The WHO has declared that the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a public health emergency of international concern. But does it mean that spreaders of pandemic disinformation have dispersed and gone dormant? We discuss the persistence of pandemic disinformation with Tommaso Canetta, who works at Pagella Politica/Facta in Italy.
ChatGPT -- What Is It and Should We Be Worried about Generative AI-Generated Disinformation
Where is Russian Disinformation Headed?In this episode, we talked to Christiern Santos Rasmussen about the possible future of Russian disinformation tactics. Together with his team he researched how disinformation actors tweak their message for the countries they operate in. For example, in Poland, claiming that Russia only wants peace
Why Did a Vision for a Modern CityTurn into a Conspiracy Theory?Being able to reach key facilities, like schools and shops, within 15 minutes, would make city life really comfortable, right? Not if you ask conspiracy theories, mobilizing around the world to blend opposition to the idea of 15-minute
How do algorithms facilitate the rise of political fringes in Europe? And what makes it worthy for political opportunists to be radical? We invited Prof. Miguel Poiares Maduro, who has an academic background in law, governance and politics, to reflect on the various threats to democracy from social media, and
The Inoculation’s (AI-Assisted) News Roundup: ChatGPT, Finland and TwitterWhat are the latest news on disinformation and vaccine hesitancy? We discuss our top picks — and discuss the pros and cons of AI-assisted news review.Links to the news discussed:https://www.wired.co.uk/article/twitter-sudden-death-vaccine-conspiracieshttps://edmo.eu/2022/12/
Here is our news roundup: 1. Researchers see a clear link between Twitter misinformation and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and refusal, according to Tech Policy Press [https://techpolicy.press/researchers-see-clear-link-between-twitter-misinformation-and-covid-19-vaccine-hesitancy-and-refusal/] . 2. Reichsbürger, the movement behind a plan to overthrow Germany’s government, gained momentum from conspiracy theories that grew during the
Twitter’s Turmoil Was Predicted By Disinformation ResearchersWith Twitter in turmoil, we are inviting you to revisit our conversation with WF Thomas, a disinformation researcher. Eva talked to him while working on a story on audio disinformation, which was part of her Transatlantic Media Fellowship by the Heinrich Boell Foundation
Who are the Doctors Who Spread Disinformation and Why Do They Do It?As Dr. Oz loses his bid for a seat in the US Senate and the American Board of Internal Medicine moves to strip a falsehood-spreading doctor’s qualifications, we look at the phenomenon of medical doctors spreading
So here's what happened in the past two weeks: 📰News of the week: 1. Part Trump rally, part religious service, and much conspiracy theory thrown in: The Guardian reports [https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/nov/06/trump-reawaken-america-republicans-midterms-branson-missouri] on the ReAwaken America tour. 2. Truth Social faces two
According to Pew Research [https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/10/01/new-age-beliefs-common-among-both-religious-and-nonreligious-americans/] , six-in-ten American adults accept at least one of New Age beliefs: psychics, spiritual energy, reincarmation and/or astrology. And overall, seven-in-ten women hold at least one New Age belief, compared to just over half of men. Research
This week's news: 1. The use of emojis makes moderating social media much more complicated, according to Popular Science [https://www.popsci.com/technology/antivaxxers-emoji-social-media-moderator-ai/] . 2. 50 European fact-checking organizations voted [https://eufactcheckingproject.com/almost-50-european-fact-checking-organisations-approve-the-creation-of-the-efcsn-umbrella-association/] and agreed upon the mission and shape of an association that will govern
Homeopathy, a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine based on principles including ‘like cures like’, came to be at a time when opium, blood-letting and alcohol were all common treatments for illnesses. Study after study, it has been proven not to work, and testing of homeopathic products appears to often fail
This week, read how Alex Jones, a trafficker in disinformation was held accountable by a Connecticut court. Read more: 📰News: 1. Alex Jones must pay eight Sandy Hook families $1 billion a jury ruled, The New York Times [https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/12/us/politics/alex-jones-sandy-hook-damages.html] reports.
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The prospect of a cold winter makes energy a hot topic in Europe. Russia, aiming to chip away at Western support for Ukraine, is spreading energy disinformation.
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Welcome back! And welcome to a new season of The Inoculated newsletter. Keep on reading to stay on top of what's happening in disinformation. Here's the 📰News: 1. A Russia-based influence operation network has been operating in Europe since at least May 2022 and is still
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Can Robots Detect Disinformation?We previously reported that robots can spew out new kinds of disinformation. But can they also help detect and flag it? To find out, Eva talked to researcher Giovanni Da San Martino, who is researching natural language processing at the University of Padova.Here are some
Hi readers, this is our last rodeo before we head out to enjoy our summer breaks – back in September, promise. We've already seen that the childhood vaccinations have dipped during the pandemic, but in some truly frightening news, traces of the polio vaccine and evidence that it has
📰 News: 1. A wave of parents has been radicalized by Covid-era misinformation to reject ordinary childhood immunizations — with potentially lethal consequences, according to the New York Times [https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/25/magazine/anti-vaccine-movement.html?smid=tw-share] . 2. How a biotech company battles online lies about its COVID
Listen to our new episode here: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/szpm2r/30_Political_biases.m4a [https://theinoculation.podbean.com/e/political-biases-what-role-do-they-play-in-disinformation/] [https://theinoculation.podbean.com/e/political-biases-what-role-do-they-play-in-disinformation/] [https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/szpm2r/30_Political_biases.m4a] Researching the benefits of situations where people come together to
📰News of the week: 1. The lab-leak hypothesis complicated scientists' work, as COVID disinformation has threatened research—and lives, according to Scientific American [https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-lab-leak-hypothesis-made-it-harder-for-scientists-to-seek-the-truth/#Echobox=1653538268] . 2. Fringe groups in Germany spreading Kremlin narratives are failing to catch on, but they underscore how the
In this episode, we fact-check VAIDS, a made-up syndrome anti-vaxxers are using to scare people away from getting vaccinated. Here is some background info: https://health-desk.org/articles/is-there-any-evidence-of-vaccine-acquired-immunodeficiency-in-relation-to-covid-19-vaccines-and-booster-shots Here's the list of the "Disinfo Dozen": https://counterhate.com/research/the-disinformation-dozen/ Please subscribe to our newsletter
Last month, Elon Musk’s bid to buy Twitter prompted the WHO's Mike Ryan, executive director of the health emergencies program, to say [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-26/musk-twitter-approach-spurs-who-warning-on-health-misinformation] that misinformation costs lives. We looked at what Musk might mean for disinformation and Twitter in last
Elon Musk’s bid to buy Twitter has prompted the WHO to make a statement on misinformation. Misinformation costs lives, Mike Ryan, executive director of the health emergencies program at the WHO, said [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-26/musk-twitter-approach-spurs-who-warning-on-health-misinformation] about the offer from Musk, a self-described free-speech absolutist.