False News About Coronavirus

Since the beginning of the pandemic, more and more false messages have been appearing on social networks, mainly from Russia and China. The European External Action Service is on the trail of the sources of these news.

“Bleach or garlic help against the corona virus.”

“Washing hands for protection against the corona virus is completely useless.”

“The virus is harmless and can be stopped with a saline solution in four days.”

These are three typical examples of false information (FAKENEWS) that have been spread on social networks.

Vera Jourova, EU Commissioner for Justice, Consumer Protection and Equality, told WELT that there is currently „a large increase in the amount of disinformation related to corona“. The goal is to destabilize Western societies with disinformation, but also to strengthen existing right-wing forces and influence elections.

The European External Action Service (EEAS) has assessed exactly how this looks in the last few weeks. The report from Brussels is titled: „Covid-19 Disinformation“. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell speaks of an „information pandemic“. Russian media in particular systematically flood Western states with tales about Corona. Beijing is also spreading strong disinformation campaigns.

Notorious lies currently being spread about the virus in Russian media such as Sputnik, Rossiya 24 or RT:

„The coronavirus did not break out in the Chinese city of Wuhan, but in laboratories scattered around the world owned by the US government.“

„The Schengen borderless area no longer exists“

„Europeans are in quarantine and only refugees can move freely.“

„A hidden government is using the corona virus to control the population.“

Through controlled media, Russia spreads disinformation in Russia and abroad.

„News intended for the domestic Russian audience describes the virus as a form of foreign aggression“, experts write. The analysis continues: „News aimed at an international audience is primarily focused on conspiracy theories about“ global elites „using the virus for their own purposes.“

Such conspiracy theories are also used in the Western Balkans (Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia). According to the External Action Service, the goal could be to discredit political opponents or influence upcoming elections in Serbia and North Macedonia. At the same time, these theories can also fuel anti-migrant sentiment in the Western Balkans region.

China also deliberately uses false data for propaganda purposes. A popular tale on social media is that:

“The West is exploiting the virus to harm China and spread anti-Chinese sentiment.”

“The West must therefore apologize to China and the Chinese.”

Another tale is that China and party leader Xi Jinping have done an excellent job in containing the virus – which also proves that a centralized state can deal with such crises much better because it has more control. Another message that the regime in Beijing likes to spread:

„The West, and especially the US, should be grateful to China for the rapid containment of the virus.“

„The West, on the other hand, acted too slowly and is now in chaos."

Source: WELT.de