Governments and health authorities need to collaborate with sources of fun and influential social media news to make the videos more engaging.

More than a quarter of the most watched videos on YouTube with information about coronavirus contain "misinformation and inaccurate information," one study found. In total, these deceptive videos have been viewed more than 62 million times. One of the false information, for example, was that the pharmaceutical companies had the vaccine ready for coronavirus, but refused to sell it.

YouTube said it is committed to reducing the dissemination of misinformation. Researchers say government agencies and health experts have posted "accurate and good information" on YouTube. But, according to them, these videos often found it difficult to understand and did not have the same appeal as the videos of YouTube stars or vloggers.

The study, published online by BMJ Global Health, analyzed the most watched videos in English about coronavirus, starting March 21st. After excluding duplicate videos, videos longer than an hour, and videos that did not include important audio and visual material, they were left with 69 videos to analyze. They were analyzed to determine whether they presented exclusively fact-based information about viral spread, coronavirus symptoms, prevention, and possible treatments. Videos from government agencies received a better rating than those from other sources, but their visibility is low.

The report advises that governments and health authorities need to work with sources of fun and influential social media news to make videos more attractive, and that way, they will be viewed more. YouTube said in a statement: "We are committed to providing timely information on this critical situation, including increasing content by authoritative institutions, reducing the spread of harmful information and displaying information panels using NHS data. (National Health Service) and WHO to combat misinformation.

"We have clear policies that prohibit videos that promote methods, medically unproven, to prevent coronavirus, instead of searching for medical cures, and we quickly delete videos that violate these policies when they are signaled.

Now, any content that denies the existence or transmission of COVID-19 as described by the WHO and NHS violates YouTube's policies. We will continue to appreciate the impact of these videos on communities around the world, �the statement said.

Source: BBC / monitor /