Research summary
Published: July 2021
The spread of information that is false or misleading – whether by word-of-mouth, media, or otherwise – is an age-old phenomenon. Yet advances in technology, increasing access to both traditional and social media and changes in how people interact with information are propelling the spread of false information at a speed and scale not seen before. This has resulted in information ecosystems that are dangerously affected by information disorder, including mis- and disinformation.
In Algeria, at the height of the anti-regime protests (Hirak), social media, especially Facebook, witnessed an unprecedented level of political interest and activity; serving as a fertile ground for false information. This included disinformation campaigns, which both the protesters and authorities claim were created and spread to discredit and undermine them.
More recently and like many countries, Algeria has witnessed a proliferation of false and misleading information about the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g. on its origin, symptoms, how it transmits, what can help to prevent its spread, and the safety and efficacy of vaccines) as people struggle to know who and what to trust in what the WHO has labelled an ‘infodemic’.
Key findings from Algeria
The prevalence of false or misleading information on social media in Algeria is evident, with 93% of survey respondents reporting having encountered it at some point, and 31% believing they encounter it on a daily basis.
Algerians are highly concerned about the level of false and misleading information on social media (88% agree or strongly agree they are concerned), and the harmful effect it has on people in Algeria (81%).
However many respondents don’t feel personally susceptible to it. Respondents reported a sense of confidence in their ability to assess and identify the accuracy of information they see and share online - 88% of Algerians said they felt a least ‘somewhat confident’ in their ability to identify false or misleading information. Despite this, over a third (39%) of respondents reported having previously shared information that turned out to be false, and only 39% of respondents felt confident in others ability to identify false or misleading information.
I trust my family members. However, my parents are actually using Facebook. The problem is that they do not make a difference between true and fake news, they believe whatever information they encounter, especially my father; he believes everything. I keep telling him that he needs to see the information shared and confirmed by many people and sources before believing in it. He just starts to understand this. In the past, I used to believe all what he tells me because he used to get the news from the newspapers and official TV channels, his sources were more reliable than the ones he uses currently.’’
Sharing of information on social media is largely driven by a sense of altruism and socialisation (e.g., wanting to ‘join in’ with an online community), rather than self-promotion, and respondents largely reported sharing posts that made them happy or amused them, while avoiding sharing posts that disgusted them or made them fearful. Respondents mostly reported that they value accurate, trustworthy information (77% ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ that they do). They were, however, less likely to feel that they could access accurate information in practice (61%).
Trust is a key variable in social media information flow, and people tend to trust information online when it is shared by trusted friends and family whom they believe would not pass on false or misleading information. There is also a widely held belief in the ‘power of shares’ – i.e., that the more widely a piece of information is shared online, the more people are willing to believe it.
News and information about COVID-19 and the vaccine appears to be particularly prone to mis- and dis-information in the Algerian context. Fewer than half of the survey respondents were able to predominantly identify the correct answer to various statements about COVID-19 and the vaccine.
Research methodology
The study took place in March and April 2021. The research consisted of desk review of relevant literature, 36 in-depth interviews and a national representative telephone survey with men and women aged 18 and above (1800 respondents). The qualitative research included specific exploration of how participants engaged with several examples of false and misleading information in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Key implications
The research suggests a number of potential implications for future work on information disorder in Algeria, including:
- As the country moves towards roll out of COVID-19 vaccines, there is a clear need for independent, accurate and trusted information sources.
- Social media users need targeted signposting to direct them towards the reputable sources of information on these themes and other sensitive topics.
- Social media users also need sensitive support to help them recognise their own vulnerabilities, and they need better media literacy skills and confidence to help them identify false and misleading information.
- Social media users are primarily driven to share information which they feel can help others. This motivation could be tapped into when designing media literacy interventions, for example by emphasising the importance of only sharing information one really knows is accurate if one is trying to be helpful or kind to others.
Learn more about our work in the Middle East and North Africa here.