ABSTRACT. Employing recent research results covering the viral power of fake news, and building our argument by drawing on data collected from Carleton University, GlobalWebIndex, Pew Research Center, Public Knowledge, Statista, and the University of Canberra, we performed analyses and made estimates regarding conspiracy theories and incorrect scientific information about COVID-19. Structural equation modelling was used to analyze the collected data.
Keywords: fake news; damaging misinformation; COVID-19; conspiracy theories; stress
How to cite: Sheares, G., Miklencicova, R., and Grupac, M. (2020). “The Viral Power of Fake News: Subjective Social Insecurity, COVID-19 Damaging Misinformation, and Baseless Conspiracy Theories,” Linguistic and Philosophical Investigations 19: 121–127. doi: 10.22381/LPI1920209
Received 16 April 2020 • Received in revised form 21 May 2020
Accepted 22 May 2020 • Available online 24 May 2020