Abstract
Vaccine misinformation has been a ubiquitous part of social media discourse in Israel over the past decade, but health authorities have struggled to respond effectively. The re-emergence of vaccine-preventable diseases has generated a pressing need for effective strategies to deal with vaccine hesitancy and promote public health. In this chapter, we review outreach activities designed and implemented by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Israel to this end from 2013 to 2022, including some that made use of the affordances of social media and instant messaging applications, such as WhatsApp. These interventions sought to address misinformation and promote public health across several issues, including polio, measles and COVID-19. Based on theoretical models of science communication, we analyze the organizations’ activities, and compare and contrast them. Where possible, we provide evidence of their efficacy. Finally, we discuss factors key to these organizations’ success and point out limitations to their efficacy.
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E. S. Garty, N. Hirsch-Choritz, K. Landsman, U. Lerner, I. M. Netzer, and A. J. Sharon are affiliated with Mida’at—For Informed Health, Mevaseret Zion, Israel.
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Garty, E.S., Hirsch-Choritz, N., Landsman, K., Lerner, U., Netzer, I.M., Sharon, A.J. (2023). Online Public Outreach to Promote Public Health: Insights from Israeli Non-Governmental Organizations. In: Ginossar, T., Shah, S.F.A., Weiss, D. (eds) Vaccine Communication Online. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24490-2_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24490-2_7
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