Yonaira M. Rivera

ABSTRACT As health misinformation continues to permeate social media, it is of utmost importance to understand how credibility assessments are made among those most vulnerable to health inequities. Dual-processing models suggest that online credibility assessments are largely made through the use of cognitive heuristics. However, little is known about the role cultural identity plays in these assessments, particularly in light of health (mis)information exposure among communities of color.

It has been nearly two months since Hurricane María wreaked havoc on my beautiful homeland, Puerto Rico, and the island I returned to four weeks ago is not the Puerto Rico I know. It felt incredibly foreign: a hot, humid, shadeless place that needs ample amounts of love and attention. Trees were bare and the breeze no longer lingered through their leaves and branches. The heat was intense and, in a place once known for its lush greenery, it was difficult to escape direct sunlight.