THE public conversation on Twitter is never more important than during elections. It’s when people come to Twitter for credible information about the elections, to learn about candidates and their platforms, and to engage in healthy civic debate and conversation.
In the lead up to the 2022 General Election in the Philippines, Twitter has partnered with the Commission on Elections (@COMELEC) to amplify voter education initiatives on the policy, product and partnership front to protect the integrity of election-centric conversations on the platform and encourage healthy civic debate.
“With a record-breaking 65.7 million registered voters, the Philippines is expected to hold one of the largest elections in Asia,” said James Jimenez, director of education and information department, Comelec. “During this most important time for us as a nation; collaboration between governments, industry partners and civic organizations is crucial to protect the integrity of the elections. We are pleased to be partnering with Twitter to fight misinformation and encourage voter participation.”
Customized emojis
“From presidential and vice presidential debates to voting results, every election is defined by key moments in time. To unite people around election conversations on Twitter, we have launched a series of customized emojis that aim to be valuable visual links to aid the discoverability of election-related discussions. The emojis will run throughout the campaign period and will be available until 27 May,” added Jimenez.
Additionally, online search prompts will be available to facilitate access to authoritative sources of information on voting in both Filipino and English languages. The search prompt is a notification service that connects people to credible information about the elections. When searching for keywords associated with the Philippine General Election such as “NLE 2022,” “Vote Philippines” and “General Election,” the search result will show a notification at the top, directing people to the latest credible election information from Comelec or VoteSAFEPilipinas.
Diverse perspectives
Twitter is a space where everyone, from seasoned to first-time voters, will be able to source information and diverse perspectives.
To support the diverse voter base, Twitter is partnering and working together with a wide range of partner organizations to ensure Twitter is a place for healthy public conversation. Together with the following partner organizations, it will be hosting and/or promoting a series of events on Twitter to educate voters on the elections process, fight against misinformation, and foster healthy discussions around election-specific issues: #FactsFirstPH (@FactsFirstPH), Foundation for Media Alternatives (@FMA_PH), GMA News (@gmanews), Legal Network for Truthful Elections (@lente_ph), National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (@NAMFREL), National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (@NUJP), and Plan International Philippines (@planphilippines), coordinator of #HIJAlalan2022 — an initiative of girls’ rights groups in the Philippines forwarding a girls’ electoral agenda.
“At Twitter, protecting the integrity of public conversation during elections is core to our mission. Our policies are designed to help protect against inauthentic information and safeguard healthy public conversations. Drawing on insights and lessons from previous elections, both globally and in the Philippines, we have implemented products, policies and enforcement updates to protect and support the conversation taking place during the course of the upcoming election,” said Monrawee Ampolpittayanant, head of public policy, government and philanthropy for Twitter in Southeast Asia.
“Platforms like Twitter are where important election-related conversations are taking place. We are closely monitoring abusive behavior, this includes content in Filipino, and will not tolerate any rule-violating activities, such as spam. Together with Comelec, nonprofit organizations and other trusted partners on the ground, we continue to harness the power of the #OpenInternet to strengthen civic dialogue and encourage quality participation during this important Philippine General Election,” Ampolpittayanant added.