Vaccine ‘news’ spread by trolls

Social media bots and Russian trolls spread false information and promoted discord about vaccines on Twitter, according to a study. The research, led by the George Washington University in Washington DC, found that using tactics similar to those seen during the 2016 presidential election, these Twitter accounts entered into vaccine debates months before election season was under way.

Experts suggested the trolls were using vaccination as a “wedge issue” to promote discord in American society.