State-backed media organisations in Russia, China, Iran and Turkey are sharing misleading information on Covid-19 with millions during the pandemic, a report alleges.
The Computational Propaganda team at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII) claimed English language outlets such as China Daily and RT, formerly Russia Today, are pushing messages online that contain misleading content and conspiracy theories.
According to the academics, the content has the potential to reach tens of millions of online users and can be up to ten times more effective in generating engagement in comparison to articles shared by the BBC.
Professor Philip Howard, director of OII, said their social media posts were sometimes more effective in engaging online users than more traditional news outlets.
He added: "Covid-19 is the undisputed number one topic of conversation online right now.
"State-backed news outlets from Russia, China, Iran and Turkey are using their social media to push positive messages about their Governments' handling of the crisis, while being highly critical of countries in the West.
"It is clear some states are using this crisis to suggest democratic states have been corrupt and incompetent in handling this global pandemic, while acting as cheerleaders for the efforts of their own authoritarian regimes."
The OII memo is the first in a series that will examine misinformation and the debate around the coronavirus pandemic.
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