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Coronavirus: Misinformation and verification

The WHO has described the tidal wave of fake coronavirus claims as an 'infodemic鈥�. Conspiracy theories on social media about the disease are spreading as fast as the virus.

Published: 18 March 2020
Artist's impression of the COVID-19 virus, a sphere with plunger-like attachments all over the outside.

Debunking myths and reporting the facts

The 大象传媒 is helping to slow the spread of misinformation by identifying and debunking false claims and providing accurate information about the virus and how people can protect themselves and others.

Fact checking

大象传媒 Reality Check publishes a weekly round-up of the false stories that have gone viral each week using research from disinformation experts across the 大象传媒.

The team has debunked 5G conspiracies, weighed up the evidence on the effectiveness of chloroquine as a treatment and separated fact from fiction about ibuprofen in relation to the disease. Earlier in the outbreak, Reality Check looked at how a misleading map went around the world, and examples of misinformation about coronavirus in Italy and Africa.

Fake cures and prevention methods are commonly shared on social media. Reality Check, along with media and language experts in 大象传媒 Monitoring, are debunking bogus health advice which has gone viral. Some fake advice could cause serious side effects if followed, such as drinking silver to treat COVID-19. Reality Check鈥檚 Chris Morris presented three videos about health myths you should ignore: Part 1 , Part 2 and Part 3.

Media Literacy

The public can help stop the spread of falsehoods by practicing 鈥渋nformation hygiene鈥� themselves. Scrutinising the claims we see on social media and thinking about the source and whether it is reliable before we share them more widely will help prevent the spread of misinformation.

This video, presented by Zeinab Badawi explains how we can all slow the spread of harmful falsehoods online.

大象传媒 Trending came up with seven top tips to avoid spreading misinformation about coronavirus and devoted a full radio programme and podcast to them. Trending鈥檚 specialist disinformation reporter Marianna Spring has shared her golden rules on Newsround and across the 大象传媒, reminding viewers and listeners to 鈥渢hink before they share鈥�.

Providing accurate information

One way to help stop the spread of falsehoods is to provide audiences with accurate information they can trust. Offering reliable, impartial and unsensational reporting about important issues is part of the 大象传媒鈥檚 public service remit. 

Coronavirus symptoms: What are they and how do I protect myself? 

The 大象传媒 provides accurate reporting to audiences around the globe in 42 languages. Huge numbers of people are turning to the 大象传媒 World Service language services as they look for reliable information in a global crisis. 

Videos about how to effectively wash your hands and how to clean your phone are drawing big audiences.

Visitors to 大象传媒 languages websites via search engines have jumped to 30 million a week. Articles from 大象传媒 News Arabic and 大象传媒 Mundo, the Spanish language service for Latin America, have drawn millions of readers, looking for the answers to the questions  and .

Meanwhile, the 大象传媒鈥檚 international development charity, 大象传媒 Media Action, is working on communication to counter the COVID-19 鈥榠nfodemic鈥� with its partners in six countries.

大象传媒 Media Action have published  and 10 top tips for media in the COVID-19 outbreak.

Public media organisations around the world are trying to tackle the spread of misinformation and responsibly report the pandemic and its effects, and the 大象传媒 is leading the way.