Help inform the conversation
MediaWell relies on members of the public to submit articles, events, and research.
News on COVID-19
Any hour now, the U.S. is expected to officially mark one million lives lost to the COVID-19 pandemic. Health correspondent Allison Aubrey shares how this misinformation first entered the parenting world–and how some are fighting back. You can follow Emily on Twitter at @EmilyKwong1234 and Allison at @AubreyNPR. Email Short Wave at ShortWave@NPR.org. […] Source: […]
By Allison Aubrey, Emily Kwong, and Margaret CirinoAs the U.S. nears one million deaths from COVID-19, analysis finds nearly a third of those deaths could have been prevented — if people had been vaccinated. […] Source: How vaccine misinformation made the COVID-19 death toll worse | NPR
By A Martinez and Allison AubreyOn this week’s show, we share an excerpt of a new podcast hosted by friend-of-the-show and NBC News reporter Brandy Zadrozny. The podcast follows one the the most viral and lingering conspiracy theories to come out of the pandemic. It all started when a nurse called Tiffany Dover fainted on camera after getting a Covid […]
By WNYC StudiosIf you’re someone who’s “chronically online,” then chances are good that you’ve encountered content that is either false or misleading. This is officially known as “misinformation,” and according to non-profit organization KFF, during the COVID-19 pandemic, 78 percent of US adults were either duped or tripped up by at least one false statement about the […]
By Charlotte HuIn countries with lower-than-expected COVID-19 vaccination rates, mentions of side effects and negative emotions dominated overall social media discourses on COVID-19 vaccines, according to our new research published in the journal Vaccines. Our team wanted to understand whether the tone of social media conversations around the world matched differing country-level vaccination rates. To do this, […]
By Jungmi Jun and Ali ZainAnti-vaccine sentiments have been simmering in the U.S. since at least 1998, when the Lancet, a prestigious medical journal, published—and later retracted—a fraudulent paper falsely linking childhood vaccines to autism. They’ve grown even stronger in the past two years, thanks to disinformation about the COVID-19 vaccines. Though the development of the COVID-19 vaccines happened at an […]
By Jeffrey KlugerAbstract Widespread uptake of vaccines is necessary to achieve herd immunity. However, uptake rates have varied across U.S. states during the first six months of the COVID-19 vaccination program. Misbeliefs may play an important role in vaccine hesitancy, and there is a need to understand relationships between misinformation, beliefs, behaviors, and health outcomes. Here we […]
By Francesco Pierri, Brea L. Perry, Matthew R. DeVerna, Kai-Cheng Yang, Alessandro Flammini, Filippo Menczer & John BrydenIn West Africa, fact-checkers are cooperating to expand their influence on local, national and international levels to curb misinformation about vaccines. Organizations are banding together, forming alliances with intergovernmental groups and creating cross-continent task forces to elevate health knowledge across Africa. “I think the most important thing is to highlight how fact-checkers leverage collaboration to […]
By Seth SmalleyLaurie’s mother, Stephanie, 75, died of COVID-19 in December. “I don’t believe she was supposed to die,” Laurie says. “I blame the misinformation.” Stephanie had been wrapped up in a world of conspiracy theories online, which led her to refuse treatments for COVID. Laurie’s mother, Stephanie, 75, died of COVID-19 in December. “I don’t believe […]
By Geoff BrumfielAfter Spotify’s Joe Rogan Experience released a widely derided episode that made covid vaccines sound as safe as Russian roulette — with a guest who argued the vacinated were victims of “mass formation psychosis,” a thing that does not exist — there was pushback from many corners. A group of doctors and scientists said Spotify […]
By Joshua BentonWithholding judgment, appealing to critical thinking and restoring a sense of personal control are among techniques that may be helpful while speaking to people who believe in health-related conspiracy theories, experts suggest. Medical misinformation has spread widely during the coronavirus pandemic, contributing to higher Covid death rates among the unvaccinated and causing frayed relationships between friends and family members with […]
By Donna Lu