Covid-19 Misinformation Flows

Covid-19 Misinformation Flows describes challenges in accessing, collecting, processing, and disseminating information on pandemics, with a focus on Covid-19 communication. An international team of authors addresses the role of disinformation and misinformation in managing the communication of epidemics; how social media platforms and mainstream media outlets in some countries and regions address pandemics in the context of the flow, learning, and sharing of information on Covid-19. Looking at how traditional media and social media report pandemics, especially Covid-19, the volume addresses the effect of fake news on individuals and businesses, and the impact of such communication on physical and mental health. This book will interest scholars and students of health communication, social media communication, journalism, political communication, and media and communication in the Global South.

Emmanuel K. Ngwainmbi is a Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, UNESCO fellow and Senior International Corporate Communication Adviser.

Introduction: The Sociology of Communicating Pandemics and the Objective of this Book Part I: Misconceptions Communicated about COVID-19 1. Challenges and Wins in Communicating Pandemics Globally: A Look Back at COVID-19 2. Newspapers Coverage of Conspiracy Theories of Health Pandemics in Nigeria: A Case Study of COVID-19 3. Infodemic and Misinformation on YouTube about COVID-19 4. How Community Radio Stations Led Proper Communication and Addressed Miscommunication of COVID-19 Issues in South Africa Part II: Experiences in Communicating Pandemics in Central Africa and Asia 5. Newspaper Reportage of COVID-19 Pandemic in Bangladesh and Nigeria 6. Communicating and Managing COVID-19 for Sustainable Health in a Multi-Cultural Nation-Nigeria 7. Journalistic Challenges in Covering COVID-19 News Stories in Bangladesh 8. Newspaper as National Propaganda Tool: How the People's Daily Overseas Newspaper Communicated China's Image during the COVID-19 Pandemic 9. User Engagement of Bangladesh Government Agencies and Nonprofit Organizations' Sharing of COVID-19 Information on Facebook 10. Analysis of Migrant Workers' Demise and Media Failures during the Pandemic Part III: Social Media Use and Misinformation on Health Issues in the Middle East 11. News and Misinformation in Social Media in the United Arab Emirates during the COVID-19 Pandemic 12. Information, Anxiety, and Israeli Ultra-Orthodox Jews (Haredim) during COVID-19 Part IV: Media Shenanigans, Disinformation, and Actions for Communicating Pandemics for Constructive Change 13. Using Latin American Legislation and Inter-American Standards to Combat Disinformation on Health Issues 14. Reconstructing News to Consume Constructive Messages about COVID: How Administrative Techniques could Redirect Minority Populations Toward Sustainable Information Management Conclusions: Charting Futures for Mediated Messaging on Epidemics Index