Desinformation about Covid-19 is killing. What is WHO doing? And what does the press?

Information is crucial in the fight against Covid-19. And WHO plays a central role in providing safe and verified information to states and to the world press. For nearly four months now, the organisation has been holding online press briefings almost daily, bringing together hundreds of journalists. It has issued dozens of press releases and launched an extensive campaign to counter misinformation.

WHO’s director-general has regularly denounced the “infodemic” that is plaguing socialnetworks. Conspiracy theories and fake news are moving faster than the virus.  Misinformation literally kills. And WHO’s activism to correct fake news is not enough. The organization itself is under fire for a lack of transparency. True or false? How can we inform better? What are the methods of WHO and the press to counter fake news? Are they both credible on Covid-19? Does WHO inform the press in a transparent manner? And is the press really doing its job? Finally, can the war against misinformation really be won?

WHO spokespersons and journalists from the international media based in Geneva will answer these questions and confront their points of view during the debate of the Geneva Press Club.