Social Listening Report Number 56: 04 July 2022
- Title
- Social Listening Report Number 56: 04 July 2022
- Type of Report
- Social Listening Report
- Date
- July 4, 2022
- Key Trends In the Report
- The national state of disaster was still lifted. A study published in The Lancet had shown that Covid-19 vaccines saved nearly 20 million lives globally. This evidence had sparked positive discussions online, while also highlighting how vaccine inequity had cost millions of lives, particularly in poorer regions like Africa. South Africa had reported its second monkeypox case, which led to mixed reactions online. Healthcare professionals had criticised the lifting of mask mandates as premature. The pandemic had negatively affected children’s education, with fewer attending Grade R compared to pre-pandemic levels.
- Misinformation by Period
- Misinformation claims were around monkeypox being a hoax or a fear tactic used by authorities to instill fear. There had been widespread misinformation confusing monkeypox with smallpox and chickenpox. Some narratives had suggested that vaccine manufacturers, especially Pfizer, were profiting from unnecessary vaccine deals. The public had accused the government of misleading communication, especially regarding lockdowns and mask mandates. TikTok had emerged as a major platform for spreading false information.
- Suggested Recommendations
- Authorities had been advised to improve transparency and consistency in their messaging, especially around emerging health threats like monkeypox, to rebuild public trust. It had been recommended that vaccination efforts focus on door-to-door outreach and community engagement, particularly in areas with low uptake. The report had urged stakeholders to actively monitor and counter misinformation, especially on platforms like TikTok. Health communicators had been encouraged to clearly differentiate between monkeypox, smallpox, and chickenpox to reduce confusion and prevent the spread of false information.
- Lockdown Level
- The National State of Disaster lifted
- Cumulative Cases
- 3 995 400
- Cumulative Deaths
- 101 814
- Cumulative Hospitalisations
- 539 095
- Cumulative Recoveries
- 3 884 454
- Total number of vaccines administered to date
- 36 951 073
- Geographical Region
- Globally
- Curators of the report
- Herkulaas Combrink
- William Bird and Peter Benjamin
- Stakeholders
- National Health Hotline: Reports from the national call centre
- Org: NDOH Covid-19 WhatsApp system
- WHO Africa Infodemic Response Alliance (AIRA)
- UNICEF: digital analysis of content on Google, Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, and digital news
- SA Red Cross: Network of over 2,000 community volunteers reporting misinformation and concerns.
- Real 411 Media Monitoring Africa: a mis- and disinformation reporting and debunking initiative
- COVID Comms: a network of communications specialists that produces information on the pandemic.
- DOH Free State & KZN: Provincial Departments of Health
- Health Systems Trust, Community Constituency Front (CCF),
- Health Enabled
- Centre for Communication Impact, Centre for Analytics & Behavioural Change
- Medical Research Council, National Institute for Communicable Diseases,
- SA Vaccination and Immunisation Centre, HSRC, DG Murray Trust, Right to Care
- Universities of Johannesburg, Cape Town, Free State, Wits, Stellenbosch, Sefako Makgatho
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