The Infodemic – March 24

Fake news about the coronavirus can do real harm. Polygraph.info is spotlighting fact-checks from many sources here​.Daily DebunkChain message: “[S]pecial military helicopters will spray pesticide against the Corona virus in the skies all over the country.”Verdict: FalseSee more dubious chain messages at Politifact.​ Social Media Disinfo​Coronavirus Scam Test Warning on FacebookClaim circulating on social media: Scammers pretending to be from the Red Cross are going door-to-door and offering coronavirus tests and then charging the residents money or even robbing them.Verdict: Partly FalseRead the full story: “Partly false claim: People are offering scam door-to-door coronavirus tests to rob people” — Reuters​Factual Reads on Coronavirus​​Does Everyone Over 60 Need to Take the Same Coronavirus Precautions?
Are precautions of the sort the CDC has endorsed really necessary, even in areas where the new coronavirus doesn’t yet appear to be circulating widely? What about disease-free adults in their 60s and 70s?
— Kaiser Health News, March 24
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