THE GAME BETWEEN MYSTERY AND SCIENCE: UNDERSTANDING AND REFLECTIONS ON CONSPIRACY THEORIES IN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

Research purpose

At the end of 2019, the COVID-19 epidemic swept the world. The source and transmission channel of the virus could not be quickly understood. In the case of unclear information, there will be a variety of "conspiracy theory" views in the network environment, endangering the order of public social opinion. By analyzing the report "Conspiracy Theories of COVID-19" published by Chinese Wikipedia, this study summarizes the common characteristics and causes of conspiracy theories to provide referential measures and suggestions for eliminating conspiracy theories.

The research methods

This study mainly adopts the research methods of frame analysis and semantic analysis. The study found the conspiracy theories in the COVID-19 outbreak are primarily related to political factors, and all occurred in the early stage of the epidemic. These conspiracy theories are "unfalsifiable" and have a unified narrative framework, which satisfies people's curiosity and has a stable audience. Major emergencies provide context for conspiracy theories, social media platforms offer an intermediary for their spread, and people's curiosity makes conspiracy theories widely believed.

Research originality

There is much research on spreading rumors in public emergencies, but few on conspiracy theories. The study of conspiracy theories alone is significant to governing the world's public opinion order and constructing a community with a shared future for humankind.