'Disinformation Dozen' Test Facebook's, Twitter's Ability To Curb Vaccine Hoaxes

The majority of anti-vaccine claims on social media trace back to a small number of influential figures, according to researchers. Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images The majority of anti-vaccine claims on social media trace back to a small number of influential figures, according to researchers. Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images Researchers have found just 12 people are responsible for the bulk of the misleading claims and outright lies about COVID-19 vaccines that proliferate on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. “The ‘Disinformation Dozen’ produce 65% of the shares of anti-vaccine misinformation on social media platforms,” said Imran Ahmed, chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which identified the accounts. Now that the vaccine rollout is reaching a critical stage, in which most adults who want the vaccine have gotten it but many others are holding out, these 12 influential social media users stand to have an outsized impact on the outcome. These figures are well known to both researchers and the social networks. Some of them run multiple accounts across the different platforms. They often promote “natural health”. Some even sell supplements and books. Many of the messages about the Covid-19…
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