Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland
Social media platforms like YouTube can exacerbate the challenge of ensuring public adherence to health advisories during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily due to the spread of misinformation. This study delves into the propagation of antivaccination sentiment on YouTube in Switzerland...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Communication |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcomm.2024.1250024/full |
| _version_ | 1797291736141135872 |
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| author | Edda Humprecht Sabrina Heike Kessler |
| author_facet | Edda Humprecht Sabrina Heike Kessler |
| author_sort | Edda Humprecht |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Social media platforms like YouTube can exacerbate the challenge of ensuring public adherence to health advisories during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily due to the spread of misinformation. This study delves into the propagation of antivaccination sentiment on YouTube in Switzerland, examining how different forms of misinformation contribute to this phenomenon. Through content analysis of 450 German- and French-language YouTube videos, we investigated the prevalence and characteristics of completely and partially false information regarding COVID-19 vaccination within the Swiss context. Our findings show that completely false videos were more prevalent, often embedded with conspiracy theories and skepticism toward authorities. Notably, over one-third of the videos featured partially false information that masquerades as scientifically substantiated, associated with higher view counts and greater user engagement. Videos reaching the widest audiences were marked by strategies of commercialization and emotionalization. The study highlights the insidious nature of partially false information in Switzerland and its potential for greater impact due to its seemingly credible presentation. These findings underscore the need for a multifaceted response to misinformation, including enhancing digital literacy among the public, promoting accurate content creation, and fostering collaborations between health authorities and social media platforms to ensure that evidence-based information is prominently featured and accessible. Addressing the subtleties of misinformation is critical for fostering informed public behavior and decision-making during health emergencies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:41:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e81462cbe2d14dcea1eef5e38cfbfb7d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2297-900X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:41:04Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Communication |
| spelling | doaj.art-e81462cbe2d14dcea1eef5e38cfbfb7d2024-02-29T05:32:18ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Communication2297-900X2024-02-01910.3389/fcomm.2024.12500241250024Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in SwitzerlandEdda Humprecht0Sabrina Heike Kessler1Institute of Communication Science, University of Jena, Jena, GermanyDepartment of Communication and Media Research, University of Zurich, Zürich, SwitzerlandSocial media platforms like YouTube can exacerbate the challenge of ensuring public adherence to health advisories during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily due to the spread of misinformation. This study delves into the propagation of antivaccination sentiment on YouTube in Switzerland, examining how different forms of misinformation contribute to this phenomenon. Through content analysis of 450 German- and French-language YouTube videos, we investigated the prevalence and characteristics of completely and partially false information regarding COVID-19 vaccination within the Swiss context. Our findings show that completely false videos were more prevalent, often embedded with conspiracy theories and skepticism toward authorities. Notably, over one-third of the videos featured partially false information that masquerades as scientifically substantiated, associated with higher view counts and greater user engagement. Videos reaching the widest audiences were marked by strategies of commercialization and emotionalization. The study highlights the insidious nature of partially false information in Switzerland and its potential for greater impact due to its seemingly credible presentation. These findings underscore the need for a multifaceted response to misinformation, including enhancing digital literacy among the public, promoting accurate content creation, and fostering collaborations between health authorities and social media platforms to ensure that evidence-based information is prominently featured and accessible. Addressing the subtleties of misinformation is critical for fostering informed public behavior and decision-making during health emergencies.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcomm.2024.1250024/fullmisinformationCOVID-19 vaccinationYouTubepublic healthcontent analysis |
| spellingShingle | Edda Humprecht Sabrina Heike Kessler Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland Frontiers in Communication misinformation COVID-19 vaccination YouTube public health content analysis |
| title | Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland |
| title_full | Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland |
| title_fullStr | Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland |
| title_full_unstemmed | Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland |
| title_short | Unveiling misinformation on YouTube: examining the content of COVID-19 vaccination misinformation videos in Switzerland |
| title_sort | unveiling misinformation on youtube examining the content of covid 19 vaccination misinformation videos in switzerland |
| topic | misinformation COVID-19 vaccination YouTube public health content analysis |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcomm.2024.1250024/full |
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