During the Covid-19 pandemic, conspiracy theories online spread aggressively across the world. These theories – claiming that Bill Gates created the virus or that 5G technologies caused it – gained great popularity online, very fast. Although these stories were addressed and proven untrue, the wide spread of misinformation led to the following warning by World Health Organization Director:
““We’re not just fighting an epidemic; we’re fighting an infodemic. Fake news spreads faster and more easily than this virus, and is just as dangerous”
WHO (2020a). Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation Report – 86. Geneva: WHO
And social media played a central role to the spread of such conspiracy theories. Tech companies like Facebook and Twitter promote content that appears to be engaging. So when social media users respond to a post that spreads misinformation- even to disprove it – the platform promotes the content, exposing more people to misinformation and false views.
Amongst other things, the Covid-19 pandemic is exposing the need for the development of an ethics system that will ensure that large technology companies are protecting the interests of society as a whole. Such a system would need to encourage collaboration between different organisations and across different disciplines. What can we do as citizens until then? Click below to read more!