Journalistic View on COVID-19

In December 2019, cases of phenomena with unknown causes were reported in Wuhan China.

On February 23, 2020, the Italian government issued Decree-Law No. 6 which included urgent measures to manage the virus and the country locked down.

On March 11 of 2020, the World Health Organization officially declared Covid-19 a Pandemic.

On March 15 the United States followed suit with lockdowns along with most of the world that had not shut down already.

Borders closed along with many businesses and schools. People got sick and hospitals became overcrowded. People became stuck at home for longer than they ever thought possible. It will be years until the full extent of the consequences of these events will be fully realized.

Finally, on December 12 the Pfizer vaccine was approved for individuals over the age of 16, and there was hope.

Now, as of July 26, 2022, there were 163,367 new cases reported in the United States and 88,651 new cases in Italy.

However, despite the ever-present new cases, it is safe to say the world has begun to re-open. Borders are open with very few travel restrictions and masks are nearly nonexistent besides the occasional necessity on public transportation and crowded spaces.  Even as cases continue to grow, the new strains have been found to be significantly less deadly and are appearing to be similar to the common cold or flu.

A common phrase many might have heard in the last two years was unprecedented times. From the very first time we heard the word COVID-19, politicians and health care workers alike have been struggling to know what to do and rightfully so because nobody living in this century has ever known a pandemic of this scale. Did shutting down for so long actually prevent loss of life or will its damage to the economy be irreversible? Were the non-medical masks we all wore for over a year actually useless compared to K-95s?  Then there was the question of vaccines. Relationships were ruined and the medical field was divided over whether or not we should be getting them. Anti-Maskers and Anti-Vaccers became common terminology leaving no room for grey space in the debate on pro or anti-masks and vaccines.

So the question is, how do you know what information is right? Finding information untouched by bias was, and still is hard. In America, we had a president telling us injecting bleach could kill the virus while certain governors got on TV every day to instill fear about the danger of everything.

When you can’t trust the politicians speaking to you, who can you trust? Your doctor? Even doctors and nurses were divided over the vaccine. Then there were the websites spouting information about how it could cause infertility in women and crazed online forums saying that it was all a ploy by the government to track us.

These types of views would spark cycles of misinformation. One person telling you the vaccine could cause infertility could then lead to a person googling if the Covid vaccine causes infertility. Then because of algorithms and SEOs all the articles people published saying the vaccine caused infertility would pop up. Next thing you know, you believe it.

So how do you find accurate information? First of all, keep your searches broad. If you hear someone say wearing a mask causes cancer, don’t google does wearing a mask cause cancer? Instead, try searching for something like side effects to wearing a mask. This will lead you to an article from the Cleveland Clinic that assures you there is not, while also cautioning against putting a mask on a child under the age of two.

Second, do research to find unbiased and reputable sources to get your information from. Websites connected to prestigious universities or research institutes such as the Mayo and Cleveland clinics are typically reliable. Medical societies such as the American Pediatric Association and organizations such as the CDC, AMA and WHO are also good sources for standard information. However, be careful of political wording. Be aware of the administration these organizations are working under and how that might be affecting their information.

When in doubt, check multiple sources. It is so easy to read one headline that randomly pops up on your phone and immediately take it as fact without reading further or sourcing the information. Headlines can be extremely misleading without reading the rest of the article.

Another thing to remember is that even though we are two and a half years into this pandemic, many of the people we look to for information still might not know much more than we do. These are still, in fact, unprecedented times, and journalists, politicians, and doctors are still trying to get the information right. Do your own research to consume the most accurate information.

Finally, know that journalists like the ones at Positanonews are doing their best to always provide you with the most accurate information possible, but keep an open mind to the fact that sometimes through no intention of their own people might be wrong.