TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Professor May Oo Lwin from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) discussed the risks posed by misinformation during public health crises, with a focus on the COVID-19 pandemic in her keynote speech at the CTeC Asia event on Friday (Oct. 20).
Lwin, the chair of Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information at NTU in Singapore, highlighted the significant rise of misinformation during the pandemic. "The social media traffic rose by 5% to 10% initially, and then it rose to about 200% within a week."
Addressing her previous research, Lwin stressed the pivotal role of media as a trusted source of information for the public, as they often "pertain to governments and health authorities, universities, and mainstream media as purveyors of more truthful or accurate information."
However, Lwin urged citizens to also actively combat the spread of misinformation by checking the authenticity and accuracy of the information before sharing it on social media networks.
"There are resources that they can check against before they send the information to their social media networks," she suggested, noting several organizations are already making efforts to rebut disinformation.
Navigating through misinformation may be challenging, Lwin encouraged the media, public, and government organizations to collaborate on spreading correct information.
