Infodemia, the media pandemic virus

The case of Chiapas

Abstract

This work carries out an analysis of one of the social phenomena that has attracted substantial attention in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is the performance of the mass media among the population. In this sense, after the health aspect and its protocols of action, it is the behavior of the media in the face of the emergency that has the greatest impact among sectors of the population. Consequently, this study analyzed five emblematic cases of false messages, sent at times of major contingency, and widely circulated through social networks. Since the declaration of suspension of non-essential activities and the beginning of the quarantine, decreed by the Mexican authorities in the first months of the year 2020, the publication and dissemination of pernicious content about Covid-19 have been notorious. In this context, the purpose of this article is to demonstrate the impact that Fake News has on society. In this sense, the exercise of analyzing a certain number of fake news that have circulated about Chiapas through concepts such as post-truth, allows us to discern a broad picture of how manipulation and fiction can lead to malicious and vandalistic actions that produce fear and uncertainty.