This Presentation Engages With Sensitive Material .

CONTENT WARNINGThis presentation engages with sensitivematerial, including descriptions ofmisinformation and conspiratorial content.Your discretion is advised andencouraged. 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

World Health Organization (Feb. 2, 2020)“We’re not just fighting an epidemic;we’re fighting an infodemic.”Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus/WHO (Feb. 15, 2020)Photo credit: Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP (March 9, 2020)Hao & Basu/MIT Technology Review (February 12, 2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

In this module, we will examine:1. The emerging alliance between seeminglydisconnected groups ensnared in the infodemic2. The basis and appeal of conspiracies that arisein a time of crisis3. The role that social media plays in facilitatingthe spread of COVID-19 conspiracies4. Strategies to mitigate the COVID-19 infodemicImage credit: Matryx/Pixabay 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Hewko & Hotez (June 1, 2020)Henley/The Guardian (April 21, 2020)ControversialOpinionz/Imgur (2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Anti-Lockdown ProtestsJosh Edelson/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesPeter Zay/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

VaccinehesitancyWhite supremacistsTrump supportersCasey Weinstein/Twitter (2020)Glen Stubbe/Star Tribute/Getty ImagesQAnonGetty ImagesMilitia groupsPaul Sancya/AP PhotoConspiracy theoriespicture-alliance/dpa/S. Barbour 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

These groups are not mutually exclusive nor exhaustiveNot all members in all groups can be described as extremist(The majority of Americans believe at least one conspiracy!)Robust social media presence 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

PixabayMichael Swan/FlickrOxford University Press (2017)Alternative health modalitiesErosion of institutional trustPerceived loss of civil libertiesAnti-Lockdown ProtestsLockdown fatigueRight-wing fundersRecruitment opportunityBoggioni/Salon (May 3, 2020)San Francisco Chronicle (1919) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Conspiracy TheoriesDeep State Mapping Project (2019)“attempts to explain theultimate causes of significantsocial and political events assecret plots by powerful andmalicious groups.”“Why Conspiracy Theories Matter”(Douglas & Sutton 2018, 256)European Commission (2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

New York Times (1973)WikimediaNASA/Newsmakers/Getty ImagesSan Antonio Express (August 18, 1977)Chesterfield (1953) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

The Psychology of BeliefConfirmation biasSeeking out information that alignswith existing beliefsBianca Bagnarelli / for NBC NewsCognitive dissonanceDiscounting incoming informationthat threatens our beliefsMotivated reasoningEvidence is more persuasive when itfavors something we want to believeRoutledge (2018)Bloomsbury (2015) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Social Ecological ModelUncertaintyAnxietySocial supportsRisk of exposure tomisinformationCognitive biasesSocial networksResponse toCOVID-19CultureConnectedness towork, religion, etc.Pattern recognitionIndividual Interpersonal InstitutionalPolicySocietalDesire to stand outEmotional processingGroup normsCrisesAccess to reliableinformationLaws, rules,regulationsAlienation 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Conspiracies are an expected side effect of key historical events(In that respect, the COVID-19 pandemic is no different!)So what’s different now?Political polarization Speed of circulationon social media 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

David Corrigan/NYC Science Data Academy (2018)Deep memetic frames“what we believe in our bones to be true about the world.”Houghton Mifflin (2008)“they shape how we see and what we know (or think we know)so completely that we probably don’t even notice them.”“Please, Please, Please Don’t Mock Conspiracy Theories” (Phillips/WIRED 2020)“guide a person’s journey through life, but they don’t necessarilycorrespond to the actual topography of the land.”You Are Here (Phillips & Milner 2020)MIT Press (2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Jen Kirby/Vox (July 7, 2020)Emily Shapiro/ABC News (June 23, 2020)Reuters (July 30, 2020)Source: Wikimedia 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

A Perfect Storm?We’re more connected than everin a digital environment thatis not heavily regulatedduring a global pandemic that leaves us stranded at home in front of our computers.Image credit: cromaconceptovisual/Pixabay 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

“A lie can travel halfway around the worldwhile the truth is still putting on its shoes.”Melissa Dickson/The Conversation (June 21, 2016) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Aubree Eliza Weaver/Politico (July 25, 2020)(July 24, 2020)Frenkel, Decker & Alba/The New York Times (May 21, 2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Md Saiful Islam et al. 2020BBC (March 31, 2020)WhatsApp/Al Jazeera (March 10, 2020)Photo credit: Eva Marie Uzcategui/BloombergAlistair Coleman/BBC (August 12, 2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

(Hidden virality)Claire Wardle/First Draft (2018)Architects of Networked Disinformation (Ong & Cabañes 2018, 9)#WilltoAct (Center for Countering Digital Hate 2020, 9) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Avaaz (August 19, 2020)Mark Townsend/The Guardian (August 16, 2020)J. Edward Moreno/The Hill (August 14, 2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Zack Stanton/Politico (June 17, 2020)“the relative magnitude ofthe misinformationproblem on Facebook hasdeclined since its peak.”"Trends in the diffusion on social media“(Allcott, Gentzkow & Yu 2019, 1)Joseph Uscinski/New York Daily News (Sept. 5, 2020)The New York Times/YouTube (March 10, 2014)Mark Hay/Vice (November 15, 2018) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

“The strain of living in this particular time, with a dragging, devastating pandemicand a global uprising against police brutality and racial injustice, crashing togetherat the highest speed, has accelerated something that’s been going on for years.Call it the conspiracy singularity: the place where many conspiracy communitiesare suddenly meeting and merging, a melting pot of unimaginable density.”Anna Merlan/Vice (July 17, 2020)Image credit: Hunter French/For Vice 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Jacob Knutson/Axios (July 12, 2020)Marjorie Taylor Greene/YouTube (2020)Spencer S. Hsu/Washington Post (June 14, 2017) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Social Ecological ModelReevaluateEnlightenment idealsIncreased regulation“Flatten the curve” ofmisinformationReport harmful contentAvoid mockingothers’ beliefsStudy infodemiologyPromote science asevolving processIndividual Interpersonal Institutional PolicySocietalPromote credible messengersImprove digital literacyEngage withunderlying framesEngage with othersstrategicallyHumor overrumorSeymour Wally / NY Daily Newsvia Getty ImagesTaipaiUrbanism/Twitter(March 22, 2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

“If facts aren’t how we got there,then facts won’t change our minds.”You Are Here (Phillips & Milner 2020)MIT Press (2020) 2020 The Regents of the University of Californiacopyright@uci.edu

Conspiracy Theories “attempts to explain the ultimate causes of significant social and political events as secret plots by powerful and malicious groups.” “Why Conspiracy Theories Matter” (Douglas & Sutton 2018, 256) European Commission (2020) Deep State Mapping Project (2019)