Welcome to the primary version of the Well being Misinformation Monitor, a key part of KFF’s Misinformation and Belief Initiative which is geared toward monitoring well being misinformation within the U.S, analyzing its influence on the American folks, and mobilizing media to handle the issue. The Monitor will present everybody engaged on well being misinformation and belief with a brief report, each two weeks, summarizing the newest developments and analysis on well being misinformation. In fact it’s freed from cost, as is all KFF data. We’ll monitor well being misinformation coverage, information, on-line narratives, and public opinion on well being misinformation and belief in america. Search for our report on the second and fourth Thursdays of every month.
Abstract
This primary version of the Well being Misinformation Monitor explores misinformation about uncooked milk amid hen flu outbreaks on dairy farms, false vaccine narratives that proceed to unfold, and authorized challenges in opposition to abortion capsule reversal claims. Moreover, a rising variety of states have required public colleges to point out fetal growth movies that some have referred to as biased and inaccurate. This Monitor report additionally offers a snapshot of recent KFF misinformation polling on TikTok and discusses the early challenges confronted by The World Well being Group’s new AI device SARAH in offering correct solutions to well being questions.
Latest Developments
Social Media Influencers Promoted Uncooked Milk as Chicken Flu is Discovered on Dairy Farms
Social media influencers have been selling uncooked milk regardless of FDA warnings about its well being dangers as hen flu has appeared in dairy cows. One report from CBS Information exhibits how these influencers and celebrities make claims that uncooked milk has extra well being advantages than pasteurized milk, which has been refuted by public well being officers. In response to rising demand for uncooked milk and a few outbreaks of H5N1 hen flu on dairy farms, the FDA and CDC have strengthened their warnings that uncooked milk can harbor harmful germs and urging folks to devour solely pasteurized merchandise.
Addressing Vaccine Misinformation Amid Measles and Persevering with COVID-19 Challenges
Measles instances in america have considerably elevated in 2024, with unvaccinated people accounting for 80% of this 12 months’s instances. KFF Well being Information reported on how misinformation from varied public figures has influenced dad and mom to keep away from vaccinating their youngsters. Vaccine misinformation has downplayed the severity of ailments and questioned the need and security of vaccines, regardless of intensive scientific proof establishing their efficacy and security. Skeptics’ claims, together with people who vaccines are pointless or dangerous, contradict well-documented analysis and have led to harmful public well being penalties.
New COVID-19 variants, often called FLiRT, a part of the omicron household, have emerged because the dominant pressure within the U.S. In a single latest instance of an effort to handle vaccine misinformation, the Kentucky Lantern consulted with the CDC, the FDA, and different sources to debunk a number of false or deceptive claims made by some lawmakers that the vaccine results in severe well being points like sudden cardiac occasions and miscarriages. Their story shared data from the CDC and FDA that emphasised that vaccines are protected and efficient.
Authorized Challenges Towards Abortion Tablet Reversal Claims
In keeping with CBS, Heartbeat Worldwide, together with different anti-abortion teams, is being sued by New York and California attorneys basic for alleged false promoting and fraud by selling “abortion capsule reversal” as a protected and efficient technique to halt medical abortions. Heartbeat Worldwide is countersuing, citing First Modification rights and asserting the security and efficacy of abortion capsule reversal.
Rising Misinformation Narratives
Probably Deceptive Fetal Improvement Video, Child Olivia, Mandated in A number of Public-College Curricula
A rising variety of states have handed or are contemplating payments that require public colleges to point out “Child Olivia,” a video on fetal growth made by the anti-abortion group Dwell Motion. In keeping with The Guardian, a minimum of 10 states have launched payments this 12 months requiring “Child Olivia”, or an identical video, following North Dakota’s lead final 12 months. Dwell Motion claims that the video is scientifically credible, however, based on the Related Press, the American School of Obstetricians and Gynecologists warned in an electronic mail that the video spreads misinformation and manipulates viewers’ feelings fairly than offering evidence-based, scientific data. The Guardian additionally famous that the medical specialists talked about by Dwell Motion are a part of alleged anti-abortion or anti-LGBTQ+ teams.
The “Child Olivia” video appeared on-line in August 2021 when the group Dwell Motion printed a three-minute video about fetal growth titled, “A By no means Earlier than Seen Have a look at Human Life within the Womb – Child Olivia”, on its web site. Dwell Motion then shared the video on Fb. Almost the entire 298 feedback on the preliminary submit have been in help of the video, and a few promoted false claims about abortion akin to, “Mother’s don’t notice their infants are butchered and bought for physique components”
Conversations concerning the Child Olivia video have been pushed by the group’s personal social media posts—totally on Fb. Since 2021, Dwell Motion has reshared the video on Fb throughout upticks in native and nationwide dialog about abortion—in November 2021, after Tennessee upheld its 48-hour abortion ready interval (149 feedback); in June 2022, when Roe v. Wade was overturned (4,700 feedback); in November 2022, simply after midterm elections (444 feedback); and in March 2024, when Kentucky, West Virginia, and Iowa superior payments that may require the Child Olivia video to be proven in colleges (87 feedback).
Nearly all of feedback on Dwell Motion’s Fb posts concerning the Child Olivia video have expressed help for the video, however feedback expressing considerations concerning the video spiked every time payments requiring the video to be proven in colleges have been launched or handed. Nonetheless, the general variety of posts concerning the video was small within the context of the variety of each day Fb posts and total media use within the U.S., reaching a excessive of 4,700. Extra social media engagement and basic information media protection might have created a bigger echo chamber for the video.
Social media customers commenting on Dwell Motion’s Fb posts debated whether or not or not an embryo is an “unborn child” and whether or not or not abortion is homicide. Some social media customers applauded the video for what they believed to be its accuracy with feedback like, “Biology at its best” and “Improvement occurs so shortly. It’s superb how a lot is occurring so early in growth.” Others acknowledged the video’s false claims with feedback like, “That’s not the fitting timeline give me a break.” Some supporters of the video wrote that Child Olivia ought to be proven to people who find themselves looking for abortions and that the video ought to be “obligatory viewing” in colleges. As extra states take into account laws associated to the Child Olivia video, additional spikes in engagement and dialog might happen. What seems attention-grabbing, and a topic for ongoing analysis, nevertheless, is that the general “noise” surrounding the Child Olivia video seems to be a lot better than the precise quantity of dialog about it on social media which has been modest.
Well being Discussions to Watch
Abortion Tablet Regulation: In Could, Louisiana legislators handed, and the governor signed, a invoice that categorizes abortion drugs (each mifepristone and misoprostol) as managed harmful substances, initiating on-line dialog about abortion drugs throughout a number of social media platforms. A KFF Reality Sheet explains that Mifepristone was authorised by the FDA in 2000 and is already tightly regulated by the FDA and has not been categorized by the FDA and Federal Drug Enforcement Company as a managed substance in danger for addition or abuse. Misoprostol is usually used for different gynecologic and obstetric procedures. As of Could 28, the invoice was talked about 7,800 instances on X and in information articles with 38,800 engagements (e.g., likes, feedback, shares). This story was additionally talked about 256 instances on Fb, the place it garnered 19,000 engagements. Most social media posts concerning the invoice expressed criticism.
Gender-Affirming Well being Care: A latest viral social media submit from psychologist and creator Jordan Peterson falsely claimed that gender-affirming well being care causes youngsters to die by suicide. As of Could 28, there have been 154 social media posts about Peterson’s declare throughout all platforms, and so they garnered 10,800 complete engagements. Some social media customers questioned the security and effectiveness of gender-affirming well being care, whereas others identified that gender-affirming well being care results in higher psychological well being outcomes.
Opioid Settlement Funds: On a latest episode of the late-night tv present Final Week Tonight, host John Oliver mentioned that opioid settlement funds ought to be used to help hurt discount applications, prompting on-line dialog about hurt discount throughout a number of social media platforms and in information articles. As of Could 28, the YouTube video of this episode was considered greater than 2.3 million instances and acquired 4,603 feedback. There have been 341 social media posts about Oliver’s phase on X, Fb, and Instagram, attracting 3.9 million complete engagements. Some social media customers expressed help for hurt discount, whereas others claimed, “There isn’t a opioid disaster.”
Polling Highlight
A brand new KFF Well being Misinformation Monitoring Ballot, as a part of our Misinformation and Belief Initiative, explores how usually folks encounter well being data on TikTok, how a lot they belief it, and whether or not it impacts their habits. Fewer than half of TikTok customers belief well being data on the app, whereas 4 in ten say they belief such data “an excellent deal” (9%) or “considerably” (32%; Determine 1). Youthful customers, notably these aged 18-29, present increased belief ranges, with 53% saying they belief well being data a minimum of considerably, together with 17% who belief it an excellent deal. Black and Hispanic TikTok customers are considerably extra doubtless than White adults who use TikTok to say they belief well being data on the app. Amongst each day TikTok customers, who’re predominantly youthful adults, 58% belief well being data on the platform a minimum of considerably.
The ballot additionally investigated how usually folks noticed well being details about varied subjects on the platform and located {that a} majority of customers report seeing health-related content material on the app, mostly details about psychological well being (66%) and weight reduction (66%). A few third (36%) of TikTok customers report seeing details about abortion on the platform. Youthful customers, notably these aged 18 to 29, usually tend to encounter this content material, with 59% having seen abortion-related data.
Roughly 42% of TikTok customers say they’ve seen data or recommendation about vaccines on the platform. Most customers report that the content material they’ve encountered hasn’t affected their confidence in vaccine security and effectiveness, with about 15% saying it made them much less assured and 12% saying it made them extra assured (Determine 2). Amongst dad and mom who use TikTok, 17% report feeling much less assured in vaccines attributable to content material on the app, in comparison with comparable shares (11%) who really feel extra assured. Earlier KFF polling has discovered that a couple of quarter of fogeys consider false details about measles vaccines. Notably, Republican customers on TikTok usually tend to say content material on the app has decreased their confidence in vaccines, with 24% of Republicans saying TikTok content material has led them to really feel much less assured in comparison with 7% say it has made them really feel extra assured.
Analysis Updates
Examine Explores Challenges in Decreasing Resistance to Vaccine Messaging
On this Monitor, we report on a examine printed within the journal Well being Communication that explored methods to cut back “reactance”, or feeling like your private freedom is threatened, when given vaccine-related communication. The researchers examined if the observe of “inoculation” or warning folks about feeling reactance earlier than a message selling a pretend vaccine would cut back reactance. They discovered that the warning didn’t cut back resistance or change minds about vaccines; generally it even brought on extra resistance in a number of the individuals. The examine finally discovered that people who find themselves naturally extra resistant (high-reactant) have been much less keen to get vaccinated, particularly when the message threatened their freedom loads. However these much less resistant (low-reactant) have been extra open to vaccines, particularly with a high-threat message.
Supply: Karlsson, L. C., Mäki, Ok. O., Holford, D., Fasce, A., Schmid, P., Lewandowsky, S., & Soveri, A. (2024). Testing psychological inoculation to cut back reactance to vaccine-related communication. Well being Communication, 1-9.
Perceptions of Reality-Checking Labels Fluctuate by Political Affiliation
A examine printed within the Harvard Misinformation Evaluation checked out how folks view fact-checking labels, like these you may see on social media posts. They discovered that labels from skilled reality checkers have been seen as the best, adopted by labels from information media. Labels by algorithms and customers have been seen as much less efficient. Republicans tended to belief these labels lower than Democrats did. Individuals who belief information media and have constructive views of social media are inclined to see these labels as simpler. Additionally, if folks had seen these labels earlier than, they have been extra more likely to belief them, particularly in the event that they trusted information media or had constructive views of social media.
Supply: Jia, C. & Lee, T. (2024). Journalistic interventions matter: Understanding how Individuals understand fact-checking labels. Harvard Kennedy College (HKS) Misinformation Evaluation. https://doi.org/10.37016/mr-2020-138
AI & Rising Expertise
Options and Challenges of WHO’s New AI Software
Whereas indirectly spreading misinformation, the World Well being Group’s new AI device, SARAH, has confronted challenges offering correct well being data, highlighting the potential for AI-generated content material to contribute to the unfold of misinformation inadvertently. SARAH is designed to supply well being data by way of a human-like avatar that operates 24/7 in a number of languages to teach customers on varied well being subjects. Nonetheless, based on Bloomberg, SARAH has outdated medical information and sometimes offers improper or made-up solutions, attributable to its reliance on ChatGPT 3.5. (deleted as a result of unclear what this implies). Regardless of these limitations, SARAH is seen as a primary step in direction of utilizing AI to boost public well being training. WHO seeks enter to enhance SARAH’s accuracy and utility, particularly in emergency well being conditions. WHO additionally emphasizes that AI chatbots like SARAH are usually not substitutes for skilled medical recommendation.
About The Well being Misinformation and Belief Initiative:
The Well being Misinformation and Belief Initiative is a brand new KFF program geared toward monitoring well being misinformation within the U.S, analyzing its influence on the American folks, and mobilizing media to handle the issue. Our objective is to be of service to everybody within the well being misinformation and belief subject and to assist efforts to counter misinformation, construct belief, and be simpler.
Assist for the Misinformation and Belief initiative is offered by the Robert Wooden Johnson Basis (RWJF). The views expressed don’t essentially mirror the views of RWJF and KFF maintains full editorial management over all of its coverage evaluation, polling, and journalism actions. The Public Items Venture (PGP) offers media monitoring information KFF makes use of in producing the Monitor.
