We continue to share highlights from The Critical Mass's new U.S. Department of State-funded report, "Contaminated Trust: Public Health Disinformation and its Societal Impacts in Georgia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine."
The second trend our study identified in these three countries is that religious officials are viewed as highly credible, and their contribution to the spread of #publichealth#misinformation and #disinformation during the #COVID19 pandemic is significant. In both Georgia and Ukraine, faith-based institutions wield considerable influence and have played a role in spreading misinformation and disinformation related to COVID-19.
By contrast, in Kazakhstan’s leading Muslim and Russian Orthodox Church religious leaders were not perceived by in-country experts to endorse anti-vaccine rumors or engage in disinformation messaging.
For additional reading on strengthening partnerships with #faithleaders in supporting national responses to COVID-19, please see the World Health Organization's strategy for engaging #religiousleaders, faith-based organizations and faith communities in health emergencies: https://bit.ly/3Fii94J
To read TCM's report, "Contaminated Trust" online, please visit: https://lnkd.in/enknWzNB
Elizabeth Jordan Wilhelm Tinatin Japaridze Scott Eshom Alan Spadone Arielle Mattes World Health Organization