(The Manila Times) COMMISSION on Elections Commissioner George Garcia is calling on Congress to enact a law that will keep a tight watch on social media during election campaign periods.

Garcia said he was exasperated over the mushrooming of online trolls during the last elections that freely churned out lies and vitriol.

In a little over a decade, troll farms have risen to dominance and become the propaganda tool of choice for influencing voters. They are considered as a prominent feature in what experts describe as the “disinformation ecosystem.”

It is not difficult to explain the rise of trolls and bots in the Philippines. The country is, after all, the social media capital of the world. Eighty million Filipinos immerse in social media four hours a day. Its popularity has made it a hotbed for groups whose specialty is to manipulate, distort and weaponize information.

Trolls are the undisputed experts in this craft. Molding data into propaganda is what they’re good at