When the Covid-19 pandemic hit our shores in March of this year, the mainstream media was at first unsure as to how to report on the subject. It needed to find a clear balance between providing its readers with accurate information without alarming the public and giving the impression that the apocalypse had arrived.
All media houses acted responsibly and started double and triple-checking their sources before publishing any stories related to the virus. At a later stage, after a meeting with the health authorities, the media agreed to wait for the official statistics to be announced by Professor Charmaine Gauci during her daily briefings.
This was done to ensure that only the correct information was published on a subject which is so controversial and fear-inducing.
While all media houses have respected this arrangement, a number of unofficial Covid-19 Facebook pages cropped up. Some of them are trying to undo what the traditional media has been doing, in a bid to attract likes and shares.
These pages have their sources in the health sector, as do we. They have the same information we have. The only difference is that we choose to wait for the official announcement while the administrators of these pages often shoot from the hip without actually verifying their information.
There were cases where the numbers leaked from the health authorities did not match with the official numbers. This could have happened for a number of reasons, including the fact that, some tests may produce false positives. Just yesterday, one of the more popular pages predicted 72+ cases, when the real number was 49.
There is absolutely no reason why individuals should not wait for the official announcement. After all, the authorities have always been fully transparent with the number of daily cases. It is better to wait until 12:30pm and have the correct numbers than publish information blindly and send people into a panic.
It seems that the only reason why some Facebook ‘reporters’ are jumping the gun is to try and get their ‘breaking news,’ their ‘scoop’, and beat the media houses to it – it is just an ego trip.
To make matters worse, some of those who publish such daily reports are also putting up sarcastic comments aimed at inducing fear, instilling doubt in the authorities and creating sensationalism.
This is not on, especially if these individuals claim to be journalists. Being a journalist comes with certain responsibilities, and we also have a code of ethics that we adhere to. Publishing information without verifying it and adding tasteless comments in a bid to sensationalise the situation and attract more likes, shares and follows is not part of that code.
The Institute of Maltese Journalists yesterday warned against such practices and urged reporters to adhere to journalistic ethics at all times and to distinguish between reporting and comment. It also urged the public to choose their information sources wisely.
It is clear that the pandemic is getting out of control, but that is a whole other argument. This is not about the political decisions being taken but about the number of cases, and the places where these people became infected.
While we have no control over the decisions taken at a higher level, we do have control over the information we spread. Fake news, sensationalism and scaremongering can only make the situation worse.