(SPOT.ph) If you've seen some of the classic movies of the '80s and '90s, chances are you know Dexter Doria. The 66-year-old actress spanning a 45-year career appeared in Moral (1982), Estudyante Blues (1989), Alabang Girls (1992), and a couple of Pido Dido movies. Most recently, she played an activist nun in the musical film Katips, which was screened in Gateway Cinemas in the last quarter of 2021. And now she has turned to Facebook and YouTube, not to portray fictional characters like a terror teacher or an angry aunt, but to fight misinformation and disinformation in the most interesting way.
The premiere episode of her series, DiDiSerye, dropped online on January 10. Personifying a retired teacher named Nana Didi, she explains the truth about confirmation bias, the proliferation of fake news in social media, the importance of fact-checking, and the existence of echo chambers online. "Dati kasi bawal magsalita. Noon, mayroong anti-rumor mongering law. 'Yon 'yong di ka pwede tsumika-tsika. Pag narinig kang kinakalaban ang gobyerno, any moment kalaboso ka. Ngayon, bawal na ang hindi kumibo," she says in the video. Doria reminds everyone to believe only evidence-based information. "Tandaan, hindi paninira ang pagsasabi ng totoo!," she adds.
Also read:
Two Generations on Martial Law: A New Podcast Takes a Close Look at the Dark Regime
10 Essential Martial Law Films to Watch
Spotlight: Martial Law
In the next episode, which was released on January 18, Doria answers the usual question: "Golden era ba ang Martial Law years?" To debunk this myth, she uses fact-checking. "Magsiyasat tayo gamit ang mapagkakatiwalaang impormasyon. Hindi lang Facebook ha," Doria reminds viewers. She enumerates credible data, starting with the fact that our national debt in 1962 was at U.S. $ 360 million. (The late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was the president from 1965 to 1986, where the years from 1972 to 1986 are Martial Law.) After 21 years in power, the Marcos government left the Philippines in a debt that rose to U.S. $28.3 billion in 1986. She also provides fact-checked information about the Bataan Nuclear Plant, "crony capitalism," and inflation (which was at 50% in 1984). "I-research niyo pa, hayan ang Google o," she says.
To catch the next episodes of Dexter Doria's DiDiSerye, follow her on YouTube or Facebook.
UPDATE (7:30 p.m.): This article has been edited to correct Dexter Doria's age.
