To foster a mutually beneficial relationship through cooperation in research on truthful journalism, President Jaime I. Manuel, Jr. signed a Memorandum of Agreement with 3 other Universities from the Philippines and abroad.

Also present during the MOA signing via Zoom on April 16, 2021 were Dr. Cynthia M. Rodriguez, DMMMSU Vice President for Research and Extension; Prof. Kenneth G. Bayani, Director for Research; Dr. Junifer Rey E. Tabafunda, NLUC Chancellor; and Dr. Raul B. Sampaga, Dean of CAS.

These universities are the Holy Angel University (HAU) in the Philippines, the University of Surabaya (UBAYA) in Indonesia, and the Mahamakut Buddhist University in Thailand.

In relation to this, two of the Program Chairpersons of the College of Arts and Sciences are designated as research collaborators. As research collaborators, Dr. Macrina V. Batoon, Program Chair of the General Education Program, and Prof. Frediz Winda F. Badua, Program Chair of the AB English Language Program, are entrusted with the following responsibilities: 1) conduct ethics review required by the institution and provide the Project Leader (HAU) with a clearance report; 2) administer research instruments to selected respondents following the methodology of the study; 3) interpret locally sourced data and formulate their conclusions and recommendations; 4) complete their paper contributions and submit them to the Project Leader; and 5) participate in a research colloquium.

Currently, the team is conducting a study entitled Fake News Detection Practices among Higher Education Institutions in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. (Jerald Saculles)