Alerts are categorized as high, medium, and low impact.
  • High impact: Narratives with widespread circulation across communities, high engagement, exponential velocity, and a high potential to impact health decisions. Are often more memorable than accurate information.
  • Medium impact: Narratives that are circulating in priority populations and pose some threat to health. Potential for further spread due to the tactics used or because of predicted velocity. Often highlights the questions and concerns of people.
  • Low impact: Narratives that are limited in reach, don’t impact your community, or lack the qualities necessary for future spread. May indicate information gaps, confusion, or concerns.

During a rally leading up to the presidential election, Donald Trump stated, “You know the best way to stop depression? Work your ass off.” A video of the statement shared on social media garnered over 1.6 million views, 70,000 likes, 10,000 reposts, and 1,300 comments. Many comments echoed Trump’s sentiment, stating, “When you’re pushing yourself to the limit, grinding toward a goal, there’s no room left for anxiety, no space for doubt.” Some also shared the stigmatizing view that depression is caused by laziness. Several other comments falsely claimed that depression is a modern issue created by pharmaceutical companies to make money from antidepressant medications.

Recommendation: High Impact Read More +

On October 22, the board of the Southwest District Health Division in Idaho narrowly voted to end the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines at district clinics because of so-called “safety” concerns. According to a representative for the National Association of County and City Health Officials, this is the first time that a health department in the United States has restricted the use of COVID-19 vaccines. Notably, multiple prominent anti-vaccine activists spoke at the meeting, including a discredited physician best known for promoting anti-vaccine myths and a health care worker who popularized the “Died Suddenly” conspiracy theory. A board chairman argued that the board overstepped and could be opening the door to similar restrictions on other vaccines and medical treatments. Although residents will still be able to get COVID-19 vaccines from pharmacies and clinics not affiliated with the health department, much of this region is rural and will be impacted by the restriction. Vaccine opponents celebrated Idaho for “leading the way” in opposing COVID-19 vaccines.

Recommendation: Medium Impact Read More +

Las Cruces, New Mexico, is considering establishing an overdose prevention center, which would provide a space where people can use drugs in a supervised environment with overdose prevention tools on hand and be connected to services for people with substance use disorder. The director of harm reduction organization Homeless Health Care Los Angeles proposed the idea to Las Cruces city councilors and department administrators late last month. So far, the city has not taken action, but councilors will consider using opioid settlement funds to establish the center. A social media post criticizing the idea received nearly 300 comments, many falsely claiming that overdose prevention centers “enable addiction” and cause overdose deaths.

Recommendation: Low Impact Read More +

The CDC updated its COVID-19 vaccine schedule to recommend that children ages 6 months to 4 years who have never received a COVID-19 vaccine receive a multidose initial series of the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine. The recommendation sparked outrage among vaccine opponents, including a U.S. senator. Some social media users called the recommendations unnecessary, “devastating,” and “anti-science,” while others argued that the government should close the border to prevent the spread of disease. Popular posts repeated false claims about COVID-19 vaccine safety, criticized the pediatric vaccine schedule, and claimed that they would never give their child any vaccine.

Recommendation: Medium Impact Read More +

Mental health conversations about ADHD in women spread online following the publication of two recent articles. One article explained that ADHD has previously been underdiagnosed in girls and women, likely because women and girls with ADHD may exhibit different symptoms than boys and men. The second article featured interviews with women who struggled to receive an ADHD diagnosis and faced barriers to accessing treatment. In posts and comments, users shared their own struggles with managing ADHD symptoms and accessing medication. Some comments argued about whether the uptick in ADHD diagnoses in women is due to ADHD being “a trend.” 

Recommendation: Low Impact Read More +

A conspiracy theory is circulating in multiple languages across social media platforms that Bill Gates will face trial in the Netherlands over his claims about COVID-19 vaccine safety. The apparent source of the claim is a far-right website known for publishing hoax stories and fringe conspiracy theories. A clip of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. repeating the baseless claim at an event has been widely circulated. Some posts also claim without evidence that Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla has also been indicted. Similar conspiracy theories about Gates being indicted or arrested for his vaccine work have circulated online for years. 

Recommendation: Medium Impact Read More +

Conversation spiked after the CDC vaccine advisory committee, ACIP, voted to lower the recommended age for pneumococcal vaccination eligibility from 65 to 50 and to recommend an additional dose of the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine for older adults and immunocompromised individuals. Some social media users applauded the committee for simplifying COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for older adults by recommending two doses six months apart. Vaccine opponents were critical of the recommendations and complained about multiple vaccine doses. One post demanded that the CDC “please stop poisoning vulnerable elderly people.”

Recommendation: Medium Impact Read More +

Multiple social media posts shared recent news articles reporting details on the death of former One Direction singer Liam Payne, who fell from a hotel balcony on October 16. A toxicology report found that Payne had multiple substances in his system at the time of his death, including cocaine, benzodiazepines, and “pink cocaine,” a mix of several drugs such as ketamine, methamphetamine, MDMA, and fentanyl. Many comments shared information and questions about pink cocaine, including the misleading claim that pink cocaine is “a mixture of hallucinogenic drugs,” which received more than 714,000 engagements as of October 30. 

Recommendation: Low Impact Read More +

Several social media posts trending this week discussed vaccine adjuvants. The posts include images of vaccine ingredients and debunked claims about their supposed risks. Posts focused on aluminum, formaldehyde, thimerosal, and monosodium glutamate in various routine vaccines. One post with over 40,000 engagements claimed that aluminum in vaccines crosses the blood-brain barrier and causes damage and declared that all vaccines are unsafe because of adjuvants. Other posts claimed that COVID-19 vaccines contain dangerous levels of arsenic and adjuvants that allow contaminant DNA to integrate with recipient DNA and cause cancer.

Recommendation: Medium Impact Read More +

As of October 12, U.S. cases of pertussis (also called whooping cough) are at the highest level in a decade, with over 18,000 cases recorded so far this year. Popular social media posts blamed the increase on immigrant populations and “open borders,” a myth that circulated after a whooping cough outbreak in England earlier this year. Some posts circulated the conspiracy theory that the media is only covering whooping cough cases to influence the upcoming U.S. presidential election, while others claim that natural immunity is superior to pertussis vaccination. Several social media users attributed the rise in cases to the anti-vaccine movement and claimed that COVID-19 infections may be weakening immune systems and making people more susceptible to disease. 

Recommendation: Medium Impact Read More +

Alerts are categorized as high, medium, and low impact.
  • High impact: Narratives with widespread circulation across communities, high engagement, exponential velocity, and a high potential to impact health decisions. Are often more memorable than accurate information.
  • Medium impact: Narratives that are circulating in priority populations and pose some threat to health. Potential for further spread due to the tactics used or because of predicted velocity. Often highlights the questions and concerns of people.
  • Low impact: Narratives that are limited in reach, don’t impact your community, or lack the qualities necessary for future spread. May indicate information gaps, confusion, or concerns.
Monthly Trending Narrative Report

Explore Public Good Project’s report highlighting high-level health trends. This report captures information from May 6th – July 7th, 2024.

2023 Trends in COVID-19
Vaccine Opposition

This new report details the trends in 2023 discussions about COVID-19 vaccines, identifying both persistent, recurring themes from previous years and new themes that emerged within the year. The goal is to equip public health professionals with information to help navigate future discussions around COVID-19 vaccines.

Categorizing Public Conversation
on Vaccine Opposition to Inform
Health Communications Strategies

This new report leverages PGP’s advanced media monitoring platforms and expertise in vaccine opposition to categorize narratives into patterns. These patterns can help health communicators plan messaging approaches and strategies to improve vaccine uptake.

Vaccine Misinformation Guide

Get practical tips for addressing misinformation in this new guide. Click image to download, or see highlights