Instead of sharing important Covid 19 updates, Health Minister Chris Hipkins has had to take time out to scotch false rumours. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Instead of sharing important Covid 19 updates, Health Minister Chris Hipkins has had to take time out to scotch false rumours. Photo / Mark Mitchell
EDITORIAL
If you haven't seen the fictitious social media post about how New Zealand was plunged into another wave of run-and-hide from Covid-19 coronavirus then it may be time to pick up your Facebook game.
Pretty soon after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern grimly informed the nation that the bug wasagain running amok, a slanderous and entirely made-up account began circulating about the so-called culprits.
Every newsroom in the nation was promptly forwarded the fib, often with accompanying questions such as "why aren't you reporting on this?" and "why are you covering this up?" The short answer was, it was not true.
That it didn't merit a reply didn't slow the spread of the slur, however. Conspiracy theorists love the silent treatment. It affirms their persecution complex. There are few thrills greater than believing you have uncovered what you aren't allowed to know.
The clamour reached a crescendo of shares, likes and all manner of emoticons before Health Minister Chris Hipkins took the podium to plead with New Zealanders to stop spreading it.
Hipkins said the rumour contained a number of "vile slurs". "Not only was it harmful and dangerous, it was totally and utterly wrong," a frustrated Hipkins said.
Mischievous and malicious minds then set to creating more of the devil's work by spreading another lie, this time about Oranga Tamariki taking children off parents who test positive for Covid. The ghastly potential harm of this seemed to switch on no lightbulbs among the keyboard clods who hastily shared this around as well.
An irate Hipkins returned to the podium in an attempt to smite this too.
Fact is, everyone loves a bit of tattle. Harmless gossip, we call it. But the high likelihood of scaring vulnerable members of our team of 5 million into hiding from testing is the furthest from harmless we could possibly get right now.
Frightening a super-spreader into ghosting around your own supermarket is about as stupid as stupid gets.
Not least also taking up an overworked Health Minister and his officials' time when the narrative needs to get on track, pretty damn quick.
Please. Pause over that implausible post. Stop and think. And delete it.
