Disinformation can be more deadly than coronavirus 4:02
(CNN) - Rumors about covid-19, stigmatization and conspiracy theories have been circulating in 25 different languages in at least 87 countries, including the United States, and this spread of misinformation has led to deaths and injuries, according to a new study.
The study, published in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene on Monday, involved the analysis of rumors related to the coronavirus, stigmatization and conspiracy theories that were published on social media platforms, online newspapers and other websites among December 31 and April 5.
The researchers - from various institutions in Bangladesh, Australia, Thailand and Japan - defined a "rumor" as any unverified information that can be found to be true, fabricated, or completely false after verification. "Stigmatization" is related to discrimination or devaluation of a group and "conspiracy theory" was defined as beliefs about an individual or group of people working in secret to achieve malicious goals.
The researchers identified 2,311 reports related to possible covid-19 misinformation in 25 languages from 87 countries, and of those reports, 89% were classified as rumors; 7.8% were conspiracy theories; and 3.5% were stigmatization.
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The study included some examples: "Poultry eggs are contaminated with coronavirus" and "Drinking bleach can kill the virus" were rumors; "All the diseases came from China" was stigmatization, and "It's a bioweapon funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to promote vaccine sales" was a conspiracy theory.
Most of the rumors, stigma and conspiracy theories were identified in India, the United States, China, Spain, Indonesia and Brazil, the researchers found.
The analysis showed that 24% of the reports overall were related to covid-19 disease, deaths, and transmission of the coronavirus; 21% were related to control efforts; 19% to treatment or "cures"; 15% to the cause of the disease and the origin of the virus; 1% to violence; and 20% were considered varied.
That misinformation can lead to injuries and deaths, the researchers noted in the study.
'Rumors can be masked as credible infection prevention and control strategies and have potentially serious implications if they are prioritized over evidence-based guidelines. For example, a popular myth that drinking highly concentrated alcohol could disinfect the body and kill the virus circulated in different parts of the world, ”the researchers wrote.
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"As a result of this misinformation, approximately 800 people have died, while 5,876 have been hospitalized and 60 have developed complete blindness after drinking methanol as a cure for the coronavirus."
The study had some limitations, including that the data came from publicly available online platforms, so there could be more misinformation.
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