Older people spread more fake news, a deadly habit in the COVID-19 pandemic

On Wednesday, Facebook took down a video posted on President Trump’s official page in which he falsely claimed that children were “almost immune” to the coronavirus. The video, which violated Facebook’s policies specifically on health misinformation around the coronavirus, had been viewed nearly half a million times before it was removed. Twitter, likewise, blocked a tweet with the same video that was posted by the Trump campaign’s account.

Well before the coronavirus outbreak, fake news spread rapidly on social media platforms. The consequences of misinformation are even more deadly in a pandemic. Some false information comes from legitimate sources, making it harder to separate fact from fiction. And it’s particularly dangerous for older users of social media, who are also at the greatest risk of dying from the virus.

Researchers have found that falsehoods are 70% more likely to be retweeted than the truth. Recent studies also show that age is the strongest predictor of engagement with fake news. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Facebook users over 65 shared nearly seven times as many articles from fake news sites as young users. Old age predicted shares even when accounting for partisanship, education and overall posting activity.