Mapping the Transnational Trail of COVID Conspiracies on Facebook

Table of Links

Abstract

Transnational Network Dynamics of Problematic Information Diffusion

Theoretical Framework

Methodology

Statistical Analysis and Results

Discussion and Limitations

Conclusions and Policy Implications, and References

Abstract

This study maps the spread of two cases of COVID-19 conspiracy theories and misinformation in Spanish and French in Latin American and French-speaking communities on Facebook, and thus contributes to understanding the dynamics, reach and consequences of emerging transnational misinformation networks. The findings show that co-sharing behavior of public Facebook groups created transnational networks by sharing videos of Médicos por la Verdad (MPV) conspiracy theories in Spanish and hydroxychloroquine-related misinformation sparked by microbiologist Didier Raoult (DR) in French, usually igniting the surge of locally led interest groups across the Global South. Using inferential methods, the study shows how these networks are enabled primarily by shared cultural and thematic attributes among Facebook groups, effectively creating very large, networked audiences. The study contributes to the understanding of how potentially harmful conspiracy theories and misinformation transcend national borders through non-English speaking online communities, further highlighting the overlooked role of transnationalism in global misinformation diffusion and the potentially disproportionate harm that it causes in vulnerable communities across the globe.

Keywords: social networks; health misinformation; global vulnerable communities; transnationalism; risk

Transnational Network Dynamics of Problematic Information Diffusion

Global viral diseases provide fertile ground for conspiracy theories, a prominent form of online misinformation, to spread (Cheng et al., 2021; Wood, 2018). For instance, COVID-19 conspiracy theories have been studied as a global phenomenon affecting predominantly English-speaking countries without explicit consideration of territorial variance (Cox & Halpin, n.d.; Kauk et al., 2021; Kearney et al., 2020; Yang et al., 2021). This is especially true regarding the transnational dimensions which contribute to the emergence and diffusion of conspiracy theories and misinformation at specific time points and geographic locations. This has led to a Westernized conceptualization of conspiracy theories and misinformation that assumes that the psychological dynamics and social conditions of the latter in Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD) populations are generalizable to other populations (Henrich et al., 2010). It has been shown, however, that problematic and potentially harmful information has spread rapidly in online settings across non-WEIRD countries: in Latin America, for example, COVID-19 misinformation has been viral on social media, namely WhatsApp and Facebook (Valencia, 2021).

This study analyzes the online diffusion of COVID-19 conspiracy theories and misinformation across the Global South by comparing two cases of problematic information spread across public Facebook groups during the first 18 months of the pandemic and that vary in the cultural-linguistic dimension. The first case looks at the diffusion of COVID-19 conspiracy theories among Latin American countries and Hispanic communities on Facebook by studying the proliferation and diffusion of content related to the Médicos por la Verdad[1] (MPV) organization. The second case serves as a comparison and looks at a similar COVID-19 problematic information diffusion across francophone countries, in particular the one fueled by misleading remarks made early in the pandemic by French microbiologist Didier Raoult (DR) regarding the alleged efficacy of hydroxychloroquine to treat patients infected with the virus (Sayare, 2020).

The importance of both of these cases relies on the fact that the online spread of problematic information in times of heightened uncertainty and possibility of risk increase is twofold. Not only is it comparatively understudied in non-WEIRD contexts, meaning that the Global South, representing a significant proportion of the world’s population, has become a fertile ground for problematic information to blossom unchecked. It is also important to note that the peoples of the Global South are more vulnerable than those who live in WEIRD countries, meaning that the risk posed by their exposure to problematic online information is extremely disproportionate.