Spreading on Facebook as we write this post is a screenshot of a letter supposedly from Manila-hatin’ author Dan Brown responding to a letter from Metro Manila Development Authority Chairman Francis Tolentino.
In the letter, Brown supposedly reminds Tolentino that his book, “Inferno”, is a work of fiction. “Mahirap bang intindihin yun (Is it that hard to understand)?,” Brown supposedly asks (he had help from a Filipino friend) before thanking Tolentino for the free publicity.
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This, after Tolentino sent Brown a letter saying his depiction of Manila in Inferno as “the gates of hell” caused the MMDA chief “much concern.” He also said something about Filipino spirit, faith, and hope.
A photo of the letter on my timeline has been shared more than 400 times, with comments like how Tolentino really just wanted an autograph from Brown as well as the unavoidable, ineffable “pak”.
The problem, though, is that the letter is actually from a post by humor blogger Professional Heckler.
At this point, it doesn’t matter whether Manila is the gates of hell or the portal to heaven. With the tendency to take posts from Professional Heckler and So,What’s News? literally, it seems there’s nobody doing any gatekeeping anyway.
Bonus for Dan Brown, who has had to deal with allegations of plagiarism in the past: He can just copy-paste Heckler’s blog post, print it out, and mail it to the MMDA HQ in Guadalupe.
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Photo: Screenshot of a screenshot!
