Al-Haouz Earthquake Misinformation Crisis in Morocco: A Content Analysis of Tweets on X

Abstract

Information during natural disasters is as vital as shelter, food, and medical supplies. Social media has indeed facilitated the circulation of information over the past decades. Timely information about emergencies helps in risk assessment, decision-making, and public relief and awareness. However, where there is information on social media, misinformation is inevitable. The Al-Haouz earthquake has ignited a variety of speculations and misinformation on social media, specifically, causing distress and confusion among people. The current study aims to analyze the Al-Haouz earthquake content on X and identify its main misinformation themes. The dataset from X was extracted by a third party using the X API. The dataset was subsequently classified and coded manually. Approximately 9,000 tweets were retrieved from September 8, 2023, to December 31, 2023, using earthquake-related hashtags to identify prevalent misinformation themes and patterns. To this end, five misinformation themes have emerged from the collected dataset: misleading visual representation, sensationalist reporting, conspiracy theory, pseudoscientific explanation, and false prediction. Findings indicate a significant proportion of not-misinformation over misinformation tweets and the prominence of sensationalist reporting with a percentage of 60% over other misinformation themes, misleading visual representation, conspiracy theory, pseudoscientific explanation, and false prediction. This paper highlights the critical role of media literacy in mitigating the surge of misinformation during critical times. Understanding the dynamics of misinformation spread and locating prominent themes during critical periods allows policymakers, educators, and experts in the field to tailor effective and powerful crisis management tools and strategies to promote media literacy skills among the public.