Open AccessMASK NARRATIVES PROMOTED BY ANTI-VACCINATION ACCOUNTS ON INSTAGRAM PRIOR TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Author(s) -
Kolina Koltai,
Iva Grohmann,
D. E. Johnson,
Samantha Rondini,
Ella R. Foley
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
selected papers of internet research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2162-3317
DOI - 10.5210/spir.v2021i0.12195
Subject(s) - misinformation , pandemic , covid-19 , narrative , vaccination , public health , thematic analysis , public relations , medicine , psychology , political science , history , internet privacy , sociology , virology , computer science , qualitative research , nursing , social science , disease , art , literature , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , law
The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked passionate debate worldwide onmatters of public health. A portion of this debate has been dedicated to the efficacy ofmasks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. While the majority of health officials agree thatwearing a mask is efficacious, there has been a widespread movement against masks. The“anti-mask” movement is often characterized for spreading misinformation about masks and forits overlap with the anti-vaccine movement. This paper focuses on the mask sentiments of theanti-vaccination community prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this paper is toidentify if the anti-vaccination movement held prior beliefs about masks to prevent thespread of respiratory diseases and if those beliefs differ from their mask sentiment today.Through thematic analysis of 44 Instagram posts prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic,we find that online vaccine safety communities have, in the past, regarded mask-wearing as aviable alternative to vaccines. Notably, posts supported the efficacy of mask-wearing whilecriticizing the mandates to wear masks in healthcare settings. In this paper, we elaborateon these mask narratives, as well as their implications in how the anti-vaccination grouphad a dramatic shift in mask sentiment during the pandemic.