Assessing the risks of 'infodemics' in response to COVID-19 epidemics.
Nat Hum Behav
; 4(12): 1285-1293, 2020 12.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-894397
Preprint
This scientific journal article is probably based on a previously available preprint. It has been identified through a machine matching algorithm, human confirmation is still pending.
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This scientific journal article is probably based on a previously available preprint. It has been identified through a machine matching algorithm, human confirmation is still pending.
See preprint
ABSTRACT
During COVID-19, governments and the public are fighting not only a pandemic but also a co-evolving infodemic-the rapid and far-reaching spread of information of questionable quality. We analysed more than 100 million Twitter messages posted worldwide during the early stages of epidemic spread across countries (from 22 January to 10 March 2020) and classified the reliability of the news being circulated. We developed an Infodemic Risk Index to capture the magnitude of exposure to unreliable news across countries. We found that measurable waves of potentially unreliable information preceded the rise of COVID-19 infections, exposing entire countries to falsehoods that pose a serious threat to public health. As infections started to rise, reliable information quickly became more dominant, and Twitter content shifted towards more credible informational sources. Infodemic early-warning signals provide important cues for misinformation mitigation by means of adequate communication strategies.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Consumer Health Information
/
Social Networking
/
Social Media
/
COVID-19
/
Mass Media
Type of study:
Prognostic study
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Nat Hum Behav
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S41562-020-00994-6
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