Half of Filipinos believe it's dangerous to criticize gov't – SWS

MANILA, Philippines – Half of Filipinos believe "printing or broadcasting anything critical of the administration, even if it is the truth is dangerous," result of July 2020 survey of Social Weather Stations (SWS) revealed.

Half of Filipinos believe it's dangerous to criticize gov't

On the other hand, 30% disagree with the statement, and 18% of adult respondents are undecided.

This gives a net agreement score of +21 (% agree minus % disagree), classified by SWS as moderate.

The 51% agreement consists of 23% strongly agree and 27% somewhat agree, correctly rounded, while the 30% disagreement consists of 14% somewhat disagree and 17% strongly disagree, correctly rounded.


The July 2020 survey also measured public opinion about the ABS-CBN franchise renewal. It found that 56% of adult Filipinos consider the non-renewal of the ABS-CBN franchise a major blow to press freedom.


The SWS July 3-6, 2020 National Mobile Phone Survey was a probability-based survey conducted using mobile phone and computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) of 1,555 adult Filipinos (18 years old and above) nationwide: 306 in the National Capital Region, 451 in Balance Luzon (or Luzon outside of Metro Manila), 388 in the Visayas, and 410 in Mindanao.

The area estimates were weighted by the Philippine Statistics Authority medium-population projections for 2020 to obtain the national estimates.

SWS said the survey was non-commissioned. "They were included on SWS's own initiative and released as a public service," the survey firm said.

Palace statement on SWS July 2020 National Mobile Phone Survey

Surveys, as we often said, reflect the opinions of the respondents at the time the data were gathered. This SWS survey, we understand, was conducted a week (July 3 to 6) before the House of Representatives made their decision on the ABS-CBN broadcast franchise on July 10.

Information and news dominating the traditional and social media are therefore about the congressional hearings on the broadcast franchise application of the network. This might have impressed upon the minds of the respondents who participated in the survey.

Be that as it may, the Duterte Administration continues to respect the freedom of the speech and the freedom of the press in the country. No single libel case has been filed by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte against the political opposition. Media remains alert and vibrant in their reportage of the government and the actions of officials.

— The Summit Express



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