Old hatreds fuel online misinformation about COVID-19 in South Asia

By Kamya Yadav , Isra Thange , Julia Ilhardt , Samikshya Siwakoti , Jacob N. Shapiro , November 25, 2020 Indians wear masks to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Credit: ChocolateLr18. CC BY-SA 4.0. Since COVID-19 spread to South Asia, there has been no need for government officials, news anchors, or private individuals spreading misinformation about the pandemic to reinvent the wheel. Theyࢀ™ve simply exacerbated the same tensions that have long existed between the major religious groups in the region. In countries like India, which has a sizable Muslim minority population, the false stories circulating about the pandemic have…