Turn on any TV channel or radio station, browse the internet, scroll through your social media feed and you will find a plethora of information surrounding the coronavirus. In the digital era anyone with internet access can share their personal opinions, beliefs and fears with a wide audience. In some cases, however, this gives ground to inconsiderate and even dangerous claims spreading faster than the COVID-19 itself. To combat the misinformation surrounding the pandemic, the UK government is now turning to influencers.
In a press release last Thursday, the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) announced an international push to challenge fake news about coronavirus. The government body will provide £500,000 to the Humanitarian-to-Humanitarian (H2H) Network, an organization which addressed the spread of misinformation during the 2015 Ebola outbreak.
In addition to other initiatives, the H2H will now work with social media influencers to reach younger online…
