Viral Uncertainty, How Rumours on Social Media Reshape Public Perceptions in Crises: Digital Misinformation, Fear, and Trust in Contemporary Indian Crisis Communication
These days crises are as digital as they are lived. The advent of social media turns emergencies into quick and often gossip-filled information zones where the rumour mill outpaces the rule book. This study explores how circulatory processes inform audience perceptions and official responses, in light of Indias recentcrises. Drawing on media ecology and audience studies approaches, the study investigates how characteristics of platform design, including algorithmic visibility and affectively laden content, amplify the spread of misinformation. It also considers how users interpret, share, or resist rumours when faced with uncertainty. Rather than framing misinformation only as a problem of truth or falsehood, the study positions it as part of a wider media environment that influences trust, memory, and civic behaviour. By focusing on these dynamics, the paper makes a case for reinvigorating an emphasis on media literacy and ethical communication as imperative methods to mitigate misinformation in times of crisis. Copyright 2026, IGI Global Scientific Publishing. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global Scientific Publishing is prohibited. Use of this chapter to train generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies is expressly prohibited. The publisher reserves all rights to license its use for generative AI training and machine learning model development.
Media Literacy and the Politics of Digital Misinformation;pp.445-483
https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3373-6566-4.ch015 https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105040283401?origin=resultslist
Sorokhaibam A., Christ University, India; Chanda N., Christ University, India