Media Coverage of COVID -19

[Class 33]

Hospital admissions will definitely not be heading up again. Those days are thankfully long gone now. Hospital admissions and numbers in hospital very much still continuing to tumble down.

 

[VauxhallandI]

BBC interviewing people in the street today in Newcastle

BBC man says “just been in shopping for essentials?” To a lady holding bags outside Primark (I think).

Well no Mr BBC you’ve been ramming it down our throat that they were “non-essentials” for a year. Or are you waiting to flip ?

 

[westv]

BBC interviewing people in the street today in Newcastle

BBC man says “just been in shopping for essentials?” To a lady holding bags outside Primark (I think).

Well no Mr BBC you’ve been ramming it down our throat that they were “non-essentials” for a year. Or are you waiting to flip ?

What is it with Primark? The local rag's website had a story yesterday about "queues outside Primark", Primark was mentioned in a BBC article yesterday and now they are shown in another tv news story.

 

[Darandio]

What is it with Primark? The local rag's website had a story yesterday about "queues outside Primark", Primark was mentioned in a BBC article yesterday and now they are shown in another tv news story.

Because of the snobbish reaction they know they will get from it.

 

[kez19]

BBC interviewing people in the street today in Newcastle

BBC man says “just been in shopping for essentials?” To a lady holding bags outside Primark (I think).

Well no Mr BBC you’ve been ramming it down our throat that they were “non-essentials” for a year. Or are you waiting to flip ?

Nothing no longer surprises me by the BBC let alone UK media now

 

[NorthOxonian]

Because of the snobbish reaction they know they will get from it.

Yes. Same reason they always go on about Wetherspoons, rather than the fancy gastropubs the media types no doubt prefer.

 

[Freightmaster]

If anyone was unconvinced that the media have been deliberately fearmongering and
playing down good news for their own financial benefit, have a look at this:

https://twitter.com/jackposobiec/status/1382364998069059591?s=21

It's tempting to say "well that's America - what do you expect?", but I refuse
to believe that the same thing hasn't been happening widely over here too...





MARK

 

[kez19]

If anyone was unconvinced that the media have been deliberately fearmongering and
playing down good news for their own financial benefit, have a look at this:

https://twitter.com/jackposobiec/status/1382364998069059591?s=21

It's tempting to say "well that's America - what do you expect?", but I refuse
to believe that the same thing hasn't been happening widely over here too...





MARK

I seen BBC News was on its high horse tonight regarding COVID in Japan?

Sorry if it’s me but wasn’t the media at the start of this giving them praise for their efforts into how they tackled it? Example the hospitals? Yet here we are they are getting it before the Olympics?

 

[initiation]

I seen BBC News was on its high horse tonight regarding COVID in Japan?

Sorry if it’s me but wasn’t the media at the start of this giving them praise for their efforts into how they tackled it? Example the hospitals? Yet here we are they are getting it before the Olympics?

They've obviously all stopped wearing masks since the last survey was taken. It can be the only reason right. We've been told masks work so how can cases have spiked as shown on this graph.

 

[kez19]

They've obviously all stopped wearing masks since the last survey was taken. It can be the only reason right. We've been told masks work so how can cases have spiked as shown on this graph.

I know eh? Japan leading the way as we had been told by the media (seems like its backfired on the media... irony here!)

 

[brad465]

Many will have seen that today saw worldwide covid deaths pass 3 million widely reported in the news. What of course won't get covered is the wider perspective, such as how 3 million is 0.0004% of the world population (7.8bn) and around 0.02% of confirmed cases (correction: 2.1%) (and an even lower percentage of actual cases no doubt). Also, from memory some early models reported showing what might happen if the world did nothing was around 35-40 million deaths, which is lower than the common estimate for Spanish Flu's death toll of 50 million, at a time where the world population was less than a quarter of what it is now.

In short, covid has been a classic example of "lies, damned lies and statistics", which the media have certainly blown out of proportion. On the other hand, if the statistics at stake here are enough to collapse healthcare systems worldwide, many questions need asking about how they're being run and capacity in a world with an increasing [ageing] population in need of more care.

 

[johnnychips]

Many will have seen that today saw worldwide covid deaths pass 3 million widely reported in the news. What of course won't get covered is the wider perspective, such as how 3 million is 0.0004% of the world population (7.8bn) and around 0.02% of confirmed cases (and an even lower percentage of actual cases no doubt). Also, from memory some early models reported showing what might happen if the world did nothing was around 35-40 million deaths, which is lower than the common estimate for Spanish Flu's death toll of 50 million, at a time where the world population was less than a quarter of what it is now.

In short, covid has been a classic example of "lies, damned lies and statistics", which the media have certainly blown out of proportion. On the other hand, if the statistics at stake here are enough to collapse healthcare systems worldwide, many questions need asking about how they're being run and capacity in a world with an increasing [ageing] population in need of more care.

A very perceptive post. Thank you.

 

[Philip Elliott]

Many will have seen that today saw worldwide covid deaths pass 3 million widely reported in the news. What of course won't get covered is the wider perspective, such as how 3 million is 0.0004% of the world population (7.8bn) and around 0.02% of confirmed cases (and an even lower percentage of actual cases no doubt). Also, from memory some early models reported showing what might happen if the world did nothing was around 35-40 million deaths, which is lower than the common estimate for Spanish Flu's death toll of 50 million, at a time where the world population was less than a quarter of what it is now.

In short, covid has been a classic example of "lies, damned lies and statistics", which the media have certainly blown out of proportion. On the other hand, if the statistics at stake here are enough to collapse healthcare systems worldwide, many questions need asking about how they're being run and capacity in a world with an increasing [ageing] population in need of more care.

Good grief your Maths is absolutely crap! 141.225 million cases and 3 million deaths equals just over 2.1% case fatality rate, a factor of 100 greater than your figure. Lies indeed..!

 

[brad465]

Good grief your Maths is absolutely crap! 141.225 million cases and 3 million deaths equals just over 2.1% case fatality rate, a factor of 100 greater than your figure. Lies indeed..!

Oh yes sincere apologies, I must have put too many digits in the calculator with that one. However we know the actual case fatality rate will be lower than 2.1% given all the cases/infections being missed, especially in the first wave in Europe and the US, and in India right now, where they think the number of actual cases is 5-10x higher than what's actually being reported.

This report though backs up the point about 40 million deaths had nothing been done, and while it was done by pessimistic Imperial, it's still proportionately lower than what Spanish Flu did.

 

[Freightmaster]

Many will have seen that today saw worldwide covid deaths pass 3 million widely reported in the news. What of course won't get covered is the wider perspective, such as how 3 million is 0.0004% of the world population (7.8bn)...

Not only that, but the world's population has increased by more than 100 million since the pandemic began!!




MARK

 

[big_rig]

A classic from the Guardian today. They have managed to interview somebody who has forced their disabled adult sons to stay inside for 14 months, with no evidence that they were ever on the 'shielding' lists, and spread misinformation about why they haven't taken the vaccine. None of the 'medical conditions' quoted are reasons not to get it.

Perhaps the best 'public health intervention' would be for the sons to be removed from their mother?

‘If we catch Covid, we die’: UK shielders reflect on still feeling unsafe

Many of those with medical conditions are concerned and nervous about the risk of leaving their homes

www.theguardian.com

“If we catch it, we die; it’s that simple. In the 14 months, I have probably been out about four times, and that’s usually in some dire emergency,”

The family has yet to be vaccinated as their medical conditions, which include type 1 diabetes, adrenal insufficiency, pernicious anemia and thyroid failure, mean they are likely to experience a severe reaction leading to hospital admission, and they are concerned about the risk of catching Covid in hospital when cases are still prevalent.

 

[initiation]

and spread misinformation about why they haven't taken the vaccine

I'm now directly referring to these sort of people, or people who claim that we will be engulfed by another wave as anti-vaxxers. That is what they are as they believe they do not work and/or have horrible side effects. These people will do far more to limit uptake than some traditional anti-vax/5G conspiracy theorist.


I always laugh when people refer to Taiwan like she did in the article - they have in total conducted just over 500k covid tests since the start. We are doing that every ~12 hours! If our testing was at that level we would also have incredibly low cases.
(Source: https://www.cdc.gov.tw/En)

 

[Skimpot flyer]

BBC reporting something that has been circulating on social media.
Labour leader Kier Starmer was challenged about his lack of proper questioning of government policies and failure to provide credible opposition to lockdown as a strategy. Note the beeb doesn’t show the bit where the publican confronts Starmer with ONS statistics, showing the average age of a Covid death is 82.3 vs life expectancy of 81, nor him saying you’ve f***ed the economy over the deaths of elderly people...

Starmer told to leave pub over lockdown policies

The Labour leader is told he has "failed this country" for failing to oppose government lockdown policies.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[PHILIPE]

BBC reporting something that has been circulating on social media.
Labour leader Kier Starmer was challenged about his lack of proper questioning of government policies and failure to provide credible opposition to lockdown as a strategy. Note the beeb doesn’t show the bit where the publican confronts Starmer with ONS statistics, showing the average age of a Covid death is 82.3 vs life expectancy of 81, nor him saying you’ve f***ed the economy over the deaths of elderly people...

Starmer told to leave pub over lockdown policies

The Labour leader is told he has "failed this country" for failing to oppose government lockdown policies.

www.bbc.co.uk

A post followed by much discussion has been posted here:-

www.railforums.co.uk/threads/22nd-february-roadmap-out-of-the-pandemic-lifting-of-restrictions.214216/page-104

 

[kristiang85]

Finally some acknowledgement of the bigger picture on the BBC live feed.

From November to February, Covid was the leading cause of death in England and Wales and has dominated our attention.

But the sharp falls seen in recent months, from 30,000 deaths caused by Covid in January down to 4,400 in March, now mean coronavirus no longer sits on top of that unhappy table.

Nearly 5,000 people died in March due to dementia or Alzheimer’s and only slightly fewer due to heart disease, both causing more deaths than Covid.

Before the pandemic, they had stubbornly remained the leading causes of death in the UK for years.

About another 3,600 people died from colon or lung cancers in March and just over 2,400 from stoke.

The numbers of these deaths has not peaked and troughed as sharply as Covid – most of them only a few hundred different to last month.

And we may not have paid as much attention to these other killers during the peak of the crisis, but after the dust settles, they will still be there, killing more than 10,000 Britons between them every month.

 

[kez19]

Finally some acknowledgement of the bigger picture on the BBC live feed.

So in other words, media says sorry we forgot everything existed prior as full attention COVID but as stats are released from other factors we now realise it’s not full blown COVID as we first reported.

So do we expect the media to now give priority over other things (if we speaking on matters of health now?)

Most of the public would have known this in a way that there would be other factors at play but it’s not reported properly (again this falls at governments levels and media, but media been wetting themselves regardless on reporting)

 

[LOL The Irony]

So in other words, media says sorry we forgot everything existed prior as full attention COVID but as stats are released from other factors we now realise it’s not full blown COVID as we first reported.

It's more sort of a we were never at war with Eastasia.

 

[kez19]

It's more sort of a we were never at war with Eastasia.

Aah the power of media, quite possibly the only thing that is forever at war with other countries to the East unless it’s Russia.

 

[52290]

Aah the power of media, quite possibly the only thing that is forever at war with other countries to the East unless it’s Russia.

I thought that covid had completely been abolished when the Super League hit the media fan.

 

[Bantamzen]

I thought that covid had completely been abolished when the Super League hit the media fan.

And today the BBC have swerved off the CovidMania track thanks to Biden's climate pledge. Now they have remembered that there is much discussion on the environment. I wonder when they will connect trillions of plastic masks, billions of tons of plastic screens, trillions of miles of #covidsecure tapes & stickers, and billions of gallons of sanitisers with the environment?

Could get awkward....

 

[Class 33]

A headline on the Sky News website right now. Spot the mistake they've made!

BRIT Awards to host in-person ceremony with no social distancing - as UK infections continue to rise​

​

 

[brad465]

A headline on the Sky News website right now. Spot the mistake they've made!

Yes I hope someone brings them up on that particular detail.

That said while this is a false statement, Switzerland this week eased some restrictions despite infections truthfully rising there, which, while the same can't be guaranteed to happen here (in terms of a decision being made in that scenario), shows it can be done. They did so on the grounds hospitals weren't at risk of being overwhelmed and the vaccine rollout was progressing well.

 

[kez19]

I thought that covid had completely been abolished when the Super League hit the media fan.

nah that what the deflection for now.

And today the BBC have swerved off the CovidMania track thanks to Biden's climate pledge. Now they have remembered that there is much discussion on the environment. I wonder when they will connect trillions of plastic masks, billions of tons of plastic screens, trillions of miles of #covidsecure tapes & stickers, and billions of gallons of sanitisers with the environment?

Could get awkward....

Whats this plastic you speak, mediaspeak don't know what plastic is but bang on telling us we are in the wrong about it! I'll expect David Attenborough to be wheeled out soon or not so long ago Greta has been on the BBC (documentary programming). Generally media encouraged all this, they see the damage its causing but they'll blame it on Joe Public.

A headline on the Sky News website right now. Spot the mistake they've made!

​

Sky wetting themselves over infections rise but still though bad news sells, nothing positive though? I thought news was meant to be the good the bad and the ugly, now its seems it stuck between the bad and ugly but they'll happily make a song and dance on the negativity (so now we know where the negativity actually comes from.. the media).

 

[Class 33]

Sky wetting themselves over infections rise but still though bad news sells, nothing positive though?

Infections are falling though not rising.

 

[Bantamzen]

Whats this plastic you speak, mediaspeak don't know what plastic is but bang on telling us we are in the wrong about it! I'll expect David Attenborough to be wheeled out soon or not so long ago Greta has been on the BBC (documentary programming). Generally media encouraged all this, they see the damage its causing but they'll blame it on Joe Public.

You mean the Greta seen wearing the same plastic masks being produced in their trillions and being dumped across the globe. Like I said, awkward questions.