COVID-19 Inquiry to Address Social Media Disinformation, Chair Tells Sky News

The UK COVID-19 Inquiry is set to examine the spread of misinformation on social media platforms and its impact on vaccine hesitancy, according to inquiry officials. As Module 4 of the inquiry resumes Tuesday, focusing on Vaccines and Therapeutics, the chair won’t shy away from addressing the role of social media in undermining public health efforts.

“In this module, we will be looking specifically at misinformation and disinformation and whether that led to vaccine hesitancy,” said Ben Connah, secretary to the inquiry. “If the chair, Baroness Hallett, thinks there are recommendations to be made about the use of social media, then she won’t hesitate to do that. She’s got a very broad scope and she’s determined to use it.”

The independent public inquiry was established to thoroughly evaluate the UK’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and extract valuable lessons for future public health emergencies. A key component includes assessing government messaging strategies, particularly in reaching communities traditionally resistant to public health interventions.

Officials emphasize that findings from this investigation could have implications extending beyond COVID-19 vaccines to address declining immunization rates for essential childhood vaccines protecting against diseases like polio and measles.

“One of the reasons that this inquiry is looking specifically at vaccines is to make sure that the UK is in the best position possible going forward when it comes to not just a COVID vaccine, but that of other vaccines,” Connah explained. The inquiry hopes to produce recommendations that would “lead to broader benefits for society.”

The testimony of COVID champions—individuals who worked directly with communities during the pandemic—offers critical insight into the real-world battle against misinformation. Kirit Mistry, who worked as a COVID champion in Leicester, describes his experiences trying to counter the flood of false information circulating through social media and messaging apps.

“I think a lot of misinformation was coming from our own countries back home but also in this country as well,” said Mistry, who comes from the South Asian community. “People may have lost somebody and they were putting it down to the vaccination that was the cause of that, so it was trying to get people to understand that being hesitant and working off misinformation is not the right way.”

Mistry noted that his work was complicated by what he perceived as insufficient information from official government sources, creating an information vacuum quickly filled by misleading content. This misinformation spread rapidly through platforms like WhatsApp and affected his own family directly.

“The messaging was very low and misinformation was coming through various WhatsApp communications. That was really kind of what was noticeable,” Mistry said. “Certainly within our own family, my own brother, elder brother, was hesitant about taking the vaccination based on this misinformation.”

The human cost of vaccine hesitancy becomes painfully clear through the story of Mistry’s twin brother, Kanak. Initially hesitant to receive the vaccine due to misinformation, Kanak contracted COVID-19 and nearly died, spending two weeks on a ventilator in intensive care.

Though he survived, Kanak now suffers from debilitating long COVID symptoms. Once an active postal worker who walked miles daily, he now struggles with basic mobility and requires assistance with household tasks.

“I still struggle to walk any distance and I struggle to do my housework,” Kanak explained. “I have to get someone in to help with the cleaning.”

Beyond physical limitations, Kanak also battles the psychological effects of his illness, including social anxiety that restricts his interactions. “I am aware about going into social environments where I would only interact with people that I know who I’m close with,” he said. “I’m a little bit more wary of strangers now. Because of COVID I tend not to be as sociable.”

The inquiry has already published initial findings and is expected to continue examining multiple aspects of the UK’s pandemic response, with the current module on vaccines representing a crucial component in understanding how information—and misinformation—shaped public health outcomes during the crisis.