COVID-19 FACT AND FICTION #1

The world is dealing with an unprecedented health crisis caused by a new virus. With new insights in the way COVID19 spreads, in the way the virus behaves and in the way to deal with the pandemic every day, it is now more important than ever to safeguard the information we share is accurate and fact-based. We have to inoculate ourselves against the fake news and misinformation that infect our newsfeeds and timelines at this crucial moment by fact-checking.

For the duration of the pandemic, I will try to give you an overview of the main issues in CoronaCheck, an Australian email newsletter with the latest from around the world concerning the coronavirus.*

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RACISM

Image source: Twitter through RMIT ABC Fact Check

A video of an altercation over a repeat of a surplus purchase of tins of baby formula in a Melbourne Big W store that went viral is now being used to spread a claim that Chinese nationals have been banned from Australian supermarkets, according to AFP Fact Check. But in these times of fear for the coronavirus, the video is now being shared alongside false claims that “Chinese are banned in Australia[n] supermarkets”.

A spokesperson for Woolworths told AFP they welcomed anyone wishing to shop at their stores while a Coles spokesperson said the claims were “absolutely untrue”.

ANTI-VAXXERS ALREADY ON THE WARPATH

Scientists are rushing to develop a coronavirus vaccine and may be on the brink of testing it on humans, so anti-vaccination campaigners have taken to social media to spread misinformation and fear.

One claim, that seven children died after being vaccinated against COVID-19 in Senegal, has been comprehensively debunked by at least six independent fact-checking organisations; PolitiFact, Lead Stories, Snopes, Reuters, factcheck.org and AFP Fact Check all found the claim, made in the voiceover of a video shared on Facebook, to be false. A spokeswoman for Senegal’s health ministry also rejected the claim as “fake news”.

The video contains news footage of an incident in Senegal which never happened, in which two people were allegedly arrested for falsely claiming they were health ministry officials, there to vaccinate children. In reality, it was a man selling cosmetics door to door, arrested after joking that he had vaccines while wearing a health ministry T-shirt.

Anti-vaxxers are taking advantage of people who only follow news on Facebook and Twitter and who are oblivious to the fact that scientists are only on the verge of testing possible vaccines and that no one is being vaccinated at this point.

YOU CAN CUDDLE YOUR PETS

Image source: Facebook through RMIT ABC Fact Check

A Facebook post suggested that hand sanitiser contains ethylene glycol, which is found in antifreeze and is toxic to humans and animals. But hand sanitizers sold in Australia contain 60 to 95 per cent alcohol in the form of ethanol or isopropyl alcohol and a small amount of some other chemicals. A hand sanitizer would only be dangerous to pets if they licked the hands of someone who had just applied the rub, something most animals would be averse to doing unless they like alcohol.

AND THEN THERE’S RUSSIA

Researchers at Myth Detector in Georgia have determined that the bulk of coronavirus misinformation and disinformation, such as stories that the virus was man-made in the US, that the EU had “abandoned” Italy, and that only authoritative countries like Russia and China could handle the outbreak, which is spreading throughout the country is political and being spread by “openly pro-Russian” news websites.

BRITISH CONSPIRACY THEORISTS

Rumours have appeared online that the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson didn’t have the disease he says he’s now recovering from.

One post, shared widely, claims staff at the hospital where Mr Johnson was treated were forced to sign the “Official Secrets Act”. Two doctors apparently refused to do so and said they didn’t believe the Prime Minister was actually ill. But that post was originally written as satire, according to fact-checkers at Reuters, who spoke to the author. Full Fact also found the post to be based on satire.

But the truth doesn’t seem to matter and the rumour that the PM faked his illness continues to spread on Twitter.

Things that don’t cure and/or prevent COVID-19**

• #1: Boiled orange peels with cayenne pepper are NOT an effective treatment for Coronavirus. – Lead Stories
• #2 Drinking and gargling water: “It’s incorrect to suggest that people who have COVID-19 could cure themselves (either during this initial period or at any other time) by drinking water or gargling.” – Full Fact
• #3 Bathing in hot water: “Taking a hot bath will not prevent you from catching COVID-19.” – The World Health Organisation
• #4 Tea: “At present, there is absolutely no evidence or data to support the claim that tea can cure coronavirus.” – Dr Neeraj Jain, as quoted by The Quint
• #5 Bitter gourd (bitter melon): “This message is false, there is no such information issued by Bihar health department nor there is any evidence that bitter gourd juice can cure COVID-19.” — Dr Naveen Chandra Prasad, quoted by BOOM
• #6 Drinking hot liquids and avoiding ice cream: “Neither drinking hot liquids nor eating cold foods will have a bearing on the body’s core temperature, so would not affect the chances of fighting off the virus.” — Reuters
• #9 Alcoholic drinks: “False reports are circulating that say drinking alcohol can reduce the risk of COVID-19. THIS IS NOT TRUE.” — Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City, quoted by Rappler
• #10 Garlic: “Garlic is a healthy food that may have some antimicrobial properties. However, there is no evidence from the current outbreak that eating garlic has protected people from the new coronavirus.” — World Health Organisation
• #11 Putting antibiotic ointment up your nose: “It’s an antibiotic, not an antiviral and does not have activity against viruses.” — Dr Carrie Kovarik, an associate professor of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania, quoted by AP
• #12 Cannabis: “Killing coronavirus is not included in the known benefits of cannabinoids.” — As listed by the US government’s National Institutes of Health, Rappler
• #14: Silver solution (colloidal silver): “Often [colloidal silver] is peddled as an immune-boosting, disease curing dietary supplement, but there is no scientific evidence to back up these claims.” – PolitiFact
• #17: Tonic Water and Zinc: “There is no scientific evidence that tonic water and zinc can prevent or treat COVID-19. As of mid-April 2020, there is no specific treatment or vaccine for the illness.” – Reuters

*The facts in this article are derived from the Australian RMIT ABC Fact Check newsletters which in turn draw on their own resources and those of their colleagues within the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), of which RMIT ABC Fact Check is a member.

** I’ve gathered all the “things” from previous issues I could find, but #13, 15 and 16 seem to have disappeared from the internet. In future posts, I will only report on any new myths.