The World Health Organization has officially declared that anti-vaccinators are one of the top 10 threats to the world. According to the organization, vaccinations alone help prevent 2-3 million deaths per year. However outbreaks such as measles are getting more common than they should be, having a total increase of 30% globally. While some of these countries were very close to defeating different diseases, it has resurged in the past years.
In short, when talking about vaccine hesitancy, many anti-vaccinators are put into four categories: Religious Reasons, Personal Beliefs, Safety Concerns, and a desire for more information from healthcare providers.
An 18 year old Ohio Student, Ethan Lindenberger had told health officials “My mother would turn to anti-vaccine groups online and on social media looking for evidence and defense rather than health officials and through credible sources. These sources that spread misinformation should be the primary concern of American people”. John Weisman, the Washington State of Health reported to the Senate community that public officials are very concerned about the misinformation that spreads daily on vaccinations. He had also said along the lines, social media has influenced health decisions.
Renee DiResta, a data scientist told Frontline (documentary) that she and her colleague had found that there was a small group of people were creating fake accounts on Twitter and using hashtags to promote health hesitancy. Many of these posts were getting more recognition and was in fact very popular. These different groups of Twitter and other social media presences have influenced public opinion and made themselves look bigger to have a bigger impact on people.
