Pressure of Truth
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Outlet profile

Rappler

Philippine independent digital news, center-left / liberal-democratic

Owned byRappler Inc. is 98.8% owned by Rappler Holdings Corporation. Reported shareholders in that company are Dolphin Fire Group (about 31%), CEO Maria Ressa (about 24%), Hatchd Group (about 18%), Benjamin So (about 18%) and small minority holders. Philippine media-ownership rules limit foreign stakes, and the Philippine Depository Receipt investments became a legal dispute. A 2025 report said real-estate firm MRC Allied would take over Dolphin Fire's stake and become the largest shareholder. I could not confirm that this has been completed.
FundingMixed. Rappler gets revenue from advertising and sponsored content, branded and partner work, and reader memberships and donations. It also draws on grants and philanthropic support for journalism, fact-checking and media-integrity projects, and on investor equity. Ressa's 2021 Nobel Peace Prize and her advocacy have raised its international profile. The exact breakdown of its income is not fully public.
On the administrationbroadly critical

Background

Rappler was founded in 2011-2012 by Maria Ressa and other former ABS-CBN journalists. It began as a Facebook-based social news network and became a major online outlet in the Philippines. In 2014-2015 it restructured under Rappler Holdings and took in outside investors, including through Philippine Depository Receipts issued to foreign funds. The outlet became known for investigating the Duterte government's drug war and online disinformation networks. After that reporting, Philippine authorities ordered its registration revoked in 2018 over alleged foreign ownership. They also filed tax and cyber-libel cases against Rappler and Ressa, and Ressa was convicted of cyber libel in 2020. Press-freedom groups called these cases politically motivated retaliation, while the Duterte government denied this and said the cases rested on legal violations. Ressa shared the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize with Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov. Rappler has stayed operating, and many of the cases were later dropped or acquitted. Supporters see it as a rigorous watchdog. Critics, including Duterte allies, say it is partisan and has an anti-Duterte slant.

Sources

  1. Rappler (Wikipedia)
  2. Rappler Holdings Corporation (Media Ownership Monitor Philippines)
  3. Real estate firm to become Rappler's biggest shareholder (Inquirer)
  4. Rappler - Bias and Credibility (Media Bias/Fact Check)
  5. Trump administration scraps over 80% of USAID programs (Rappler)

Profile compiled 2026-11-05; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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