Like the coronavirus, conspiracy theories and misinformation about COVID-19 are contagious and can spread easily among Canadians.
Is hydroxychloroquine an effective treatment for those infected?
Was the coronavirus genetically engineered in a lab as a biological weapon?
Does regularly rinsing your nose with a saline solution protect you from the coronavirus?
False, unproven and not true, respectively.
Yet recent research suggests Canadians are exposed to a high level of bad information about COVID-19, and many are vulnerable to what some have described as “a pandemic of misinformation” or an “infodemic.”
Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication released a survey last week that showed nearly half of Canadians, 46 per cent, believed at least one of four COVID-19 conspiracy theories. Similar research at the University of Sherbrooke in Quebec indicated one in 10 Canadians believes a conspiracy theory.
WATCH | Experts warn about products claiming to cure, prevent coronavirus:
From standing on your head, to drinking a special herbal tea — experts are warning Canadians against falling for phony cures for COVID-19. 1:54
Both studies found that young people were more likely to believe in conspiracy theories and false news. That’s not surprising considering that disinformation is most prevalent — and spreads most easily — on social media, which is a primary source of news for younger Canadians.
But all ages are susceptible.
“Everyone has fallen prey at some point to misinformation on social media,” Sarah Everts, an associate professor and co-researcher on the Carleton study, said on the university’s website. “Anyone who thinks that it’s easy to distinguish conspiracy theories and misinformation is at high risk of being fooled.”
Trust in news at record high
While some of the major social media and search platforms are taking measures to limit and reduce the amount of misinformation on their feeds, it is difficult to control the internet. CBC News has found that even discredited stories and bogus claims — such as Plandemic, a 26-minute documentary-style video full of false and misleading claims about COVID-19 — continue to resurface on alternative sites and platforms.
It’s all the more reason why reputable news organizations must devote resources to fact-checking COVID-19 claims.
The good news is that a number of serious media outlets in Canada have done just that by dedicating journalists to this important work.
The better news is that public trust in those traditional news organizations soared to record highs in Canada as the pandemic took hold, according to a new special edition of the “Trust Barometer” report by marketing firm Edelman Canada.
At CBC News, we launched a COVID-19 disinformation unit to fact-check viral COVID-19 claims on social media and other platforms. The goal is to hold platforms to account for the spread of bad information and unverified claims; to provide accurate takes on that information from verified experts; and to try to help Canadians navigate the minefield of false and misleading information. Find links to some of the team’s recent work below.
(CBC’s French-language service Radio-Canada has a similar unit, Décrypteurs.)
Misinformation about so-called miracle cures for COVID-19 are spreading online. Can you really buy your way to a better immune system? We ask an expert: UBC professor Bernie Garrett, who studies deception in healthcare, including alternative medicine. 5:27
Meanwhile, a team of journalists attached to our “Ask CBC News” (COVID@cbc.ca) project has received more than 41,000 questions from our audience on the pandemic, and some of their work addresses misinformation. The team has directly responded to more than 2,200 people, and many user questions have been put to experts on the air or published in one of our more than 40 FAQ articles. These pieces are consistently among the most-read articles on our website.
We recently launched our “Students Ask CBC News” initiative with Curio.ca. Every Tuesday night, CBC News Network produces a live segment dedicated to questions from high school students and expert answers.
And as a member of the Trusted News Initiative, CBC/Radio-Canada joined an industry collaboration of major media and technology companies in March to rapidly identify and stop the spread of harmful coronavirus disinformation.
We view this work as essential public service and are fully committed to it. For as long as there’s an “infodemic,” CBC News aims to be part of the cure.
Some recent fact checks by our COVID-19 disinformation unit:
Demands for government intervention in Air Canada labour talks could negatively affect airline competition in Canada, the CEO of travel company Transat AT Inc. said.
“The extension of such an extraordinary intervention to Air Canada would be an undeniable competitive advantage to the detriment of other Canadian airlines,” Annick Guérard told analysts on an earnings conference call on Thursday.
“The time and urgency is now. It is time to restore healthy competition in Canada,” she added.
Air Canada has asked the federal government to be ready to intervene and request arbitration as early as this weekend to avoid disruptions.
Comments on the potential Air Canada pilot strike or lock out came as Transat reported third-quarter financial results.
Guérard recalled Transat’s labour negotiations with its flight attendants earlier this year, which the company said it handled without asking for government intervention.
The airline’s 2,100 flight attendants voted 99 per cent in favour of a strike mandate and twice rejected tentative deals before approving a new collective agreement in late February.
As the collective agreement for Air Transat pilots ends in June next year, Guérard anticipates similar pressure to increase overall wages as seen in Air Canada’s negotiations, but reckons it will come out “as a win, win, win deal.”
“The pilots are preparing on their side, we are preparing on our side and we’re confident that we’re going to come up with a reasonable deal,” she told analysts when asked about the upcoming negotiations.
The parent company of Air Transat reported it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31. The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
It attributed reduced revenues to lower airline unit revenues, competition, industry-wide overcapacity and economic uncertainty.
Air Transat is also among the airlines facing challenges related to the recall of Pratt & Whitney turbofan jet engines for inspection and repair.
The recall has so far grounded six aircraft, Guérard said on the call.
“We have agreed to financial compensation for grounded aircraft during the 2023-2024 period,” she said. “Alongside this financial compensation, Pratt & Whitney will provide us with two additional spare engines, which we intend to monetize through a sell and lease back transaction.”
Looking ahead, the CEO said she expects consumer demand to remain somewhat uncertain amid high interest rates.
“We are currently seeing ongoing pricing pressure extending into the winter season,” she added. Air Transat is not planning on adding additional aircraft next year but anticipates stability.
“(2025) for us will be much more stable than 2024 in terms of fleet movements and operation, and this will definitely have a positive effect on cost and customer satisfaction as well,” the CEO told analysts.
“We are more and more moving away from all the disruption that we had to go through early in 2024,” she added.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
