Impact of rumors or misinformation on coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in social media

Abstract

Introduction: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory tract illness resulting from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, which has spread all over the globe, making it a major public health challenge across health systems. Simultaneously, numerous rumors, misinformation, and hoaxes appeared on several social media platforms regarding the etiology, outcomes, prevention, and cure of the disease1. The pressing issue is fake news spread more rapidly in social media than the ones from reliable sources and damages the authenticity balance of news ecosystem. Methodology: These articles contained diverse study methods (survey, content analysis, interview, literature review & others) and paradigm models (quantitative, qualitative) to identify the widespread misinformation and its impacts. Conclusion: Mainstream media platforms mostly contain fake news and rumors. The long-standing issue of misinformation regarding different socio-political issues is under constant discussion.