Margaret Thanos on misinformation about COVID vaccines and women’s health

·

As Margaret Thanos waited to get her first dose of a vaccine to protect her against COVID-19, she found herself crying.

The 21-year-old told ABC News she had been confronted with rife misinformation about the AstraZeneca vaccine online, which she said “caused an incredible amount of anxiety.” 

“That experience was quite harrowing. You go home and you get those after-effects and you’re so scared. I think the messaging was really poor,” Ms Thanos, who is now fully vaccinated, said. 

The Truth Gap report:

COVID-19 is regarded as the first pandemic of the social media age, according to a global report by girls’ equality charity Plan International, which surveyed more than 26,000 girls and young women from 26 countries and found false information was severely impacting their lives.

Plan International characterised misinformation as false or misleading content that is often shared mistakenly by people, whereas disinformation is shared deliberately to cause harm or make a profit.

COVID-19 is regarded as the first pandemic of the social media age.

In Australia, 95 per cent of the 1001 girls and young women surveyed said they were concerned about misinformation or disinformation online, while 83 per cent said they had been exposed to false or misleading information.

The majority (59 per cent) believed that Facebook was the social media platform with the most misinformation/disinformation, followed by TikTok, Instagram and Twitter.

Ms Thanos said her social media feed had been filled with people questioning what was in the vaccine and promoting alternative methods of treating the virus with vitamins.

“People were kind of perpetuating the idea that the vaccines aren’t safe or you should know what’s in your vaccine, despite the fact that I didn’t know what was in every other vaccine that I’ve had in my lifetime,” Ms Thanos, who is a Plan International Australia youth activist, said.

Impact on women’s health:

The report also found misinformation circulated around sexual and reproductive health, body image, climate change and politics.

Susanne Legena, CEO at Plan International Australia, told ABC News young people had been exposed to factual inaccuracies about vaccines and fertility.

Margaret Thanos.

Ms Thanos said widespread COVID-19 lies had opened up a broader conversation about medical misinformation on the internet.

“It’s so much bigger than COVID,” she said.

“I’m getting sponsored ads for contraceptive pills that aren’t prescription medication, which is incredibly dangerous.”

A spokesperson for Facebook told the Sydney Morning Herald that the company was working hard to combat all forms of misinformation and since the start of the pandemic had removed 20 million pieces of harmful misinformation for violating its policies.

“We recently launched a new initiative … to address the spread of misinformation by digital creators and to help young people understand what to trust and share online,” the spokesperson said.

“We’ve also displayed warnings on more than 190 million pieces of misinformation that our global network of 80 third-party fact-checking partners, including AAP and AFP in Australia, rated as false.”

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

Sydney shines as Greek Film Festival celebrates 30 years of cinema and culture

The 30th Greek Film Festival of Sydney opened in spectacular fashion on Tuesday night with Kapetan Mihalis.

Celebrate the 113th anniversary of Lesvos’ liberation at Mytilenian House in Sydney

The Mytilenian Brotherhood of Sydney and NSW is set to celebrate the 113th Anniversary of the Liberation of the Island of Lesvos.

Luncheon raises $95,000 for Holy Monastery of St John in Western Australia

The Greek Orthodox Diocese of Perth hosted a fundraising luncheon on Sunday, October 12, at the Archdiocese Conference Room in Dianella.

‘Kapetan Mihalis’ opens 30th Greek Film Festival in Melbourne

The 30th Greek Film Festival, presented by the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM), officially opened Tuesday, October 14.

Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Ioannis Loverdos strengthens bilateral ties in Canberra

Greece’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Greeks Abroad, Ioannis Loverdos, has continued his official visit to Australia in Canberra.

You May Also Like

Greece complains to Serbia, Ukraine over cargo plane crash

Greece filed an official complaint with Serbia and Ukraine after a cargo plane carrying mortar ammunition crashed in northern Greece.

Melina Aslanidou announces March 27 as new date for Greek Fest Darling Harbour

In an almost sold-out concert at Sydney's Enmore Theatre last night, Melina Aslanidou announced that the new date for the Greek Fest Darling Harbour...

Kyrgios hits 11 aces in ATP Cup victory against UK tennis player Cameron Norrie

Nick Kyrgios thanked the crowd for making their way to Ken Rosewall Arena "so early" after sweeping aside Cameron Norrie to give Australia a 1-0 lead in their quarter-final.