‘Connecting in a Zero-­Trust World,” the theme at the June 27-30 East-West Center International Media Conference at the Hawai‘i Convention Center, said it all. As trust in media, government, business, science and nongovernment organizations diminishes, truth becomes ever more elusive.

This was not news to the 300 journalists from 35 countries attending the conference. For reporters, confront- ing disinformation has become paramount, and to assume that only the “uneducated” or “unsophisticated” are bamboozled by “fake news” is a spurious notion.

As Ansgar Graw, head of Media Programme Asia at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, a German foundation that co-sponsored the event, noted, anyone can be fooled. He cited a recent episode where the mayor of Berlin was duped into believing he was having a video call with Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv. The Berlin mayor eventually realized it was a “deepfake.”

Of course, the “infodemic,”a word coined by East-West Center epidemiologist Tim Brown, is not just a European or U.S. phenomenon; it’s an insidious trend that infects the globe.

No one personifies the struggle against disinformation more than Filipino-­American Nobel Prize Laureate Maria Ressa, founder of the Philippine digital news site Rappler. Ressa, a former CNN correspondent and Time Person of the Year, has been a vociferous critic of the regime of outgoing Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, which she says has fomented “death by a thousand cuts of our democracy.”

Her criticism elicited relentless online attacks and trumped-up charges of fraud, tax evasion and, most recently, the order to shut down Rappler.

In her keynote at the EWC conference, Ressa showed examples of the undiluted character assassination targeted at her. These included images comparing her to a Neanderthal, misogynistic hate speech, death threats and crude, highly sexualized images.

Although the disinformation campaign waged at Ressa and other Philippine journalists is well known, the impact of fake news in Pacific island countries is less recognized but equally alarming.

According to Cherelle Jackson, a Samoan journalist and panelist at the EWC event, South Pacific reporters are equally vulnerable to illiberal activists (think government trolls) harassing local reporters, especially women.

The fiercely contested 2021 Samoa election, which she covered for The Guardian, resulted in a barrage of attacks on her via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Other female journalists covering the election were also attacked via social media.

Should Hawaii residents be concerned about a free press in the Pacific?

“Most definitely,” said Graw, whose foundation supports a free press. “Hawaii is home to a diaspora of Pacific Islanders. When for example, Samoa loses its status as a model of press freedom, Hawaii people need to be cognizant of this.”

As if trolls and government censorship aren’t enough for Pacific island reporters to wrestle with, they are also enmeshed in the battle for influence in the Pacific Basin between the U.S. and China.

Observers such as Jackson suggest China is waging and winning a charm offensive targeting South Pacific influencers. For example, the People’s Republic of China hosts free language courses for Samoan government officials and sponsors lavish travel junkets for South Pacific journalists.

How to even the playing field?

Nothing can substitute for person-to-person dialogue.

Case in point: the EWC sponsors face-to-face meetings between Pakistani and Indian journalists outside of their respective countries where commingling would be impossible. Journalists from both nations shared the stage at the EWC event, and later, at an after-hours mixer, members of both delegations spontaneously danced to South Asian pop songs.

With more conferences like this and expanded fellowships for Asia-Pacific journalists and future leaders, the EWC can continue to address disinformation and forge critical relationships to build trust.

By engaging individuals from around the Pacific Rim, relationships can be restored, one connection at a time. To expand this “high-touch” mission, EWC (a federally funded institution) will need greater resources.

For a fraction of the $100 million price tag of an F-35 aircraft, the EWC can change a lot of hearts and minds.

During the keynote, when Ressa was asked how people can repair our polarized world, she remained steadfastly optimistic. “Please, hard-core journalists, don’t kill me for saying this. You reach out with love. … It’s the other force. … In the end we’re astounded by the goodness of human nature.”

She concluded, “We have to have these discussions. Otherwise, the lie continues.”

———

Rob Kay, a Honolulu-based writer, covers technology and sustainability for Tech View and is the creator of fijiguide.com. An EWC alumnus, he can be reached at Robertfred kay@gmail.com.