In August 2014, when the first case of Ebola virus was reported in Nigeria, a lot of people embraced myths and false information in a bid to tackle the deadly disease. Among the false ‘experimental therapies’ that were spreading like wildfire was the belief that drinking and bathing in water saturated with salt would cure the Ebola virus. Consequently, many people were hospitalised with itchy skin, rashes and high blood pressure, and some even lost their lives.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread around the world with profound social and economic consequences, disinformation has increasingly been weaponised in an effort to divide communities and mobilise hate. To understand how disinformation exploits a distrust of media and a restricted news intake to exacerbate existing community tensions, promote conspiracy theories and increase polarisation, the SCN has successfully piloted an initial localised assessment in the Municipality of Kumanovo, North Macedonia.
Photo by Dewang Gupta on Unsplash About the Authors: Amarnath Amarasingam is an Assistant Professor in the School of Religion at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada. He is also a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, an Associate Fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation, and an Associate Fellow at the Global…
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As we respond to the unprecedented challenge of COVID-19, governments are mobilising resources to ensure citizens are kept safe and healthy, while protecting their economies and institutions. However, COVID-19 was the not the only thing to spread exponentially across the world – the spiralling ‘infodemic’ of disinformation surrounding the pandemic also threatens our cities and…
Read more »
As we respond to the unprecedented challenge of COVID-19, governments are mobilising resources to ensure citizens are kept safe and healthy, while protecting their economies and institutions. However, COVID-19 was the not the only thing to spread exponentially across the world – the spiralling ‘infodemic’ of disinformation surrounding the pandemic also threatens our cities and…
Read more »
