Social Media and Fake News on Corona Virus: A Review of Literature

Abstract

Social media is the 21st-century media that has given every user an equal opportunity to publish news without passing through any form of gatekeeping, editorial, or professional scrutiny. This means that it has become a natural home for the spread of fake news even on the recent coronavirus with its consequent health implications. The authors deployed available materials and literature to discuss the burning issues surrounding fake news as misleading information on social media, especially how social media has become a natural home for fake news on coronavirus. More so, this paper reviewed the literature on the effects of fake news on coronavirus and then motivations for sharing fake news online as a way to provide a start-off point for an understanding of why social media misinformation on Corona virus has spread. The authors concluded by presenting a gap in literature, in addition to a research agenda for studies on the spread of health-related disinformation in Nigeria.

Social Media Messaging, Fake News, and COVID-19 outbreak in Lagos, Nigeria

“…Nigerian media landscape (Laden et al, 2020;Ukwuru & Nwankwo, 2020). Interestingly, the Minister of Information, Chief Lai Mohammed had in several press briefing complained about the impact of fake news on the nature of COVID-19 in Nigeria.…”

“…Misinformation has created public panic and is inhibiting efforts to stop the spread in Nigeria and across Africa." Similarly, Ukwuru and Nwankwo (2020, p. 3) asserted that "fake news on coronavirus have centered on various conspiracy theories, similarly, resulting in a plethora of incorrect ways of looking at the situation. There are unfounded views that the virus is a biological weapon, created either by the United States (to destroy China) or China (to destroy American) in other to take over world power from America and initiate a new world order."…”

“…Importantly, scholars agree that there is a strong link between social media messaging and fake news threats during COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria (Laden et al, 2020;Ukwuru & Nwankwo, 2020). Ukwuru and Nwankwo (2020, p. 3) believe that "the dissemination of misinformation on social media can either be intentional or accidental and can spread quickly as anybody can say almost anything to anyone, with billions of individuals online daily."…”

“…Importantly, scholars agree that there is a strong link between social media messaging and fake news threats during COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria (Laden et al, 2020;Ukwuru & Nwankwo, 2020). Ukwuru and Nwankwo (2020, p. 3) believe that "the dissemination of misinformation on social media can either be intentional or accidental and can spread quickly as anybody can say almost anything to anyone, with billions of individuals online daily." It is this type of thinking that made Laden et al (2020, p. 125) to assert that "social media network sites are online platforms through which individuals, groups and organizations create presence and share information through texts, photos, music videos etc.…”

“…Scholars such as (Arinze-Umobi & Chiweta-Oduah, 2020; Liu & Liu, 2020) observed that there has been a myriad of social media messages on the symptoms, risk factors and cases of COVID-19 across the globe. Similarly, scholars such as (Ukwuru & Nwankwo, 2020;Zapan et al, 2020) reasoned that social media platforms such as Twitter, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram have been used to stimulate conversations and engagements on priority health behaviors to curb COVID-19 in most modern societies. Therefore, social media messages have defined the debate and discussion on the nature of COVID-19 across the globe.…”