Transcultural Communication During a Misinfodemic: How Antiquated Science Communication Models and Information Deserts Enhance Vulnerability to Beliefs in False Health and Science Information

The medical establishment, public health agencies and government institutions typically employ the knowledge deficit model of science communication against which resistance to new ideas has been documented. The use of a suboptimal communications model distances the publics—especially minoritized, marginalized, and racialized people—from the agencies and institutions which wield power over their bodies. This ostracization and fostering of mistrust and distrust is compounded by a communications paradigm that perpetuates hierarchies of power, dictates a one-size-fits-all message to heterogenous populations, and fails to elicit feedback from a perceived monolithic public. Individuals hold varied beliefs about science and health based on cultural differences, political ideologies, history, faith traditions, language, and other factors. Publics are not equally vulnerable to science misinformation and disinformation and only recently has access to information, and specifically access to broadband internet, been recognized as a social determinant of health. Information (in)equity, including access to credible, fact-checked local news, influences health-related behaviors.