Has misinformation about COVID-19 circulating on social media affected the spread of the disease? A group of UWM geographers has tested the question scientifically by painstakingly examining nationwide Twitter chatter and then showing the results on a national map, revealing who was sharing what early in the pandemic.

The researchers found a direct correlation between locations where Twitter misinformation originated and subsequent spikes in COVID-19 infections and deaths in those areas weeks later.

Read the full article on UWM Report.

You can also listen to the WUWM interview with Professor Rina Ghose, the UW-Milwaukee professor of geography who led the study of social media activity in 2020, and graduate students Amir Forati and Rachel Hansen.