Misinformation and Disinformation in the Information Age

Dealing with gossip, hearsay and rumours is not a new phenomenon. But the way in which information is disseminated and shared has significantly changed over the last 20 years. Digital platforms created the means to easily spread news and information to a wide audience across borders at a much greater speed and scale than ever before. While this has obvious benefits, one of the downsides is that misinformation and disinformation are spread in the same way.

What is the difference between misinformation and disinformation?

To understand who and how it spreads, we first need to look at the definitions. Misinformation is false or harmful information that usually is not shared with malicious intent. Disinformation is false and malicious information that is deliberately shared to cause harm.

Who spreads it?

All of us are potential spreaders of misinformation and disinformation. That makes it so powerful. Social media is specifically designed to encourage the spreading of information. Each post that we share has the potential to spread unsubstantiated information to friends and family. The main instigators, however, are fake websites and social media accounts that are specifically created for the purpose, as well as biased media outlets conveying certain political narratives.

While this is a global occurrence, the best examples and the impact that misinformation and disinformation have had over the past year can be seen in the United States. A prime example is the anti-mask rallies that raged all over the country. Although occurring worldwide, in the US the rallies were the largest and most widespread. During these mass protests, no masks were worn and norms like social distancing were simply ignored. Demonstrators argued that wearing masks infringes on their personal rights and freedoms. Some alleged that a face mask increases the intake of carbon dioxide and reduces the amount of oxygen in the body, a claim which had been repeatedly refuted by doctors. Most alarmingly, protesters believed that COVID-19 is a hoax, all part of an elaborate political conspiracy. On 23 February, US President Joe Biden announced that more than 500 000 American citizens have died because of COVID-19. More American lives have been claimed by this single pandemic than World War One, World War Two and the Vietnam War combined. Apart from the most deaths, the US has also had substantially more infections than any other country: over 28 million cases, i.e. 17 million more than India which comes a distant second on the list. While a number of factors contributed to these high figures, misinformation and disinformation facilitatedby social media platforms complicated the public health response, led to widespread confusion and contributed to the loss of life during the pandemic.

Endless damage is caused by misinformation and disinformation and can drive discrimination and marginalisation, lead to violence and abuse and undermine the role of official institutions in delivering public services. It creates doubt around established facts and evidence. Uncertainty can result in poor public policy outcomes which in turn negatively affect peoples’ lives.

Digital platforms created the means to easily spread news and information to a wide audience across borders at a much greater speed and scale than ever before.

How does this affect Namibia?

The whole world is susceptible to misinformation and disinformation and Namibia is no exception. A recent example is the announcement of Air Namibia’s voluntary liquidation which led to unsubstantiated rumours and wild conspiracies spreading like wildfire on social media platforms.

With COVID vaccinations soon to be rolled out in Namibia, disseminating the correct information becomes vital. Creating distrust through false information can cause unnecessarytension in a country that desperately needs to revitalise its tourism industry ravaged by the global pandemic.

In 2019 mistrust of polio vaccinations, fuelled by false reports on social media, caused unrest and violence in Pakistan that led to the deaths of health workers. As a result, this vaccination campaign was suspended. While not saying that a similar situation will occur in Namibia as in Pakistan, there is a real risk that the vaccination campaign could be severely hampered by the spreading of false information. With a wealth of information available to us, it has become difficult to see through the lies, but the responsibility lies with us to double-check facts instead of blindly pressing the “share” button.

Le Roux van Schalkwyk