1 month ago
17
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
February 26, 2026 | 6:13pm
In this photo uploaded on Facebook on Jan. 14, 2026, Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela speaks at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde’s SDG Dialogue Series on the West Philippine Sea.
Jay Tarriela via Facebook
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Commodore Jay Tarriela pushed back Thursday, February 26, against allegations by the Chinese Embassy linking the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism to U.S. funding.
The embassy earlier said PCIJ received multiple grants from the U.S.-based National Endowment for Democracy, a private nonprofit funded through an annual appropriation from the US Congress. The embassy claimed NED interferes with other countries' internal affairs.
Its statement followed a recent PCIJ news commentary video explaining how Filipinos can identify and spot pro-China propaganda online. Tarriela had shared the video on his Facebook page.
Citing information from NED's website, the embassy noted that PCIJ, a nonprofit media outlet, received NED funding in select years, though not in the past two.
For Tarriela, the embassy appeared to suggest that funding from a U.S. institution compromised PCIJ's impartiality and raised "doubts about whose interests the organization genuinely serves.:
He also questioned the logic of the claim.
“Uf the real aim was to discredit a foreign government rather than provide objective journalism, it would be illogical for the US to publicly disclose its funding to PCIJ,” Tarriela said.
“That said, it is an open secret that the People's Republic of China has been conducting information operations to undermine the Philippines' position on the West Philippine Sea. The question now is how the PRC allocates funding for these activities and who the primary recipients are,” he added.
PCIJ's response
In a statement, PCIJ said it regretted the embassy's allegation that it was being used as a propaganda tool of the United States.
“We are nobody's tool. And yet, we have watched as pro-Duterte partisans amplified the Chinese Embassy's allegations, posted at 11:34 PM Manila time on Facebook and X,” the PCIJ’s statement read.
“The virality of the Embassy's message within a few hours attests to the coordinated nature of this online attack. We are alarmed that the Chinese Embassy is attacking independent reporting by Filipinos. Their actions only lend credence to our story,” it added.
