The World Health Organization (WHO) is hosting a three-day conference beginning today to kick off a new effort to combat the spread of abundant false health information, or the ‘infodemic’—a phenomenon currently associated with the Covid-19 pandemic. On its website, WHO promotes the term ‘infodemiology’ to describe the data-driven endeavor to control infodemics that will be the focus of the meeting.
“An infodemic cannot be eliminated, but it can be managed,” reads the WHO promotional announcement for the event. “To respond effectively to infodemics, WHO calls for adaptation, development, validation, and evaluation of new evidence-based measures and practices to prevent, detect and respond to mis- and disinformation.”
The meeting will include public health experts and others with relevant skills and insights to share as well as UN representatives. Seven public talks are planned prior to a closed session meeting that is to be summarized for the public. An interactive webinar will be open to the public on July 21. An informational video that introduces the concept of protecting oneself from false health information, aimed at the general public, is available on the WHO website and on Youtube.