How to fact-check coronavirus misinformation on your timeline

Fact-checking your friends and family on social media is not as weird as you think — and it could help slow the spread of misinformation about the coronavirus.

A recent survey found that 34% of people reported seeing someone else get corrected for sharing about COVID-19 on social media. Nearly one-fourth of respondents said they had fact-checked coronavirus misinformation themselves, and more than two-thirds agreed that people should respond when they see someone sharing false claims.

This is good news — research shows that, when people correct misinformation on their social media feeds, misperceptions decrease. For coronavirus-related falsehoods, correcting the record is even more important.

Since the pandemic began, PolitiFact has fact-checked several inaccurate claims about how to prevent or treat COVID-19. Many of them are dangerous, such as the bogus claim that drinking bleach can destroy the virus or that wearing a mask in public is harmful. If taken seriously, that kind of misinformation could have dire health consequences.