The biggest threat to reliable information access for military and DoD service members is expert opinion. A high-level analysis of anti-COVID vaccine narratives on social media reveals that opinions from experts achieve higher relevancy and engagement than opinions from news pundits, even if the news source is considered reliable by its base.
Read moreThrough link-shortening services such as bit.ly, a third-party has disseminated vaccine-related malware across Latin America.
Read moreApproximately half of the profiles pushing the case for herd immunity are artificial accounts.
Read moreAn assessment of the past week’s social media environments indicates traditional media reporting by established news sources such as the New York Times and President Donald J. Trump are most influential by audience reach and volume of engagement.
Read moreNews websites publishing stories on a pause in the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine trials hosted malware files. At the center of the network was the Spanish-language Sputnik News link mundo.sputniknews.com.
Read moreThe announcement of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine, also referred to as Sputnik V, has received marginal reception in the United States. Within U.S. domestic social media conversation, Sputnik V is generally perceived as unreliable. These concerns could potentially add to preexisting skepticism towards vaccine efforts in the U.S. more generally.
Read moreTrending disinformation on an old publication taken out of context from 2005 is accelerating theories and disinformation surrounding the efficacy of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19.
Read moreApprehension and fear among Americans regarding the prospective COVID-19 vaccine persists. One of the most prolific sources of disinformation on this issue was last week’s pronouncement by Kanye West, referring to vaccines as “the mark of the beast” and claims that a COVID-19 vaccine was an attempt to “put chips inside of us.”
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