Fake news in the digital age: understanding Cebuano voters’ acceptance and use of misinformation during elections

The spread of misinformation on social media presents significant challenges to democratic processes, particularly during electoral periods in highly mediated political environments. While previous studies have examined demographic and cultural influences on misinformation susceptibility, localized evidence from Southeast Asian electoral contexts remains limited. This study examines the acceptance and use of fake news on social media among Cebuano voters in Metro Cebu, Philippines, focusing on demographic characteristics, cultural orientation, perceived comprehensibility of political information, and social media platform use. A quantitative research design was employed, using a structured survey instrument on fake news acceptance, contextualized for the Philippine electoral setting. Data were collected from 163 registered voters and analyzed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results show that Facebook is the primary source of election-related information, indicating a platform-centered political information environment. Respondents reported moderate levels of perceived comprehensibility, neutral levels of fake news acceptance, and moderate levels of fake news use, suggesting conditional acceptance and selective engagement. Age and voter tenure significantly influenced acceptance and use of fake news, while other demographic variables showed no significant differences. The findings indicate that misinformation engagement is shaped by cognitive processing, platform environments, and political experience.