Abstract
The spread of pandemic Covid-19 in the last quarter of 2019 created panic around the globe. The viral diffusion of false information via social media regarding the pandemic added fuel to the fire. This situation forced the World Health Organization (WHO) and other health-related international organizations to term it “infodemic.” This study aims to uncover the motives behind the fake news spread on social media during the first wave of Covid-19 in Pakistan. As a sample, the research employs secondary data of verified fake news by the Poynter Institute, an international fact-checker. During the pandemic, most of the information about covid-19 that was widely disseminated on social media was declared false by authorities. The current study has investigated the motives behind disseminating such fake news using the thematic analysis approach to achieve the research objectives. To discover the false news’ motives, we first read the fake stories and created many basic codes named open codes. Then mixed numerous codes, looking for patterns, and came up with axial codes by detecting commonalities among them. Then we started coming up with typically broader themes than codes when numerous codes are integrated into one topic. Our research revealed that most of the fake news circulated for financial benefit. Online revenue from social media like Facebook and YouTube exploited fake news to promote their pages and channels. Other motives are political, religious, and miscellaneous.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2022 Special Focus—Democratic Disorder: Disinformation, the Media and Crisis in a Time of Change
KEYWORDS
Thematic Analysis, Fake News, Covid-19, Social Media
