Mocha Uson

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Justiniano and the surname or paternal family name is Uson.

Mocha Uson
Uson in 2017
Deputy Administrator for Membership Promotion, OFW Family Welfare, and Media Relations of the
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration
In office
September 23, 2019 – 2022[1][2]
AdministratorHans Leo J. Cacdac
Assistant Secretary for Social Media of the
Presidential Communications Group
In office
May 8, 2017 – October 1, 2018
SecretaryMartin Andanar
Member of the Board of the
Movie and Television Review and Classification Board
In office
January 5, 2017 – May 8, 2017
Personal details
Born
Esther Margaux Justiniano Uson

May 17[3][n 1]
Urdaneta or Dagupan, Pangasinan, Philippines[n 1]
Political partyAksyon Demokratiko (2024–present)
Other political
affiliations		PDP (until 2024)[4]
Alma materUniversity of Santo Tomas (BS)
OccupationBlogger, singer-dancer, actress, model, politician
Musical career
Genres
Years active2001–present

Esther Margaux Justiniano Uson[5][6] (born May 17[3][n 1]), better known as Mocha Uson, is a controversial[9] Filipino singer, actress, dancer, model, political blogger, and public official[10] widely known for spreading fake news and disinformation.[11][12][13] She is also a co-founder of the group Mocha Girls.

Uson served as a member of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) from January 2017[14] through her appointment as assistant secretary of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) in May of the same year[15] by then-President Rodrigo Duterte as a reward for her support in his presidential election campaign.[16][17][18] She resigned from office on October 3, 2018, following a series of gaffes, although some insiders said she was dismissed by Malacañang.[19] On September 30, 2019, it was announced that Duterte had appointed Uson as deputy executive director of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA),[10] much to the outrage of Filipino netizens.[20]

Uson initially gained notoriety for her risqué performances with the Mocha Girls and revealing personal photographs, including articles she authored with sexual content.[18] Critics have also questioned her administrative competence and her propagation of fake news and misinformation via her eponymous blog while in office, earning her the pejorative title "Queen of Fake News".[21][22][23]

  1. ^ News5 [@News5PH] (January 12, 2022). "Papasukin ni OWWA Deputy Administrator Mocha Uson ang karera sa Kamara matapos niyang ibidang aprubado na ng COMELEC ang kaniyang Mocha Party-list na magsisislbi aniyang kinatawan ng mga ina. #BilangPilipino2022 📸: Mocha Uson (Facebook) https://t.co/erhUYxBQEh"" (Tweet) (in Filipino). Retrieved January 20, 2023 – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Noriega, Richa (March 4, 2022). "Mocha Uson hurt in motorcycle accident in Bataan". GMA News Online. GMA News. Retrieved January 20, 2023. Former Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) deputy administrator Mocha Uson suffered injuries following a motorcycle accident in Bataan last week.
  3. ^ a b c "STAR CONFESSION by MOCHA USON Part 1/3". Youtube. May 19, 2011. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  4. ^ Baquero, Elias O. (November 18, 2017). "Mocha Uson, 5 others named PDP-Laban senatorial bets". SunStar. SunStar Cebu. Archived from the original on April 8, 2018. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  5. ^ Orellana, Faye (October 7, 2017). "UST Alumni Association: Mocha Uson is awarded as alumna". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  6. ^ Valderama, Tita (May 15, 2017). "Presidential prerogative". The Manila Times. Archived from the original on February 9, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference anatomyOfACauseCelebre was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Star Confession was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ "Mocha Uson's controversial Facebook 'blog' now unavailable". The Philippine Star. March 21, 2020.
  10. ^ a b "Mocha Uson named OWWA deputy executive director". September 30, 2019.
  11. ^ Hapal, Don Kevin; Magsambol, Bonz (October 22, 2017). "Mocha Uson: Fake News Victime or Fake News Peddler?". Rappler.
  12. ^ "FALSE: Mocha Uson says she 'does not spread fake news'". Rappler. October 6, 2018.
  13. ^ Ray, Argha; George, Joey F. (January 1, 2019). "Online Disinformation and the Psychological Bases of Prejudice and Political Conservatism" (PDF). Proceedings of the 52nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. doi:10.24251/HICSS.2019.330. ISBN 978-0-9981331-2-6. S2CID 88508942. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 21, 2020. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  14. ^ Macas, Trisha (January 5, 2017). "Mocha Uson appointed as MTRCB board member". GMA News. GMA Network. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
  15. ^ Sabillo, Kristine Angeli; Gonzales, Yuji Vincent (May 9, 2017). "Mocha Uson appointed as PCOO assistant secretary". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  16. ^ "Duterte on Mocha Uson: 'Utang na loob ko 'yan sa kanila'". Rappler. May 10, 2017.
  17. ^ Gutierrez, Natashya (August 18, 2017). "State-sponsored hate: The rise of the pro-Duterte bloggers". Rappler.
  18. ^ a b "Philippines' Duterte picks general, running mate and 'sexy' dancer for the government posts". Reuters. May 10, 2017.
  19. ^ "Source says Duterte fired Mocha but Palace insists she resigned". Philippine Daily Inquirer. October 8, 2018.
  20. ^ Magsambol, Bonz (September 30, 2019). "'This gov't is good at recycling garbage': Netizens slam Mocha Uson's OWWA appointment". Rappler.
  21. ^ Robles, Alan (May 15, 2019). "Philippine midterm elections: Mocha Uson, 'queen of fake news', fails to win House seat". South China Morning Post.
  22. ^ Salaverria, Leila (May 11, 2017). "Mocha Uson to defend Duterte against misinformation in media". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
  23. ^ Morong, Joseph (May 13, 2018). Mocha Uson, 'Fake News Queen'?. GMA News. Fact or Fake? (in Tagalog). Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2020.  'Fake News Queen!' Nakakalat daw ng fake news. 'Yan ang isa sa mga opposition kay Assistant Secretary for Social Media Mocha Uson. Ano kaya ang tingin nya, sa bansag na 'yan? [Fake news is on the rise, it is often said. That is one of the oppositions to Assistant Secretary for Social Media Mocha Uson. I wonder what she thinks of this nickname for her?]


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