In the wake of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring mpox a global health emergency, social media has exploded with a wave of falsehoods and misinformation. As is often the case during health crises, these misleading claims have stoked fear and confusion among the public, who desperately seek reliable information. The disease has been sensationalized, linked to elaborate global conspiracies, and woven into tales of hidden agendas — threatening to undermine the crucial efforts needed to contain its spread and protect public health.
What Is Monkeypox?
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines monkeypox, or mpox, as a viral infection capable of spreading between people. It can also be transmitted from the environment through objects and surfaces touched by an infected person. In areas where the virus is present in wild animals, transmission can occur from these animals to people who come into contact with them.
Recent concerns about mpox have intensified due to its symptoms, which, in some cases, can be severe and even fatal. According to the WHO, the most prevalent symptoms include a rash or mucosal lesions that can persist for two to four weeks. These are often accompanied by fever, headaches, muscle aches, back pain, fatigue, and swollen lymph nodes.
The WHO also highlighted that mpox can lead to severe complications in some cases. These can include bacterial infections of the skin that may result in abscesses or serious damage. Other potential complications are pneumonia, corneal infections that may cause vision loss, difficulty swallowing, vomiting, and diarrhea that can lead to severe dehydration or malnutrition. In severe cases, the infection might progress to sepsis, encephalitis, myocarditis, or inflammation of the rectum, genital organs (balanitis), or urinary tract (urethritis), and in extreme cases, it can be fatal.
WHO Warns Against Misleading Information on Mpox
To curb the spread of misinformation surrounding mpox, the WHO's X account has stressed the importance of relying on credible sources for accurate information. They urge the public to consult specialized doctors, local health authorities, or the WHO's official website for trustworthy updates. The WHO also directs people to its FAQ page, which covers everything from symptoms and at-risk groups to prevention, treatment options, and vaccines.
Mpox: A Conspiracy to Influence the U.S. Presidential Elections?
Media reports have highlighted that conservatives in the United States have been circulating the hashtag #DoNotComply on social media platforms, urging people to refuse vaccines or quarantine orders should they be imposed by authorities in the U.S., despite no recorded infections with the virus there yet.
Tracking the hashtag on X, Misbar discovered that it has recently been adopted by numerous users who have embraced conspiracy theories. These users are questioning both the origins of mpox and the timing of the emergency declaration.
Some users have suggested that the timing of the declaration of an emergency due to the mpox outbreak and the U.S. elections is not a mere coincidence but a deliberate attempt to interfere with the electoral process.
In this context, skeptical accounts of mpox on X shared a video featuring Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stating, "The left-wing lunatics are trying very hard to bring back COVID lockdowns and mandates with all of their sudden fear-mongering about the new variants that are coming. You know what else is coming? An election. They want to restart the COVID hysteria so they can justify more lockdowns and more censorship… But to every COVID tyrant who wants to take away our freedom, hear these words: We will not comply."
The video was shared as a reference to Trump’s warnings from August 2023, when he discussed the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant. His remarks echoed the concerns he raised during the initial wave of the virus in 2020.
It is important to note that the hashtag #DoNotComply gained traction on social media in 2021 and, according to media reports, was influential in discouraging many individuals from getting the COVID-19 vaccine during that period.
Misleading Claim: Mpox Is Lab-Made
One persistent rumor about the mpox virus is that it was artificially created in a laboratory rather than developing naturally. On X, a video has been circulated, falsely claiming that it shows experts admitting that the mpox virus was entirely manufactured by Canadian researchers in 2017.
However, verification revealed that the video actually dates back to 2019 and is an excerpt from a program by the scientific magazine Science & Vie. In the program, a Science & Vie editor discussed how Canadian scientists created a new strain of the horsepox virus, which the WHO had previously declared extinct. The purpose of developing this new strain was to help scientists devise treatments in case the disease was to re-emerge.
The interview did not address the mpox virus currently spreading. Furthermore, WHO reports confirm that the mpox virus was first discovered in Denmark in 1958 in monkeys kept for scientific studies, while the first human case of the virus was recorded in a 9-month-old child in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970.
Misleading Scenes Associated With Mpox
Misbar has examined several misleading claims about mpox circulating on social media. One video claimed to show mass testing for mpox in Omaha, Nebraska, in the U.S. However, Misbar's investigation revealed that the video was actually from a campaign event for Tim Walz, the Democratic candidate for U.S. vice president.
In a similar vein, users circulated a video claiming that the WHO had announced the end of the mpox emergency. However, the investigation revealed that the video was outdated, originating from May 2023.
Additionally, a video was circulated claiming to show a British doctor admitting that he was standing in front of the lab where the mpox virus and its vaccine were being manufactured. However, Misbar confirmed that the video was satirical and not real.
The Simpsons Did Not Predict Mpox Outbreak
Recently, a video from the American animated series The Simpsons went viral, claiming that an episode from 2002 had predicted the mpox outbreak.
However, investigations revealed that this claim is misleading. The video includes scenes from various episodes aired at different times, some of which depict characters with chickenpox, not mpox.
Read More
The WHO Did Not Order To Prepare For Lockdowns Due To Monkeypox
The Simpsons Did Not Predict Monkeypox in One of Its 2002 Episodes
