A THOUSAND CUTS still courtesy of FRONTLINE | PBS

This documentary about the politics in the Phillipines under the new President, Rodrigo Duterte, who rose from small time obscurity to become the populist, law and order guy who appealed to the working class. (His tactics will feel familiar). He presented himself as the savior who would eliminate all of the drug dealers and addicts, as if that were the most urgent issue to his people. He even went so far as state in a public rally that he would kill them all. He kept that promise from day one in 2016. There began a wholesale extra judicial slaughter which continues to this day killing untold tens of thousands of poor citizens. He has actively sought to silence the press by threatening journalists and their associates with harm or legal actions.

Maria Ressa, a respected and well-known investigative reporter with CNN South Asia for many years, decides she must go back to her country and do whatever possible to save the nation from the egregious thuggery and corruption of Duterte’s fascistic policies. To that end she opened Rappler, a news/media platform for current, unbiased and honest reporting. Ressa had a long list of reasons to justify going after Duterte and his administration aggressively, loudly and often. She calls him out on generalized lawlessness, human rights violations, a police force which acts more like a private SWAT team, corruption, nepotism (four of his close relatives are mayors or governors), and megadoses of lies and disinformation.

The diminutive powerhouse which is Maria Ressa is invited to international forums to speak. She is so eloquent and passionately dedicated to her mission that her cause has attracted wider support. This does not go down well with the top dog. She has been arrested, jailed, threatened and harassed by Duterte and she knows she is vulnerable. But her own safety is something she has managed to put so far down on her priority list it does not count. She is too clear-eyed and focused to be called “mad”. But she must be one of the bravest people around - to let a target be painted on her back in a country like hers. Nothing silences or influences her away from the truth.

The reason that this film was made was to detail exactly what she knew was happening in spite of the relentless disinformation campaign. She describes clearly and concisely the gradual implementation the infiltration of the ideas of despots worldwide. What her experiences has changed is her realization that media manipulation and social media distribution are the two huge threats to accurate information. This is also a handbook for things to beware of. And it is intended for us as a cautionary tale. All of that was happening simultaneously with the rise of Trump’s fascistic behavior. Even if you are neutral about the Phillipines, the parallels are so identical it will give you pause. It is a huge warning sign. Maria Ressa is an impressive and inspiring voice in the fight for human rights. She is awaiting trial in a cyber libel lawsuit from Duterte against Rappler.

The film is available through PBS/FRONTLINE.