COVID-19 pandemic shines a spotlight on the vital role of social media and its influencers

The health crisis impacted us all, but we were not alone despite social distancing. Support and inspiration were present because of those with an online platform who wanted to keep people informed and safe.

Many of us wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night, checking Twitter, Instagram, or Weibo as the first or last thing we do. Social media is how many stay connected and plug into what is happening. So, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, how did these platforms flip from a supply of friend requests and likes to be vital channels of up-to-date health information?

This post briefly explores the role of social media during the most recent global health crisis, so we might more clearly imagine its value during the next one.

How common is the use of social media throughout the world?

Social media began fairly humbly back in 2004 with the popular forum ‘MySpace’ reaching about 1 million monthly users.¹ During the two decades or so since then, other well-known platforms have appeared including the likes of Facebook, Weibo, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, WeChat, and many more. According to the latest estimates, about 4.6 billion people worldwide now use some form of social media platform, spending an average of about 2.5 hours each day doing just that.²

Health and related issues make up a significant part of that 11 billion hours of eyeball attention daily. For example, in China, at least 70% of WeChat’s 1 billion users report that the platform is their primary means of health education.³ Similarly, almost 50% of social media users in the United States have described that getting information has influenced how they manage their health.³ Investigators have identified up to 10 health-oriented purposes and entirely new areas of social media use by health institutions, health researchers, and the general public.⁴ These online tools are not only growing in scale but also in the ways we employ them to obtain, understand and share health-related information.

So, how did social media help during the pandemic?

After three years of being constantly bombarded with information about COVID-19, it is not easy to recall how, just back in 2020, we knew nothing about it at all.

If you listen back to those first news broadcasts, the nature of the narrative now sounds so naive, so simplistic. While we wondered whether human-to-human transmission was even happening, little did we know that the entire world was about to embark on a huge COVID-19 learning curve. A tipping point occurred the instant we understood that this new infectious disease really was a potential threat to every country: social media immediately became a vital and irreplaceable channel of information and updates. Throughout the crisis, it would continue to play a crucial role in our collective and individual responses.

Many used online networks to fill the initial void in information about the virus, its transmission, and the frequently changing rules and policies issued by governments. Even when knowledge about COVID-19 began to rapidly expand, the speed of social media dissemination ensured the continued spread of new insights, and their transformation into actions, altered behaviours, and local responses.

Researchers have since mapped out how information first spread out from a Twitter-based and global ‘super-community’ with specific interests and expertise in scientific and health topics. This allowed vast connected networks to discover and absorb new information quickly.⁵ Within just a few months though – by the time it was clear that COVID-19 was indeed a threat to all countries – online attention quickly shifted to national and local authorities and leaders, redirecting users to sources that were more relevant to their specific contexts, pandemic status, and official announcements.

The interactive and interconnected nature of social media helped promote the ongoing two-way exchange of ideas and understanding around the pandemic, as well as related views and fears among individuals.⁶

When did social media influencers begin to shape the pandemic response?

The rise of COVID-19 highlighted a new group of key individuals who we call "COVID-19 influencers". These individuals began to identify opportunities to use their platforms to guide and give back to their communities and followers.

Indeed, COVID-19 influencers played a vital role in connecting and disseminating important information between different networks. These influencers dedicated their time to analysing and interpreting national data and recommendations, and acted as hubs for amplifying new information. They emerged from diverse backgrounds, including various types of public celebrities, national leaders, and experts in health and science, but the goal was the same – help those in a time when chaos was ensuing both on and offline.

Despite their actions, though, not much has been done to recognise the efforts of these influencers in the pandemic. For that reason, May 2023 will mark a pivotal moment in the realm of social media and health promotion in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond.

Curious to learn more about what will happen in May 2023? Take a look here.

Sources:

The rise of social media. Our World In Data; 2019 (https://ourworldindata.org/rise-of-social-media).
Digital 2022: Global Overview Report. Datareportal 2022 (https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2022-global-overview-report).
From “infodemics” to health promotion: A novel framework for the role of social media in public health. Schillinger D, Chittamuru D, Ramírez A. American Journal of Public Health. 2020;110:1393–1396 (https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305746).
Social media use for health purposes: Systematic review. Chen J and Wang Y. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2021;23(5);e17917:1–16 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8156131/).
Clusters of science and health related Twitter users become more isolated during the COVID‑19 pandemic. Durazzi F, Müller M, Salathé M, Remondini D. Nature Scientific Reports. 2021;11(1):1–11 (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-99301-0).
Role of social media in shaping public risk perception during COVID-19 pandemic: A theoretical review. Tsoy D, Tirasawasdichai T, Kurpayanidi KI. International Journal of Management Science and Business Administration. 2021;7(2):35–41 (https://researchleap.com/role-of-social-media-in-shaping-public-risk-perception-during-covid-19-pandemic-a-theoretical-review/).