UK MPs urged to launch campaign against coronavirus fake news

New report finds close to half of Britons have seen false information about Covid-19

'Covid-19 has exposed the dangers of new technology as a harbinger of false, potentially dangerous information.' AP

British politicians have been urged to launch a new public campaign to address misinformation after half of adults said they had experienced ‘fake news’ during the coronavirus outbreak.

A leading policy think tank has urged Whitehall to stop the “pernicious prevalence of false information” that has at times endangered lives during the pandemic.

In a hard-hitting report the Institute for Public Policy Research emphasised the dangers of fake news during the pandemic. “The crisis has highlighted the pernicious prevalence of false information. Nearly half (48 per cent) of adults in Britain have seen or been sent what they would consider to be 'fake news'. It is clear that Covid-19 has exposed the dangers of new technology as a harbinger of false, potentially dangerous information.”

But it also said technology could play a “prominent role in appropriately informing the public and ensuring that people are alert to the public health crisis we are all facing”.

People have been given fake news, mostly online and through social media, that has proved dangerous. Among the worst examples were the burning of 5G telephone masts that were falsely claimed to spread the virus and the incorrect reporting of the death of a person involved in vaccine testing.

The progressive think tank called for a new public information “and listening” campaign to reverse the damage caused by fake news.

The misinformation unit should partner with the National Health Service (NHS) and social media sites to create a stream of public health messages from accurate and trusted sources, it recommended.

It found that two in three adults would like to see the partnerships forged between the NHS and ‘big tech’ organisations such as Google and Facebook to share accurate health information to support public health campaigns after the pandemic has eased.

Three quarters of those surveyed listed the NHS website as their most trusted online source for health information, with social media and tabloid news outlets ranked as the least trustworthy.

The report also called on the government to make Whitehall’s special disinformation unit, set up to specifically counter disinformation during coronavirus outbreak, a permanent organisation.

It also called for the introduction of more nurses into schools to promote better health, requesting a ratio of one per 600 pupils – a number found in Finland – rather than the current ratio of one per 3,900.

In a finding that will be welcomed by Boris Johnson, the UK Prime Minister, a separate poll found that the daily Downing Street press conference was ranked the most trustworthy news outlet with 42 per cent citing it as the most trusted source of information regarding Covid-19.