Robert Kennedy Jr, Ty, Charlene Bollinger fingered in COVID-19 ‘Disinformation Dozen’
A new study has fingered Robert Kennedy Jr, Ty, and Charlene Bollinger in spreading COVID-19 disinformation.
Approximately 65 per cent of misinformation about the vaccine that’s spread on social media can be traced back to 12 people, said the Centre for Countering Digital Hate in a recent report.
The non-profit organisation referred to those 12 people as the ‘Disinformation Dozen’.
“Our sample of anti-vaccine content was shared or posted on Facebook or Twitter a total of 812,000 times between February 1 and March 16, with 65 per cent of that sample attributable to the ‘Disinformation Dozen,’ the centre’s report stated.
Included in that disinformation dozen was Robert F Kennedy Jr, as were the husband-and-wife duo Ty and Charlene Bollinger, the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) said.
“While some anti-vaxxers identified by CCDH have been removed from a single platform, comprehensive action has yet to be taken, and most remain active on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter,’’ the organisation said.
The centre said deplatforming repeat offenders was the best way to stop the misinformation from spreading.
Last week, U.S. President Joe Biden criticised the spread of misinformation on social media platforms such as Facebook.
“They’re killing people,’’ Mr Biden said.
A day later, Facebook shared a blog post contending that it takes action against misinformation, saying it had removed 18 million such instances since the pandemic started.
“The data shows that 85 per cent of Facebook users in the U.S. have been or want to be vaccinated against COVID-19,’’ said Saturday’s blog post.
“President Biden’s goal was for 70 per cent of Americans to be vaccinated by July 4. Facebook is not the reason this goal was missed.’’
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, meanwhile, spoke out against the spread of false information on Sunday during an interview on CNN’s State of the Union.
“All of us, including the media, individuals, and health professionals, have a responsibility to share the truth about health, as science dictates,’’ he said.
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
States
Independence: NBA urges Nigerians to expect better future
The NBA said that ordinary Nigerians should be deriving benefit from the subsidy removal rather than hardship.
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
Heading 4
China blocks Real Madrid, La Liga matches amid Mbappé controversy
The development followed Mbappé’s comments about the late founding leader of China, Mao Zedong.
Lagos
LASTMA reports three casualties in Lagos auto crash
LASTMA also said that its officials were fully on the ground managing the situation.
States
Imo police summon six officers over viral video of alleged assault on motorists
The police CRU assured that its findings would be communicated as soon as possible.
Abuja
Police arrest two suspected cable vandals in Abuja
Ms Adeh added that investigations were ongoing to establish the full extent of the suspects’ activities.
World
NDLEA, Australian police partner to tackle transnational drug trafficking
Mr Marwa noted that the MoU came at a time when drug trafficking was highly transnational.
World
U.S. Midterm Elections: 10 things to know ahead of November 3 polls
The outcome of the elections could shape the final two years of Mr Trump’s presidency.
