Coverage: Covid-19 News and Information from State-Backed Outlets
By: Oxford Internet Institute
The team’s data memo on Covid-19 News and Information from State-Backed Outlets Targeting French, German and Spanish-Speaking Social Media Users has been widely covered, including in the following outlets: The Washington Post: Chinese and Russian state-backed media spread misleading virus information, study claims (Coronavirus update from 29 June 2020).
Media outlets backed by autocratic governments have dominated the online coverage of the coronavirus pandemic in many countries in Europe and Latin America, according to a study from the University of Oxford released Monday, raising concerns about the spread of misinformation.
“Many of these state-backed outlets blend reputable, fact-based reporting about the coronavirus with misleading or false information, which can lead to greater uncertainty among public audiences trying to make sense of the covid-19 pandemic,” Katarina Rebello, a research assistant at the Oxford Internet Institute, wrote in a statement. Read More …
