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Wagamaga OP t1_it3ch43 wrote
A new University of Alberta study shows how quickly extreme conspiracy theories about monkeypox spread on TikTok in the wake of news about outbreaks this past spring
Timothy Caulfield and Marco Zenone of the U of A’s health law institute analyzed nearly 900 videos about monkeypox posted to the social media platform over a day in mid-May 2022, just after the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a statement about outbreaks of the disease in numerous countries where it isn’t endemic.
footcandlez t1_it4841n wrote
So their conclusion is that public health experts should "better monitor the online environment" but isn't it on the app to prevent the dissemination of this information in the first place? Or is it so that public health professionals can be generally aware of the types of misinformation that exist out there?
D_Welch t1_it52vkh wrote
To a large extent its good to have this platform so we can identify the misinformation that exists in the first place. But really, what is the underlying problem here? That misinformation is being spread, or that our population is not educated well enough to properly respond to it?
footcandlez t1_it7rgfb wrote
We may be better able to intervene in the spread, whereas the education of the populace is intractable.
D_Welch t1_it9l324 wrote
Both are intractable - one of them is a path to move forward and build a better world. The other is just putting out fires. IMHO of course.
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Hammitan t1_it7vins wrote
And it's reasons like this why I only have reddit and youtube now as social media, too much false information overall that can flood into a persons recommended.
NaturalNines t1_it3r0yg wrote
"extreme conspiracy theory" these days means anything anybody disagrees with.
[deleted] t1_it61phq wrote
[removed]
slutgenius t1_it3fu0f wrote
“It's Easier to Fool People Than It Is to Convince Them That They Have Been Fooled.”
– Mark Twain.