and deepen social media monitoring; and (iv) shut down the Internet altogether. All four countries have used “fake news” allegations to penalize critics. Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam are inclined to use such allegations to strong-arm tech companies into removing content at the behest of the governments. Thailand and Vietnam tend to exploit such allegations to beef up online surveillance. Myanmar is the only country that turns to Internet shutdowns. The interplay between the methods of digital repression that exploit the pretext of cracking down on “fake news” and the manipulation of online discourse through the deployment of cyber troops would merit further research and in-depth examination.

From Grassroots Activism to Disinformation

From Grassroots Activism to Disinformation PDF Author: Aim Sinpeng
Publisher: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute
ISBN: 981495103X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 233

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Book Description
This book reflects on the role of social media in the past two decades in Southeast Asia. It traces the emergence of social media discourse in Southeast Asia, and its potential as a “liberation technology” in both democratizing and authoritarian states. It explains the growing decline in internet freedom and increasingly repressive and manipulative use of social media tools by governments, and argues that social media is now an essential platform for control. The contributors detail the increasing role of “disinformation” and “fake news” production in Southeast Asia, and how national governments are creating laws which attempt to address this trend, but which often exacerbate the situation of state control. From Grassroots Activism to Disinformation explores three main questions: How did social media begin as a vibrant space for grassroots activism to becoming a tool for disinformation? Who were the main actors in this transition: governments, citizens or the platforms themselves? Can reformists “reclaim” the digital public sphere? And if so, how?

The Politics of Death

The Politics of Death PDF Author: Aurel Croissant
Publisher: Lit Verlag
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 388

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Book Description
This volume analyzes four aspects of political violence in Southeast Asia: elections and violence; intra-ethnic conflict; communist insurgency; terrorism and religious extremism and lethal crime and politics. Together, the ten case studies on Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand challenge the idea that democratic governance will bring an end to internal violent conflict. As some examples in the region suggest, semi-democratic polities in Southeast Asia even may be more successful in reducing levels of internal violence, compared to new democracies in their neighbourhood and other types of political regime they have tried in the past.

The Politics of Elections in Southeast Asia

The Politics of Elections in Southeast Asia PDF Author: R. H. Taylor
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521564045
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
Though most governments in Southeast Asia are widely described as authoritarian, elections have been a feature of politics in the region for many decades. This volume, bringing together eleven separate studies by leading authorities, examines the countries that have conducted multi-party elections since the 1940s and 1950s -- Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, Burma/Myanmar, and Singapore. It identifies the common and distinguishing features of electoral politics in the region. The contributors to this volume, unlike most earlier students of politics in Southeast Asia, conclude that it is not something peculiar to the political culture of the region that shapes its political behavior. It is, rather, the same political forces and structures that shape politics in North America and Europe.

Disinformation and Fake News

Disinformation and Fake News PDF Author: Shashi Jayakumar
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9811558760
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
This book is a collection of chapters penned by practitioners from around the world on the impact that disinformation and fake news has had in both the online and social sphere. While much has been said about individual disinformation campaigns in specific countries, this book offers a panoramic view of how these campaigns are conducted, who they target, and how they are spread. By bringing together research on specific countries and international data mined from questionnaires and online studies, the understanding of the term 'fake news' is greatly expanded and the issues we face are brought to light. The book includes contributions by experts such as Jean-Baptiste Vilmer (Macron Leaks), and includes case studies from Asia, such as Singapore and Myanmar, written in an accessible manner for the general interested reader, practitioners and policymakers in the field.

From Grassroots Activism to Disinformation

From Grassroots Activism to Disinformation PDF Author: Aim Sinpeng
Publisher: Iseas-Yusof Ishak Institute
ISBN: 9789814951029
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
This book reflects on the role of social media in the past two decades in Southeast Asia. It traces the emergence of social media discourse in Southeast Asia, and its potential as a "liberation technology" in both democratizing and authoritarian states. It explains the growing decline in internet freedom and increasingly repressive and manipulative use of social media tools by governments, and argues that social media is now an essential platform for control. The contributors detail the increasing role of "disinformation" and "fake news" production in Southeast Asia, and how national governments are creating laws which attempt to address this trend, but which often exacerbate the situation of state control. From Grassroots Activism to Disinformation explores three main questions: How did social media begin as a vibrant space for grassroots activism to becoming a tool for disinformation? Who were the main actors in this transition: governments, citizens or the platforms themselves? Can reformists "reclaim" the digital public sphere? And if so, how?

New Media Political Engagement And Participation in Malaysia

New Media Political Engagement And Participation in Malaysia PDF Author: Sara Chinnasamy
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317242696
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
This book analyses the exponential growth of independent news portal (INPs) in Malaysia and discusses the extent of impacts generated from these portals in Malaysian electoral conduct especially during Malaysia's 12th and 13th general elections. The mainstream media in Malaysia has for decades been controlled by strict laws such as the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA) and the Sedition Act, as well as self-censorship by print and broadcast journalists and editors. The rise of INP in Malaysia has challenged this government stranglehold, as well as making information available much faster than the mainstream media. The undeniable speed of the news posted on INP which often come with interactive contents are seen to have caused a remarkable increment on public’s options with regards to expressing their political views. Some of the INPs have also impressively taken up a notch by providing live streaming videos or interesting online visual news which indirectly unifies various sectors of pressure groups in providing options of circulating and disseminating information to the public. The interviews conducted for this book provide deeper insights from those producing news and at the same time provide a specific and thorough observation on political events including representatives of the Malaysian middle class, Opposition parties, youth and university students, NGOs and civil society movements. Chinnasamy investigates key questions relating to this shift in relation to media preference concerning on the mainstream and political landscape in Malaysia. Did the INP evolve new democratic movement in the country or induce a change in the way the government retains its power by increasing people's active engagement in political participation? Did any revolution in government-managed media landscape occur drastically? If so, how did they accomplish these changes? This book will fill the gap of existing research on how far have the INP empowered themselves to be the third force in fighting democratic movement in the country and how the ruling government continues seeing it as a contention, as foreseen by many experts in the industry.