Coronavirus Is Spreading -- And So Are the Hoaxes and Conspiracy Theories Around It
Since initial reports of novel coronavirus (known in public health circles by the unsexy moniker 2019-nCoV) started surfacing earlier this week, the response on social media has ranged widely from measured caution to unmitigated panic. The latter was exacerbated by Wednesday’s travel ban in Wuhan, China, a city of 11 million people in central China that is believed to be the epicenter of the virus, as well as reports of 26 people in China dying from the disease. Two cases of the virus have been reported in the U.S.; as of Friday afternoon, authorities in France confirmed two cases in their country, as well.
We currently know relatively little about the coronavirus and how it is transmitted, explains Jordan Tustin, an assistant professor in public health specializing in epidemiology at Ryerson University. “It is important to note that we need to better understand how easily the virus can spread from person-to-person in order to better assess the risk posed to the public and globally,” she tells Rolling Stone. That said, although the virus appears to be spreading fairly rapidly in parts of China, “currently there is no cause for alarm in the United States or elsewhere and the risk is low,” she says, adding that many of the reported fatalities had preexisting health conditions.
Nonetheless, that hasn’t stopped people in the United States from circulating rumors and misinformation about the virus, with a healthy dose of rabid conspiracy theorizing and racism-tinged paranoia to boot. The fact that the virus appears to have originated in China seems to have exacerbated the opportunity to spread misinformation, says Jen Grygiel, assistant professor in communications specializing in memes and social media at Syracuse University. “When psychological states are peaked and people are anxious, they’re more apt to share [inaccurate] information,” they tell Rolling Stone. “Given the strained relations between China and the U.S., there’s even more anxiety there.”
Chinese authorities have also been accused of censoring reports about the epidemic and silencing journalists, detaining them and forcing them to delete footage from a Wuhan hospital. “There’s a lack of trusted sources and a lot of control exhibited by the government” over the media, says Grygiel. Last month, Wuhan authorities detained eight people for spreading “rumors” about the disease by posting about it on social media. Such reports have justifiably heightened skepticism on social media about the official narratives issued by the government, but they also are likely contributing to a deep sense of anxiety and fear where misinformation can thrive. Here are the most common rumors and hoaxes that have spread as a result of reports of novel coronavirus, and why such misinformation tends to spread in the midst of a public health crisis.
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https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/coronavirus-china-bat-patent-conspiracy-theory-942416/
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