Maria Angelita Ressa (Tagalog pronunciation:[ˈɾesa]; bornMaria Angelita Delfin Aycardo on October 2, 1963) is a Filipino and American journalist. She is the co-founder and CEO ofRappler.[1] She previously spent nearly two decades working as a lead investigative reporter in Southeast Asia forCNN.[2] She is a Professor of Professional Practice in theSchool of International and Public Affairs atColumbia University and has been a Distinguished Fellow at Columbia's new Institute of Global Politics since fall of 2023.[3]
Ressa was born inManila and raised inToms River, New Jersey. She was included inTime'sPerson of the Year 2018 issue featuring a collection of journalists from around the world actively combattingfake news. On February 13, 2019, she was arrested by Philippine authorities forcyberlibel due to accusations that Rappler published a false news story concerning businessman Wilfredo Keng. On June 15, 2020, a court in Manilafound her guilty of cyberlibel[4][5] under the controversialAnti-Cybercrime law,[6][7] a move condemned byhuman rights groups and journalists as an attack onpress freedom.[8][9][10] As a prominent critic of the then Philippine PresidentRodrigo Duterte, her arrest and conviction were seen by many in the opposition and the international community as a politically motivated act.[11][12][13] Ressa is one of the 25 leading figures on the Information and Democracy Commission launched byReporters Without Borders.[14] She was awarded the2021 Nobel Peace Prize jointly withDmitry Muratov for "their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace."[15][16][17]
Ressa was born in Manila in October 1963.[18] Ressa's father Phil Sunico Aycardo, a Chinese-Filipino, died when she was one year old. She grew up speaking onlyTagalog and studied atSt. Scholastica's College in Manila. Her mother, Hermelina, then moved to the United States, leaving Ressa and her sister with their father's family, but would visit her two children frequently.[19] Subsequently, her mother married an Italian-American man named Peter Ames Ressa and returned to the Philippines. She brought both of her children toNew Jersey when Ressa was 10 years old. Ressa was adopted by her stepfather and she took his last name.[20] Her parents then relocated toToms River, New Jersey, where she went toToms River High School North, a public school. Though she barely spoke English when she moved to New Jersey, she went on to be a three-time president of her high school class and a performer in school plays. The school named its newly renovated auditorium after her in 2021.[21][22]
Her yearbook profile included her dream to conquer the world.[23][24][25][26] Ressa studied atPrinceton University, where she graduatedcum laude with aBachelor of Arts in English and certificates in theater and dance in 1986.[27][28][29][30] Her 77-page-long senior thesis titled "Sagittarius" was an allegorical play about Philippine politics.[31][32] She was awarded aFulbright Fellowship to study political theater at theUniversity of the Philippines Diliman where she also taught several journalism courses as a faculty member.[33][34]
Ressa conducts an interview with former Philippine PresidentBenigno Aquino III at the Music Room of the Malacañang Palace, June 7, 2016
Ressa's first job was at government stationPTV 4.[35] She then co-founded independent production companyProbe in 1987, and simultaneously served asCNN's bureau chief in Manila until 1995. She then ran CNN's Jakarta bureau from 1995 to 2005.[36] As CNN's lead investigative reporter in Asia, she specialized in investigating terrorist networks.[37] She became an author-in-residence at the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR) ofNanyang Technological University'sS. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.[38]
Ressa is a fellow at the Initiative on the Digital Economy at theMassachusetts Institute of Technology andis a 2021 Joan Shorenstein Fellow at the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy and Hauser Leader at theCenter for Public Leadership atHarvard Kennedy School.[45] As a professor of Professional Practice at Columbia University's Institute of Global Politics, Ressa leads projects related to AI and democracy.[46]
She is the author of three books concerning the rise of terrorism in Southeast Asia—Seeds of Terror: An Eyewitness Account of Al-Qaeda's Newest Center (2003)[48] andFrom Bin Laden to Facebook: 10 Days of Abduction, 10 Years of Terrorism (2013).[49] andHow to Stand Up To a Dictator (2022).[50]
Ressa established the online news siteRappler in 2012 along with three other female founders and with a small team of 12 journalists and developers. It initially started as aFacebook page named MovePH in August 2011,[52] evolving into a complete website on January 1, 2012.[53] The site became one of the first multimedia news websites in the Philippines and a major news portal in thePhilippines, receiving numerous local and international awards. She serves as the Executive Editor and Chief Executive Officer of the news website.[54]
On September 25, 2020, Ressa joined the 25-memberReal Facebook Oversight Board, an independent watchdog group established to provide public commentary onFacebook's content moderation policies and role in civic life.[55]
Ressa was among the ten members of the leadership panel appointed in August 2022 in support of theUnited Nations'Internet Governance Forum, an annual discussion focusing on addressing issues concerning the internet.[56]
Ressa first interviewedRodrigo Duterte, the 16th president of thePhilippines, in the 1980s when he was mayor ofDavao. She again interviewed him in 2015 during his presidential election campaign, where he confessed to killing three people when he was mayor.[59][60] Under her leadership, Rappler has been consistently critical of Duterte's policies, especially his policies on the war on drugs with their stories demonstrating that the abuses were being carried out by the police with Duterte's approval. The website under her stewardship also wrote about the alleged pro-Duterte online "troll army" which according to their article, were pushing out fake news stories and manipulating the narrative around his presidency.[54]
In July 2017, in his State of the Nation Address, Duterte declared Rappler to be "fully owned" by the Americans and hence in violation of the constitution. He also said, "Not only is Rappler's news fake, it being Filipino is also fake." Subsequently, in August 2017, the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) initiated an investigation against Rappler and demanded to check its documents. In January 2018, it revoked Rappler's license to do business.[61] The case went to the court of appeals, where it was remanded back to the SEC for having no basis.[62][63] Duterte told a Rappler reporter in 2018: "If you are trying to throw garbage at us, then the least that we can do is explain – how about you? Are you also clean?" The government under his leadership revoked the site's operating license.[59]
On January 22, 2018, Ressa appeared before the Philippines'National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), to comply with a subpoena over an online libel complaint under theCybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, which the administration ofRodrigo Duterte has wielded to punish criticism of the President and his allies.[64][65][66][67][68] The subpoena was issued on January 10 to Ressa, together with former Rappler reporter Reynaldo Santos, and businessman Benjamin Bitanga. The subpoena was filed in October 2017 by a Filipino–Chinese national, Wilfredo Keng, after Rappler published a story on Keng's alleged lending of his sports utility vehicle to now-deceased Chief JusticeRenato Corona as a bribed form of favor.[69] Though the article was written in 2012 before the act criminalizing cyberlibel was signed into law byBenigno Aquino III, theDepartment of Justice considered it republished after a typographical error was corrected in 2014.[70] In 2019, human rights lawyersAmal Clooney,Caoilfhionn Gallagher, andCan Yeğinsu joined the legal team (consisting of international and Filipino lawyers) defending Ressa.[71] TheFree Legal Assistance Group (FLAG), which is the main human rights law firm in the Philippines, led by Atty.Theodore O. "Ted" Te, managed the legal team of Ressa during her different cases.[72][73]
In November 2018, the Philippine government announced that it would charge Ressa and Rappler's parent company, Rappler Holdings Corporation, with tax evasion and failure to file tax returns.[74] The charge concerns the investment in Rappler by theOmidyar Network in 2015.[75] Ressa has denied wrongdoing,[76] originally stating that the foreign money was "donated" to its managers, later stating the investments were in the form of securities.[77] Rappler issued a statement denying any wrongdoing.[78] The Philippines' Bureau of Internal Revenue, after a study of Ressa's explanation, ruled that Rappler's issuance of securities-generated capital gains was taxable. It concluded that Rappler evaded payment amounting to ₱133million in taxes.[77]
On February 13, 2019, Philippine judge Rainelda Estacio-Montesa of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch #46 issued the arrest warrant for "cyber libel" against Ressa for an article published on Rappler. The officials of the Philippines National Bureau of Investigation fulfilled this warrant filed under the charge of cyber libel. The "cyber libel" law was passed after the article was originally published, so the charge was based on the technicality that fixing a typo might be considered "republishing".[79] The arrest was live-streamed by many of Rappler's senior reporters on Facebook.[80]
Due to time constraints, Ressa was unable to post bail amounting to₱60,000 ($1,150) resulting in her arrest and confinement within the (holding) board room office of the NBI building. A total of six lawyers, twopro bono, were assigned to work on her case.[81] On February 14, 2019, at the executor proceeding of Manila city Judge Maria Teresa Abadilla, Ressa gained freedom by posting bail at ₱100,000 ($1,900).[82]
Ressa's arrest was criticized by the international community. As Ressa is an outspoken critic of PresidentRodrigo Duterte, many viewed the arrest as being politically motivated.[11] In contrast, the official spokesperson for theMalacañang Palace denied any government involvement in the arrest, asserting that the lawsuit against Ressa was set forth by a private individual, the plaintiff Wilfredo Keng.[83]
The National Press Club, an organization accused of having close ties to the Duterte regime and with a long history of criticizing the Rappler organization, has stated that the arrest was not harassment, and that Ressa should not be relegated to "the altar of press freedom for martyrdom".[85] It also warned against politicizing the issue.[85]
Ressa's trial on charges of cyberlibel began in July 2019. In a statement she made on the first day of her trial, Ressa said: "This case of cyberlibel stretches the rule of law until it breaks."[86]
Ressa was found guilty on June 15, 2020.[4] In her ruling, Judge Rainelda Estacio-Montesa argued that Rappler "did not offer a scintilla of proof that they verified the imputations of various crimes in the disputed article... They just simply published them as news in their online publication in reckless disregard of whether they are false or not."[87] The judge also quotedNelson Mandela, saying, "To be free is not merely to cast off one's chains but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others."Sheila Coronel, director of the Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism atColumbia University, argued that the conviction is representative of "how democracy dies in the 21st century."[88]
Ressa faces between six months and six years in prison and a fine of ₱400,000 ($8,000).[70] Ressa warned that her conviction could augur the end offreedom of the press in the Philippines.[89] Presidential SpokespersonHarry Roque asked the media to "respect the decision" and said Duterte was still committed to free speech, while Vice PresidentLeni Robredo described the conviction as a "chilling development" and the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said it "basically kills freedom of speech and of the press."[89] Internationally the ruling has been criticized byHuman Rights Watch,[90]Amnesty International,[91] andReporters Without Borders.[92] In its statement condemning the sentence, Reporters Without Borders described the legal proceedings against Ressa as "Kafkaesque".[93]
On January 15, 2023, 12 Nobel Peace Prize laureates, including all of the 2022 laureates and her fellow 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winnerDmitri Muratov, issued an open letter to President Marcos requesting him to "assist in bringing about a rapid resolution to the unjust charges against Maria Ressa and Rappler."[94][95]
In January 2023, the Philippine Court of Tax Appeals acquitted Ressa and Rappler of four tax evasion charges, stemming from the 2018 case.[96][97] Ressa was acquitted of a fifth tax evasion case in September 2023.[98] Ressa's court conviction for cyberlibel and the Securities and Exchange Commission's order for Rappler to shut down are under appeal as of September 2023[update].[98]
TheSupreme Court of the Philippines First Division's resolution dated January 24, 2024, grantedIrene Khan'sMotion for Leave toIntervene, to sit as an "amicus curiae" or chosenExpert and it also admitted and noted heramicus brief submitted through attorney Rodel Taton. "The law in the country fails to adequately protect the right to freedom of expression, citing Article 19 of theInternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which the Philippines is a member. The country'sAnt-Cybercrime Law raises serious concerns that it limits the ability of journalists to expose, document and address issues of important public interest, thereby violating the right to receive and impart information," Khan's brief alleged. TheInternational Bar Association's Human Rights Institute was also permitted to submit itslegal opinion “by way of special appearance” through attorney Maria Cristina Yambot, in Ressa and Reynaldo Santos' case.[99][100]
In her 5th tax evasion case, Ressa wasacquitted by theCourt of Tax Appeals Second Division, in its 17-pagejudgment promulgated on July 16. It denied SGMenardo Guevarra'scertiorari and sustainedPasig RTC Branch 157, Presiding Judge Ana Teresa Cornejo-Tomacruz's junking of the case in September 2023.[101]
Ressa winning the 2018 Free Speech Award from the Tully Center
Ressa has won anEmmy nomination for Outstanding Investigative Journalism, theAsian Television Awards, TOWNS – Ten Outstanding Women in the Nation's Service (Philippines) and TOYM Philippines.[102][103]
In 2010,Esquire proclaimed Ressa the Philippines' "sexiest woman alive," explaining: "Despite her size, fearless enough to write an eyewitness account ofAl-Qaeda."[104]
In 2016, she was listed as one of the eight most influential and powerful leaders in the Philippines byKalibrr.[106]
In November 2017, Ressa, as the CEO of news organization Rappler, accepted the 2017 Democracy Award awarded by theNational Democratic Institute to three organizations at its annual Democracy Award Dinner in Washington, D.C., entitled "Disinformation vs. Democracy: Fighting for Facts".[107]
In May 2018, Ressa received theKnight International Journalism Award, where she was described as "an intrepid editor and media innovator who holds a spotlight to the Philippine government’s bloody war on drugs."[108]
In November 2018, theCommittee to Protect Journalists awarded Ressa with theGwen Ifill Press Freedom Award in "recognition of her journalistic courage in the face of persistent official harassment."[110]
In December 2018, she was included inTime'sPerson of the Year 2018, as one of "The Guardians", a number of journalists from around the world combating the "War on Truth."[111][112] Ressa is the second Filipino to receive the title after former PresidentCorazon Aquino in 1986.
In May 2019, Ressa won the Columbia Journalism Award from theColumbia University Graduate School of Journalism, the school's highest honor, "for the depth and quality of her work, as well as her courage and persistence in the field."[115]
In June 2019, Ressa received theCanadian Journalism Foundation's Tribute honour, which recognizes a journalist who has made an impact on the international stage.[116]
In October 2019, Ressa was named on the BBC's list of100 Women.[117]
In February 2022, Ressa received Princeton University's highest undergraduate alumni honor, the Woodrow Wilson Award.[120]
In June 2023, Ressa received an honorary degree in sociology from theAteneo de Manila University after giving the commencement speech.[121]
In 2024, Ressa was namedHarvard University's commencement speaker.[122] Her selection drew her into thecontroversy of on-campus protests about theGaza war.[123][124] In the speech, she stated, "I was attacked online and called antisemitic, by power and money. Because they want power and money. While the other side was already attacking me because I had been onstage with Hillary Clinton. Hard to win, right?" Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi of Harvard walked off the stage.[125]
Ressa is the 2024Cannes LionHeart recipient, Simon Cook, CEO announced. She was scheduled to deliver akeynote address at Debussy Stage on June 21, 2024.[126]
Ressa was nominated for the2021 Nobel Peace Prize by prime minister and leader of theNorwegian Labour PartyJonas Gahr Støre.[127][17] On October 8, 2021, Ressa was officially announced as the recipient of the prize alongsideDmitry Muratov of theRussian Federation. They were awarded the prize "for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace".[128] Ressa and Muratov are the first journalists since 1935 to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.[129]
In May 2024, CongresswomanElise Stefanik accused her of antisemitism for a Rappler editorial thatlikened Israel to Hitler. Ressa cofounded Rappler in 2012 and leads it as CEO. An earlier comment Ressa made about "money and power" was also criticized by a Harvard Rabbi.[131][132][133][134]
In October 2024, Maria Ressa viewed the2024 United States elections as a tipping point in the fight for democracy, pointing out thatBig Tech sided with autocrats and dictators. She argued that the collective action of fact-based media would be essential for restoring trust in public institutions.[135]
We Hold the Line, a 2020 documentary film about thePhilippine drug war and corruption, repression and violence under the regime ofPhilippine presidentRodrigo Duterte, featuring Ressa and her journalistic work and struggles in the Philippines.
A Thousand Cuts, a 2020 documentary film about Ressa and her journalistic work and struggles in the Philippines.