Stupidity is lethal too
27/8/20 00:03![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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talkpoliticsHundreds have died in result of false information and rumours related to the Coronavirus, a recent research published at the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene has found. Still many more weer hospitalised because they trusted misleading headlines and posts on the Internet.
The research concludes that some of these lies and disinformation could be life-threatening. Sometimes it is disguised as trustworthy strategies for protection from infection, but ultimately they bring harm to individual people and to society as a whole.
The stats identifies at least 800 people who have died after consuming high-percentage alcohol, believing it would help them "disinfect internally". 5,800 were hospitalised after consuming methanol, 60 of them lost their sight. In Qatar, two people have died after ingesting disinfectants. In India, 12 people (5 children among them) have harmed their health after following tips in the social networks to drink an extract from highly poisonous herbs. India also hosts a rumour that consuming cow manure and urine would help against the infection. And in Saudi Arabia, many believe camel urine is a miracle cure against the Coronavirus.
The researchers also investigated the damage that could be caused by the mere suspicion that someone is Covid-positive. A man in India committed suicide because he was ashamed and he feared people's reaction. There has been violence in many parts of the world almost from day one of the pandemic, or verbal abuse against people of Asian origin and against medics, because rumours were spreading far and wide around the Internet that they were the primary sources of infection.
Of course this isn't the first time that epidemics and other crises related to one disease or another have fueled fake news and mass hysteria. A striking example is the Ebola outbreak in Congo, where rumours caused suspicion which then lead to social unrest, violence, and attacks on health workers. And then during the SARS outbreak, there were again acts of aggression against people of Asian origin.
Certainly, the governments and international organisations should be more proactive in countering Covid-related disinformation, particularly on the Internet. Fake news should be exposed as fraudulent and misleading, and the admins of the social networks should be held accountable for their moderating policy. This particular research has analysed more than 2,300 online posts and articles from 80+ countries, and has found out that a staggering 82% of the content was false. The biggest sources of fake news on the subject were India, the US, China, and Spain. In the meantime, Facebook has announced they have deleted 7+ million fake news articles since April, and 98 million posts with unverified content have been flagged. But the international efforts should go way beyond that, in fact what may be needed is a comprehensive policy on countering disinformation.
The research concludes that some of these lies and disinformation could be life-threatening. Sometimes it is disguised as trustworthy strategies for protection from infection, but ultimately they bring harm to individual people and to society as a whole.
The stats identifies at least 800 people who have died after consuming high-percentage alcohol, believing it would help them "disinfect internally". 5,800 were hospitalised after consuming methanol, 60 of them lost their sight. In Qatar, two people have died after ingesting disinfectants. In India, 12 people (5 children among them) have harmed their health after following tips in the social networks to drink an extract from highly poisonous herbs. India also hosts a rumour that consuming cow manure and urine would help against the infection. And in Saudi Arabia, many believe camel urine is a miracle cure against the Coronavirus.
The researchers also investigated the damage that could be caused by the mere suspicion that someone is Covid-positive. A man in India committed suicide because he was ashamed and he feared people's reaction. There has been violence in many parts of the world almost from day one of the pandemic, or verbal abuse against people of Asian origin and against medics, because rumours were spreading far and wide around the Internet that they were the primary sources of infection.
Of course this isn't the first time that epidemics and other crises related to one disease or another have fueled fake news and mass hysteria. A striking example is the Ebola outbreak in Congo, where rumours caused suspicion which then lead to social unrest, violence, and attacks on health workers. And then during the SARS outbreak, there were again acts of aggression against people of Asian origin.
Certainly, the governments and international organisations should be more proactive in countering Covid-related disinformation, particularly on the Internet. Fake news should be exposed as fraudulent and misleading, and the admins of the social networks should be held accountable for their moderating policy. This particular research has analysed more than 2,300 online posts and articles from 80+ countries, and has found out that a staggering 82% of the content was false. The biggest sources of fake news on the subject were India, the US, China, and Spain. In the meantime, Facebook has announced they have deleted 7+ million fake news articles since April, and 98 million posts with unverified content have been flagged. But the international efforts should go way beyond that, in fact what may be needed is a comprehensive policy on countering disinformation.
(no subject)
Date: 27/8/20 12:50 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 27/8/20 20:48 (UTC)