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Fake news, misinformation and conspiracy theories threaten to derail the country’s response to Covid-19 and impede progress towards alert level 1.
The government has issued a strong warning after revealing that people linked to the Mt Roskill church group were skeptical about the severity of the pandemic, while an investigator is raising the alarm about far-right groups and fringe political leaders. They are also entering the fray.
Health Minister Chris Hipkins led this afternoon’s Covid-19 briefing with a request to “think twice before sharing information that cannot be verified.”
He said that looking abroad, it was clear that the coronavirus was “very, very real” and “very, very deadly,” without a vaccine, and while he wanted a cooperative approach, he did not rule out punitive measures for people. who continue to deliberately spread lies.
Follow warnings that some church groups face a battle to deter the spread of false information among their communities.
Sociologist Paul Spoonley had his eye on tertiary institutions and far-right opinion groups that settled on campuses and that “spoke to suggestibles, who were interested in hearing alternative opinions.”
“They are certainly spreading misinformation about various aspects of the pandemic and who is behind it,” he said.
The other source of rumors Spoonley was concerned about was fringe political leaders.
“I think there has been a migration of views that normally have a very small minority from New Zealand, now into the public domain. The views you would expect to see from the far right … are starting to be repeated by parties seeking political image”, said.
Among those on his radar was Advance New Zealand co-leader Billy Te Kahika, who has been telling his followers that the government planned Auckland’s most recent closure in advance.
On his Facebook page, his party has used quotes from epidemiologist Dr. Simon Thornley, who does not believe that lockdowns are the correct response to the pandemic.
Dr. Thornley said his views did not make him politically aligned or a believer in conspiracy theories.
“I am guided by science. Politics is not something I can comment on. But I firmly believe that government policy should be guided by science. We are learning a lot in a short space of time with this virus,” he said.
The National President of the New Zealand Union of Student Associations, Isabella Lenihan-Ikin, was confident that students had the skills to know verified information when they saw it.
Universities were releasing updated and regular public health information that students trusted, he said.
“But I think more work can be done to inform not only students but the general public about how to counter that misinformation, because we haven’t seen that escalation or challenging process announced, I don’t think.”
That point of view was shared by M Dentith, a conspiracy theory researcher at the University of Waikato.
Dentith said that last year the University of Auckland had allowed information about white supremacists to spread on campus and that it initially defended its position on the right to free speech.
“A lot of colleges are just gone: ‘Students are old enough to make their own decisions. We don’t need to intervene. ‘
“I think that is the wrong answer because in many situations people are not aware of what the campaigns do, how they work or who they are trying to target. Universities should take a more paternalistic view.”
Hipkins said that everyone has the right to be skeptical and hold their own views, but equally, everyone has the right to be sure.
He urged people to play their part in stifling Covid-19 misinformation by sharing the correct information.
