I read the article, ‘Corona? 5G? or both?’: the dynamics of COVID-19/5G conspiracy theories on Facebook, which as per the name, discusses one of the more prevalent conspiracy theories surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic – the alleged role that 5G mobile networks played in creating the virus – and how it spread via social media.

The article looks at the context around the spread of COVID-19 conspiracy theories, explicitly pointing out how governments and the media had not been providing adequate accurate information about the virus, which meant that there was space for disinformation to grow. This vacuum, combined with existing rumours around 5G technology meant that it was easier for stories linking the two to spread.

The article divided the conspiracy into five separate phases, each representing a different step in its spread. This made it easier to understand the events that contributed to the creation and popularity of the theory. It looks into the creation of the correlation between COVID-19 and 5G, the international spread of the disinformation, the adoption of it by celebrities and religious institutions, and eventually real life actions in response to the rumours.

The reading also briefly examined the actions of fact checkers and pro-5G media, as well as the response by social media platforms. One thing that stood out for me was that it took the World Health Organisation two months to finally release an official statement debunking the COVID-19/5G connection, considering anti-5G activists were already vandalising phone towers by that time.

I found the introduction incredibly useful to help me understand how these conspiracy theories were able to permeate discussions around health and technology. From my observation, this conspiracy is just another step down a rabbit-hole stemming from people becoming skeptical of the mainstream health system. While better attempts at science communication, and trying to reach out to these people in a non-judgemental way can help some theorists trust mainstream science; it may be difficult to convince many of these people, due to failings of mainstream science in the past.

The mainstream media is also partially responsible for the adoption of these conspiracy theories. So many ‘Current Affairs’ shows and news websites present stories about medical horror stories, miracle cures, and oversimplified science reporting, often masquerading as legitimate news. As it comes from a ‘trusted’ source, their stories are easier to believe by those who may not have a strong scientific understanding.

References:

Bruns, A, Harrington, S & Hurcombe, E  2020, ‘‘Corona? 5G? or both?’: the dynamics of COVID-19/5G conspiracy theories on Facebook’, Media International Australia, vol. 177, no. 1, viewed 26 May 2021, <https://doi.org/10.1177/1329878X20946113>