Abstract:
The COVID19 pandemic has unfolded along side what the World Health Organization has termed an “infodemic” of misinformation. This study identifies and analyzes the most prominent topics of COVID related misinformation that emerged in traditional media between January 1 and May 26,2020 based on a total sample of over 38 million articles published in English-language media around the world. To our knowledge, our analysis is the first comprehensive survey of the traditional and online media landscape on this issue. We found that media mentions of US President Donald Trump within the context of COVID-19 misinformation made up by far the largest share of the infodemic. Trump mentions comprised 37.9% of the overall misinformation conversation, well ahead of any other topics. We conclude that the President of the United States was likely the largest driver of the COVID-19 misinformation “infodemic”. Only 16.4% of the misinformation conversation was “fact-checking” in nature, suggesting that the majority of COVID misinformation is conveyed by the media without question or correction.
Beerman, BSN
4,428 Posts
Not from my perspective. Do you ever hear them talk about how many more tests are being done, anyone who wants a test can get one. Or that number of deaths isn't increasing? No. It's all doomsday headlines.
I could go on, but I'll just agree to disagree. And, we'll see.
True, more mask wearing in this crowd I'm sure.
At the same time, stricter guidelines in my state put in place by our Democrat governor go into effect.
I guess the masks work better at a Biden celebration then they do at a local business, at school, or even in a gathering of friends outside in a park.
I wonder if Biden will get blamed for a bad economy when he implements nationwide lockdown restrictions?