Facebook and Youtube pose public health risk due to 'toxic mix' of coronavirus conspiracy theories, study warns

Sixty per per cent of those who believe the virus is linked to 5G radiation get their information from YouTube, survey shows. Samuel Lovett reports

Unmasked! Facebook is the favoured source for Covid-19 deniers (AFP/Getty)

Those who regularly turn to social media for information on coronavirus are more likely to believe conspiracy theories about Covid-19 and break lockdown rules, new research suggests.

The findings are based on three separate surveys conducted by King’s College London and Ipsos MORI, and have been published in a peer-reviewed article in the journal Psychological Medicine.

According to one of the surveys, which involved 2,254 participants aged 16-75, 60 per cent of those who believe the virus is linked to 5G radiation get their information from YouTube.