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The “Infodemic†Infodemic: Toward a More Nuanced Understanding of Truth-Claims and the Need for (Not) Combatting Misinformation

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  • Nicole M. Krause
  • Isabelle Freiling
  • Dietram A. Scheufele

Abstract

Scholarship on (mis)information does not easily translate into recommendations for policy-makers and policy influencers who wish to judge the accuracy of science-related truth claims. This is partly due to much of this literature being based on lab experiments with captive audiences that tell us little about the durability or scalability of any potential intervention in the real world. More importantly, the “accuracy†of scientific truth claims is much more difficult to define than many scholars in this space acknowledge. Uncertainties associated with the nature of science, sociopolitical climates, and media systems introduce compounding error in assessments of claim accuracy. We, therefore, need a more nuanced understanding of misinformation and disinformation than those often present in discussions of the “infodemic.†Here, we propose a new framework for evaluating science-related truth claims and apply it to real-world examples. We conclude by discussing implications for research and action on (mis)information, given that distinguishing between true and false claims is not as easy as it is sometimes purported to be.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicole M. Krause & Isabelle Freiling & Dietram A. Scheufele, 2022. "The “Infodemic†Infodemic: Toward a More Nuanced Understanding of Truth-Claims and the Need for (Not) Combatting Misinformation," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 700(1), pages 112-123, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:700:y:2022:i:1:p:112-123
    DOI: 10.1177/00027162221086263
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    1. Thomas Herndon & Michael Ash & Robert Pollin, 2014. "Does high public debt consistently stifle economic growth? A critique of Reinhart and Rogoff," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 38(2), pages 257-279.
    2. Nicole M. Krause & Isabelle Freiling & Becca Beets & Dominique Brossard, 2020. "Fact-checking as risk communication: the multi-layered risk of misinformation in times of COVID-19," Journal of Risk Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(7-8), pages 1052-1059, August.
    3. Briony Swire-Thompson & David Lazer, 2022. "Reducing Health Misinformation in Science: A Call to Arms," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 700(1), pages 124-135, March.
    4. Dietram A. Scheufele & Nicole M. Krause, 2019. "Science audiences, misinformation, and fake news," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 116(16), pages 7662-7669, April.
    5. Berinsky, Adam J., 2017. "Rumors and Health Care Reform: Experiments in Political Misinformation," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 47(2), pages 241-262, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Zhao, Xiaoquan & Horoszko, Urszula A. & Murphy, Amy & Taylor, Bruce G. & Lamuda, Phoebe A. & Pollack, Harold A. & Schneider, John A. & Taxman, Faye S., 2023. "Openness to change among COVID misinformation endorsers: Associations with social demographic characteristics and information source usage," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 335(C).

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