Consider some general facts about misinformationon a narrow definition:
First, it is relatively rare. Extensive empirical research shows that the average person consumes very little of it, especially when contrasted with information from mainstream sources (e.g., the BBC, CNN, the NYT, etc.). In fact, typical estimates are likely to greatly exaggerate the amount of clear-cut misinformation because they measure it at the source level. That is, they classify 100% of the content from low-quality websites and outlets as misinformation. However, even extremely unreliable outlets generally refrain from publishing demonstrable falsehoods.
Second, engagement with misinformation is heavily concentrated in certain groups. Most people share and consume very little, but a relatively small minority of very active social media users engage with quite a lot. Call this the “misinformation minority.”
Third, the misinformation minority is not a cross-section of the population. They are people with very specific traits, such as strong conspiratorial worldviews, high partisan animosity (i.e., they actively hate political and cultural enemies), anti-establishment attitudes, and—most importantly—institutional distrust. The causes of this distrust are complex, but exposure to narrow misinformation seems to play a minor role. People seek out narrow misinformation because they distrust institutions (science, public health, mainstream media, etc.), not vice versa.