Not as innocent as they appear?

Memes could seem innocent, however the ‘Tagalog vs. Bisaya’ development on social media dangers deepening regional divides and shaping political narratives, warranting nearer scrutiny past the laughs

MANILA, Philippines – Spend sufficient time doom-scrolling on Fb and also you’ll ultimately land on a “Tagalog vs. Bisaya” meme.

You’ve doubtless seen one. Among the many most viral reveals Hollywood actor Willem Dafoe wanting shocked underneath two panels. One caption says “Bisaya first time within the metropolis” with tall buildings under it. The opposite says “Tagalog first time within the province,” beneath it a manananggal. Others present supposed Bisaya mispronunciations of Tagalog or English phrases. There are jokes about Tagalogs being city-soft, polluted, or drug-addled.

It began as humorous, innocent web humor. However after months of seeing these posts usually, a priority rose. Memes don’t simply entertain. They form perceptions, particularly when amplified to lots of of hundreds of individuals. Past the truth that a few of these memes reinforce stereotypes and might be offensive, these memes harping on supposed regional variations, repeated many instances, can deepen divides — and people divides can be utilized for politics.

Humor as supply car

I admit that I laughed at a few of these after they first confirmed up on my feed. They have been foolish. Then they saved multiplying. And relying on the way you learn them, they subtly say, “You Tagalogs are like this, and we Bisaya are like that” and vice versa.

Pejorative labels seem too — “Tangalog” and “Bisakol.” They’re jokey on the floor, however they reinforce distinction. The premise turns into: We’re not the identical. And since it’s framed as humor, calling it out seems like overreacting. “Ang seryoso mo naman!”

However that’s truly one of the crucial notorious defenses for what known as “hahaganda,” or utilizing humor to melt propaganda or disinformation. 

Notably, in his time period, then-president Rodrigo Duterte typically dismissed controversial remarks as “Bisaya humor” that Tagalogs supposedly didn’t perceive. It constructed a cultural line.

He knew the regional divide and leaned into it. Past Davao, Cebu later grew to become staunchly Duterte-aligned. Regional sentiment might be politically helpful — and humor is a disarming entry level.

Analysis has additionally repeatedly proven that memes simplify advanced points, bypass crucial considering, and embed messages quicker than conventional data. They really feel innocent, however they imprint. And as soon as stereotypes harden, they’re simple to weaponize.

A Fb group grows – quick

One of many greatest, if not the largest group for this development is Fb’s “Tagalog vs Bisaya ONLINE RAMBULAN.” It was shaped in July 2025. In simply three months, it hit greater than 536,000 members. 

And a current look reveals that politics has been creeping in, particularly regarding Duterte and Marcos. 

We’ve already seen posts referencing Bongbong Marcos, Sara Duterte, and Rodrigo Duterte. A recurring meme pits Marcos towards a cockroach — customers react with a coronary heart for the roach and a thumbs-up for Marcos. The roach wins. There’s additionally a comparability of infrastructure constructed by Duterte vs. Marcos, with Duterte supposedly having carried out extra for public works and buildings. (By no means thoughts that one had accomplished his time period and the opposite is mid-term.)

Are these natural posts? We don’t know but. The engagement numbers are excessive, however with out deeper evaluation it’s laborious to conclude something. What’s clear is that the group’s scale means any person can exploit that — delicate or direct.

Much more regarding: Teams like this may simply flip non-public, forming self-reinforcing data bubbles. And when election season returns, pages with built-in emotional identification narratives typically grow to be comfortable political machines.

Humor can be utilized to masks early makes an attempt to harden political tribes or on this case, perhaps perpetuate it. These Tagalog vs. Bisaya memes sit in the same area, however with a regional twist that faucets into long-standing tensions about “Imperial Manila,” illustration, and neglect of Visayas and Mindanao.

The divide didn’t begin on-line however digital platforms amplify it dramatically — and now these memes might be doing simply that. 

Separate from the memes, there have been current calls on-line for Visayas-Mindanao secession, pushed most notably by congressman Kiko Barzaga and his antics. It’s extensively seen as engagement farming but he has constructed an viewers of over 300,000 followers by these. Wild concepts don’t should be practical to be influential. They simply want, nicely, consideration. And as soon as that focus and following exists, it may be exploited.

As soon as that base sticks round, it turns into tougher to problem. Previous analysis has proven how meme communities, or pages constructed round celebrities or athletes can flip throughout elections. In the future a web page might be posting jokes, and the following, it’s being a conduit for the messaging of a specific candidate. 

There isn’t clear proof but that these Tagalog vs. Bisaya meme areas are a part of a coordinated marketing campaign. For now, what we see is fast progress, regular engagement, and occasional political seepage. Reddit threads right here and there present that many Filipinos are already uneasy concerning the sudden spike of this content material.

What is for certain with these memes is that this:

• Sentiments primarily based on perceived regional variations might be amplified or exploited.
• Humor and memes have been a confirmed channel for propaganda and political messaging, bypassing crucial considering.
• Massive Fb pages have potential for being repurposed for political affect.

Put these collectively and on the very least, it deserves monitoring. None of this implies we should cease joking or police humor. It means we take note of context, to patterns, to who may profit if these narratives harden, and to how rapidly memes can shift from enjoyable to one thing extra insidious, and to how rapidly Fb pages might be changed into a hyperpartisan area benefiting a candidate, in a play to divide and conquer. – Rappler.com