Global Infodemic: The recent surge of COVID and election information online has made it more important to beware of false information

As essential workers continue to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and political advocates fight to uphold the integrity of the 2020 presidential election, we are concurrently facing another lesser-known infodemic — a flood of false information. 

Over the past 11 months, we have been inundated with an influx of both reliable and unreliable scientific studies, official government communications, messages from health agencies, news articles and social media posts. From the start, before masks were verified by the CDC and required, we heard contradictory information about the effectiveness of masks. And before the election results were certified, the internet exploded with conspiracies that the results were rigged.

While many of us are feeling overwhelmed by the circulating facts and opinions, we must remember to review everything critically. Due to the constant threat of misinformation and disinformation, it’s imperative that we carefully decide who and what to trust while navigating the wave of information.  

In order to do that effectively, a distinction must be made between misinformation and disinformation. They are both false; however, their motivations differ. Misinformation is anything considered an honest mistake, such as when a media company accidentally publishes an article with an error. Disinformation, on the other hand, is when wrong information is deliberately and maliciously spread.

We should be wary of both, but especially disinformation. During this pandemic, we are seeing it used as a way of eroding our trust in each other, in the press and in our government — leading to significant negative consequences.

According to a study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, areas of the country exposed to television programming that downplayed the severity of the pandemic saw greater numbers of cases and deaths. The people in those areas simply did not feel the need to follow public health precautions because their news outlets continuously told them that COVID-19 was not a threat. 

This could be partially due to a psychological theory called the illusory truth effect, which is the tendency to believe false information to be correct after repeated exposure to it. The illusory truth effect has become more prevalent today due to the rise of social media. Our personalized algorithms suggest exactly what content we want to see based on our behavior, but when that includes untruthful content, we become stuck in an echo chamber of false information.

For example, many of former President Donald Trump’s most popular tweets spread disinformation and distrust, according to a CNBC analysis. Of Trump’s 10 most-popular tweets, four contained false claims related to the 2020 election results. Individuals who interacted with these inaccurate tweets were likely recommended more content of a similar nature, which may have strengthened the views of those incited by Trump to attack the Capitol, leading to his ban from Twitter and other social media platforms.

Social media companies have an essential role to play in stopping the spread of misinformation and disinformation. Rather than removing an account that created and encouraged the amplification of false information after violence ensued, social media companies like Twitter should be proactive about aggressively monitoring content and accounts that spread disinformation, removing them if necessary. 

Stopping the spread of misinformation and disinformation is not only up to powerful companies, but also us as individuals. It’s crucial that each of us do what we can to make ourselves less susceptible to dangerously misleading and straight-up wrong information.

We can start by reading articles in full rather than sharing or forming an opinion of them based solely on their titles. Headlines are often intentionally sensationalized to encourage readership, which can be deceptive in some cases. Similarly, infographics on social media have limited space and are designed to be visually appealing, so they tend to only highlight certain information that does not tell the full story. Take those extra few seconds to look over the content’s source to verify that it’s reputable and deserves your repost.

Another thing to check is if the information seems either too good to be true or too perfectly in line with your existing views. While it may be tempting to believe it, evaluate your biases and ensure that they are not distorting your ability to distinguish fact from fiction. Take this a step further by actively seeking out reliable sources of information that cater to viewpoints different from your own, giving you a clearer view of the big picture.

If all else fails, consult trusted fact-checking organizations like the International Fact-Checking Network and global news outlets focused on correcting misinformation, including the Associated Press and Reuters. Additionally, if you come into contact with online content that you believe is false or misleading, you can report it to the hosting social media platform to help stop it from spreading.

Although we are all confident that we would not be easily persuaded into believing false information, no one is immune to the infodemic. Therefore, it’s essential that we proactively seek out the truth and cautiously avoid the red flags when consuming information.