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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Posts Distort Chinese Research Creating Fragment of Monkeypox Viral Genome

Posts Distort Chinese Research Creating Fragment of Monkeypox Viral Genome

A Wuhan Institute of Virology study describes assembling part of a monkeypox viral genome for use in a diagnostic test. Although the researchers only made a fraction of the genome — and it matches a different version of the virus — social media posts are using the study to baselessly claim that the current monkeypox outbreak is a result of a lab leak.

Protect Our Future PAC

A Democratic hybrid PAC backing candidates supporting pandemic prevention.

Posts Mislead About Status of 2021 North Carolina Abortion Bill

Posts Mislead About Status of 2021 North Carolina Abortion Bill

A bill introduced in the North Carolina House of Representatives last year said anyone getting an abortion should be “held accountable” for murder. The bill received little support and did not advance. But social media posts misleadingly claimed the state is considering a proposal that would “make it legal to murder a pregnant woman” trying to get an abortion.

Posts Misleadingly Omit Critical Data Supporting COVID-19 Vaccines for Youngest Kids

Posts Misleadingly Omit Critical Data Supporting COVID-19 Vaccines for Youngest Kids

In young children, the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are expected to primarily protect against severe disease. Both shots successfully met the set benchmarks for vaccine effectiveness, which involved comparing antibody responses to those of adults. Online posts critical of government recommendations for the pediatric vaccines, however, fail to mention these essential data.