5 Times Journalists Thought They Were Scientists And Got It Wrong About Coronavirus
Once upon a time, the phenomenon of your average Joe insisting they knew better than the experts was largely and happily confined to pub chat about the performance of [insert any football team here].
Alas, the rise of social media, “alternative” news sources, and the widespread belief that shouting on Twitter constitutes actual public debate mean there are many for whom watching videos on YouTube is now considered equal to a lifetime dedicated to the pursuit of science.
— Katy Lindemann (@katylindemann) October 20, 2020
During the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, one class of professional has been guiltier than most – celebrity journalists, many of whom have spent months cherry-picking, distorting and generally getting a bit confused about all things Covid-19-related and then broadcasting these tidbits to their sizeable followings.
the number of people who get paid to loudly misunderstand things is really out of hand
— Tom Chivers (@TomChivers) October 20, 2020
And this stuff matters – the effects aren’t confined to Twitter. They have real-world implications.
If you don’t believe us (and to be fair we are also journalists) then here’s Dr Dominic Pimenta, an NHS hospital doctor and chair of healthcare workers foundation Her, who told HuffPost UK: “We face the rather ludicrous situation of radio show hosts arguing with statisticians about false positive rates, for example.
“There is always a place for proper scientific debate, in journals and academic forums, but in the public arena during a pandemic it has troubling real world implications.
“Downplaying the consequences of the virus or the importance of the guidelines means compliance will naturally fall, increasing the spread of the virus at a critical time for many areas in the UK.
“Having lost 640 health and social care workers already the stakes are very high here, and there is a distinct lack of care and due diligence to what is being broadcast that is unacceptable...
