The Critical Mass is proud to present our new report, “Contaminated Trust: Public Health Disinformation and Its Societal Impacts in Georgia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine”—the culmination of our year-long research study generously supported by the U.S. Department of State Global Engagement Center (GEC). Research in this report provides front-line perspective on how medical #disinformation impacts healthcare decision-making at the individual level in #Georgia, #Kazakhstan, and #Ukraine.
To develop this report, members from TCM’s research team and partners comprised of in-country research firms, and The Harriman Institute at Columbia University's regional scholars designed a three-phase field study. We are immensely grateful to the incredible group of researchers and subject matter experts, in-country partner organizations, the hosts of our webinars in June 2021—Media Development Foundation (MDF), Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs, and Ukraine's Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security—as well as all of the participants of the study itself for making this research possible in the midst of the global pandemic.
Our sincerest hope is that the findings of this project will be valuable not only for the local stakeholders in our three countries of study, but also media professionals, public health experts and media personnel, as well as civil society organizations and whole of society at large in and outside of #Eurasia, as we continue to battle negative impacts of COVID-19 and mis- and disinformation. Your support in helping us spread the word is of vital importance, and we welcome your feedback!