{"references": ["Altmetric.com page for Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses: Overview of attention for article published in Cochrane database of systematic reviews, January 2023. (n.d.). Altmetric.com. Retrieved March 30, 2023, from https://cochrane.altmetric.com/details/141934282", "Eysenbach, G. (2020). How to fight an infodemic: The four pillars of infodemic management. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(6), e21820. https://doi.org/10.2196/21820", "Jefferson, T., Dooley, L., Ferroni, E., Al-Ansary, L. A., Driel, M. L. van, Bawazeer, G. A., Jones, M. A., Hoffmann, T. C., Clark, J., Beller, E. M., Glasziou, P. P., & Conly, J. M. (2023). Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 1. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD006207.pub6", "Lewi\u0144ski, M., & Aakhus, M. (2022). Argumentation in Complex Communication: Managing Disagreement in a Polylogue. Cambridge University Press.", "Soares-Weiser, K. (2023, March 10). Statement on \"Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses\" review. Cochrane. https://www.cochrane.org/news/statement-physical-interventions-interrupt-or-reduce-spread-respiratory-viruses-review", "van Eemeren, F. H., Garssen, B., Krabbe, E. C. W., Henkemans, A. F. S., Verheij, B., & Wagemans, J. H. M. (2014). Argumentation and Artificial Intelligence. In F. H. van Eemeren, B. Garssen, E. C. W. Krabbe, A. F. Snoeck Henkemans, B. Verheij, & J. H. M. Wagemans (Eds.), Handbook of Argumentation Theory (pp. 615\u2013675). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9473-5_11", "Wardle, C. (2018). The need for smarter definitions and practical, timely empirical research on information disorder. Digital Journalism, 6(8), 951\u2013963. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2018.1502047"]}

Our work aims to make the arguments underlying a scientific controversy more clear and more understandable. A long-term goal of our research is to use argumentation theory to help improve science communication, and particularly to help reduce information disorders such as misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation (Wardle, 2018). We conduct a case study about one public controversy: whether masks can interrupt or reduce the spread of COVID-19. We are mapping this controversy using an argumentation theory called polylogue analysis (Lewiński and Aakhus, 2022). The polylogue diagrams resulting from our case study could be used in the future to determine whether argumentation theory can help improve the quality of communication about controversies in science. In the future, the landscape of a controversy could be used to determine the alignment of players and positions (for instance to highlight conflicts of interest); to help stimulate people’s critical thinking and analytic skills; and to elucidate the subtle positions in controversies.

Funding: United States Institute of Museum and Library Services RE-250162-OLS-21