Social media ‘experts’ spreading virus along with online paranoia By: Tom Brodbeck Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Friday, Sep. 4, 2020

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/09/2020 (1477 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Countering misinformation and conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic is proving to be almost as challenging as battling the disease itself.

That’s especially true when the source of that misinformation appears to be a credible source, such as a licensed physician.

Much of the misinformation about the pandemic has been circulating on social media, a platform littered with false claims about miracle treatments, nefarious plots by governments and baseless assertions aimed at downplaying the seriousness of the disease.

Researchers at McGill University released a study in July that found Canadians who use social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, as their primary source of information on the pandemic are more likely to have misperceptions about it. They’re also less likely to follow public-health recommendations, such as wearing a mask and practising social distancing, compared with those who rely on traditional news media.

About 16 per cent of Canadians use social media as their main source of information when it comes to COVID-19, the study found. It’s a small minority. But it still represents several million Canadians.

Last week, Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam expressed concern about a growing wave of misinformation on social media when it comes to a possible COVID-19 vaccine.

Despite efforts by social media giants such as Facebook to crack down on misinformation (the company’s founder Mark Zuckerberg vowed again this week to remove posts that make false claims about the pandemic), the existence of bogus information persists.

A doctor in Dauphin took down his Facebook page this week after a story in the Free Press revealed he was posting false claims about mask use, discrediting reputable medical journals and claiming the pandemic was a plot to create a totalitarian society.

Dr. Blair Hrabarchuk, an internal medicine physician who works at the Dauphin Medical Clinic, posted links to YouTube videos that promote conspiracy theories, including one that was subsequently labelled “false information” by Facebook.

The problem with disseminating false information about the novel coronavirus is some believe it, especially if it’s circulated by a practising physician.

The COVID-19 pandemic is an easy target, for many reasons. Even after eight months, much is still unknown about the virus, making it fertile ground for people to speculate about its origins, its deadliness and the ability to contain it. Rapidly evolving science around things such as mask use, the spread of the virus by asymptomatic people and the different testing approaches across the country have also muddied the waters.

It wasn’t long ago that public health officials in Canada said there was little benefit to wearing a mask. The interpretation of the science behind masks has since changed, in part, because governments have realized they need more tools in the toolbox to help reduce the spread of the virus. Mask use is now mandated in many parts of Canada.

It also hasn’t helped that the World Health Organization has been a little sloppy in how it has communicated with the public. As recently as June, Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s emerging diseases specialist, said the spread of the virus by asymptomatic people is “very rare.”

She had to walk that statement back the next day. The WHO clarified it was “absolutely convinced” asymptomatic transmission was occurring and that studies have shown the rate could be as high as 40 per cent.

The greater the uncertainty, the easier it is for conspiracy theorists to convince the gullible. Uncertainty and contradictory findings among scientists are nothing new. It’s part of a healthy dialogue that contributes to the evolution of science.

But in a pandemic, where fear and anxiety are heightened, people may be more easily swayed by junk science and outright fabrications. Some are looking for scapegoats and “the real story” behind the pandemic. Social media often satisfies that appetite.

The danger is it may also encourage non-compliance of public health orders. Even if it only brainwashes a small portion of society, it can result in bad outcomes. When people spread bogus information about the pandemic, they’re contributing to the transmission of the virus.

For that, they should be called out.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca

Tom Brodbeck
Columnist

Tom has been covering Manitoba politics since the early 1990s and joined the Winnipeg Free Press news team in 2019.

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