COVID and conspiracy theories

This was a heartbreaking story of how one family lost the fight against misinformation online.

Stephanie had gotten wrapped up in a world of conspiracy theories online about the pandemic and vaccines. When she and her husband Arnold fell ill with COVID in the fall of 2021, Stephanie turned to black market ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, costing her valuable time. She eventually agreed to go to the hospital, where she refused proven treatments for COVID and deteriorated. Her husband Arnold accepted treatment and survived.

NPR correspondent Geoff Brumfiel and I met with Stephanie’s daughter, Laurie, and Arnold in March, only a few months after her death. I photographed Arnold and Laurie in a way that kept their identity partially obscured in order to protect the family but still communicated the immense loss and sharp reality that had taken shape in the shadow of COVID conspiracy theories.

Read the full story here.