COVID-19: 8 lessons from the First Global Infodemic that should be an opportunity for libraries

Abstract

The health crisis caused by COVID-19 brought with it the first global infodemic, in which hoaxes and denial theories roamed and roamed freely through the digital space and social networks. With the perspective of two years of pandemic, some lessons are offered that in the author's opinion should be opportunities for libraries when dealing with the phenomenon of disinformation, which although it is not new, in the case of the infodemic it has had a global type scale. Aspects such as the consumption of information via social networks, the different types of denialism and the necessary literacies in which the library community could contribute all its experience are analyzed. Finally, a series of recommendations are made for actions that libraries and the library community, collectively but also individually, could carry out in collaboration with other actors for the efficient fight against disinformation.