SU President warns against spreading false information

Dr. Betty Cernol McCann, Silliman University (SU) president, warned students, faculty, staff, and alumni against sharing false information during her speech at the All-University Academic Convocation, September 28, 2022, at the Claire Isabel McGill Luce Auditorium.

“None of us should be involved in activities that deliberately spread disinformation or misinformation,” said McCann.

McCann reminded the audience of SU’s commitment to the “discovery, investigation, and dissemination” of truth as an academic institution, regardless of any socio-political regime.

McCann also urged social media users and experts to “challenge disinformation, and where necessary, work together to take down websites deliberately engaged in it.”

“Members of the (SU) community should use their expertise to promote truth, human rights, and democracy, consistent with our values as a Christian institution of learning,” she added.

McCann mentioned the series of fact-checking training organized by the Office of Silliman Online University Learning (SOUL) and the Dr. Mariano Lao Innovation, Creation, and Invention (ICI) Laboratory since April 2021 to combat misinformation and disinformation.

The next fact-checking training by the SOUL Office and Lao ICI Laboratory is a short course on “Fighting Information Disorder on Social” that is open to participants outside the SU community and will be conducted every Saturday afternoon from October to December 2022.

“Simply defending the values of truth, healthy environment, and society’s well-being is no longer enough. We must advocate and advance them,” McCann said.

The All-University Academic Convocation is a bi-annual gathering of SU faculty, staff, and students held at the start of the semester for them to be informed about the latest developments in the University.

This semester’s convocation was the first convocation in two school years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to be held in person.