Editor's Note: In order to create "emotional impact," official media outlets have repeatedly fabricated stories, some of which have been mocked by netizens and later apologized for and deleted. Here are two articles from a WeChat public account, one of which has already been deleted.
Wildfire Youth | How far can official media go to move us?
From the WeChat public account "Wildfire Youth."
After Auschwitz, there is no more poetry.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, there are jokes everywhere.
In theory, telling jokes at this moment of national mourning is cruel.
But I can't help it.
After "Han Net" warmed the heart of the mayor of Wuhan, the official media has produced another masterpiece.
This has forced me, a working class person, to speak up.
01
On February 15th, it snowed unexpectedly in Wuhan.
The snowflakes filled the sky in a city that rarely sees snow.
A festive photo appeared before my eyes--
A Wuhan resident had written the word "China" in the snow.
Accompanied by a clenched fist.
The information source was China News Network.
A major media outlet based in Beijing.
And the photographer was Zhang Chang.
A journalist who risked getting infected with COVID-19 to document the current situation in China.
Their courage truly deserves our admiration!
Just as I was about to shed tears for the ideal of journalism, a news update from Weifang today shocked me.
Hey, photographer Zhang Chang, someone stole your photo?
To my surprise, as I scrolled down, another "China" snow photo appeared in a residential area in Liaoning.
This time, it was even more blatant, and the identity of the artist was even revealed.
I thought, could this be a parallel universe?
The people's detective urgently solved the case:
In the photo, there is only one household with an air conditioner, so it couldn't be Wuhan!
Experts analyzed the snow-covered road surface in detail:
In the south, the snow is usually wet and muddy, not dry and powdery like this;
In the northeast, there is usually no melting at the edges;
The snow in the photo is thin and slightly melted at the edges,
So, it must be Shandong!
Finally, with the help of technology, a netizen obtained the final answer from a comparison of street views:
Indeed, it is Shandong!
At this point, someone quietly deleted the report.
Photographer Zhang Chang also received a few slaps on the face.
During a disaster, positive news reports to boost morale are normal,
But shouldn't we consider the intelligence of the masses first?
This is not an isolated incident.
In recent days, if you search "run away after leaving behind ten thousand yuan" on Baidu News, you will be shocked by the wealth and speed of the Chinese people.
No one knows why it's ten thousand yuan.
In any case, people from all over the country have joined this money-throwing battle.
They usually remain silent and disappear without a trace.
Whether they are 80-year-old seniors or 10-year-old children, they have agile steps and strong anti-detection abilities.
They always manage to escape from the police, leaving behind a thought-provoking silhouette.
The most impressive one is from Yunnan:
He directly threw ten thousand yuan into the office of the county party secretary.
This guy must be from a secret society,
Otherwise, how could he break through the layers of security at the county government?
After reading all the reports, I can't help but ask: What are the hiring standards of your company?
The more I read, the more I feel that this story is using the secret techniques of my elementary school compositions:
Back then, when writing compositions, there was always a topic that couldn't be avoided:
Write about the most unforgettable thing.
Being wise, I prepared several story templates.
Version one: I saw an old lady fall to the ground... omitted many words... and happily went to school.
Version two: I saw one yuan on the ground... omitted many words... I looked at the little red flower and smiled happily.
Although I was young, I knew:
After the event, I left without a trace,
Hiding my achievements and fame.
Just like the consistent money-throwing stories this time:
I am Chinese, please pass it on to my motherland!
02
What role should the media play in a disaster?
I dare not say too much.
After all, I am just a self-media outlet.
But what role has it actually played?
I can talk about that.
Earlier, "Han Net" established its historical position by reporting "heartwarming" stories.
In fact, there is a follow-up to this story, which is even more exciting.
For those who have forgotten, let me briefly review that heartwarming article.
On February 11th, the number of confirmed cases in Wuhan was 42,708 on the day "Han Net" published the article. The internet was filled with desperate pleas for help from Wuhan residents.
A girl had to bang on a gong and shout for help on the balcony because her mother didn't have a hospital bed.
How tragic.
There was public resentment towards Wuhan Mayor Zhou Xianwang.
However, a commentator named Yang Jian from "Han Net" saw this differently.
The author... looked into the tired eyes of the mayor, and the determination in his eyes moved me... Even in such a high-risk situation, he can still go against the current. Why can't we stop criticizing and give the mayor of Wuhan some warmth?
Let's not talk about the fact that the pun "going against the current" is too outdated; there is also the phrase "even in such a high position, he can come to inspect," which is full of flattery and power worship.
I think this author seriously lacks a sense of loyalty. Didn't they learn the lesson from the text "Serve the People" in elementary school?
What happened next?
On February 13th, there was a major leadership change in Wuhan, Hubei Province.
The Party Secretary of Wuhan and the Party Secretary of Hubei Province were both removed from their positions.
As soon as the former left, the media in Hubei began to change their tune.
No more warmth.
The anchor came out strong, criticizing the former leaders:
At such a critical moment, they were still leisurely sending out notices, filling out forms, and reporting information, as if doing so could keep the epidemic out. Formalism and procrastination are more terrifying than the coronavirus itself. They have chilled people's hearts, damaged the party's image, and exacerbated the epidemic. They are more despicable and sinister than the virus itself.
Well said.
But when I looked at the date of publication, why did it happen to be right after the leadership change?
At this moment, a saying came to mind:
When the wall collapses, everyone pushes.
And another saying:
Fortunes change, and heaven bypasses no one.
Zhou Xianwang, today they warm your heart, tomorrow they will dig your grave.
Take care.
03
Charlie Chaplin, the people's artist, once said: The core of a joke is always tragedy.
This statement couldn't be more suitable for my article.
Looking at the media's performance during this epidemic--
First, there was ambiguity.
After People's Daily strongly promoted the use of Shuanghuanglian to inhibit the novel coronavirus, it led to a rush to buy Shuanghuanglian, and the stock price skyrocketed.
Then there was misinformation.
China Net edited Li Lanjuan's speech, leading the public to believe that "pets can also be infected with the novel coronavirus," resulting in the cruel scene of burying cats and dogs by neighborhood committees.
And there was the distortion of facts, making the crime even worse.
Changjiang Daily labeled a plea for help from the people on Weibo as "rumors," causing the demands of the sick residents of Baibuting to be ignored and turning it into an isolated island.
There are countless examples like these.
After reading them, I couldn't help but worry about the state of our media industry.
For this reason, I strongly recommend that media outlets at all levels conduct regular health check-ups for their employees.
First, check their memory, then their intelligence, and finally their hearts.
As the epidemic spreads internationally, the Japanese government announced today that Japan has entered the early stages of the epidemic.
And as early as the 9th, NHK quickly released a 54-minute documentary.
The subtitles read:
We will tell you everything we know and don't know about the virus.
It's embarrassing that I learned about the situation in my own country through Japanese media.
During the epidemic, there are so many things worth recording.
The separation of loved ones, the perseverance of life, the brilliance of humanity.
There are also many things worth reflecting on.
Social supervision, disease prevention and control, political systems.
Today's news is tomorrow's history.
Who would have thought? In this magical year of 2020,
The stories we leave behind for future generations are not about truth and virtue;
They are about empty sacrifices and hypocritical heroes.
And,
The grand dreams of newborns who start speaking after 20 days.
- The End -
Media Observations | 4 media outlets, 3 major mistakes in 2 days, all very low-level
From the WeChat public account "Media Observations"
In recent days, it seems that the media has been busy making mistakes and apologizing.
Yesterday, Guizhou Comprehensive Radio and Television and Heilongjiang TV, and today China News Network and Huashang Daily, have all apologized to their readers for the mistakes made in their articles.
Interestingly, the mistakes made by these four media outlets are all very "subpar."
Two low-level mistakes
Just now, China News Network issued an apology on Weibo, stating that in the photo series article "Wuhan, Hubei welcomes snowfall" published on the 15th, due to lax review, a snow scene from Shouguang, Shandong was mistakenly used as a snow scene in Wuhan, causing misunderstanding and confusion among netizens. We deeply apologize for this. We will learn from this lesson and approach news reporting with a more responsible attitude and professional spirit. We welcome the supervision of netizens.
On the official website of China News Network, the photo has also been adjusted, with the original 7 photos reduced to 6.
△ This mistaken photo has been deleted
However, before China News Network issued its apology, the photo had already been reposted by other media outlets such as China Youth Daily, Global Times, and Guangming Daily.
On February 15th, at 20:25, the official WeChat account of Dalian Radio and Television Station's "Dalian News" published a news article with the headline "Shocking! Hardcore scene appears in Dalian snow." This article also used the same photo and claimed that a picture supporting China had appeared in a snow-covered area of a certain residential community in Dalian. However, this post has been deleted.
China News Network apologized for the photo, while Huashang Daily apologized for the article.
On February 16th, the Huashang Daily's headline account "Huashang Hanzhong" published an article titled "Chronicle of the Anti-Epidemic: A child less than 20 days old voluntarily joins the frontlines of the fight against the epidemic..." The article told the touching stories of several frontline workers in the fight against the epidemic. However, the article had logical inconsistencies, leading to criticism from netizens.
Soon after, Huashang Hanzhong deleted the original article and issued an apology statement:
On February 15th, the headline account "Huashang Hanzhong" published an article titled "A child less than 20 days old voluntarily joins the frontlines of the fight against the epidemic..." The article included three touching stories of frontline workers in the fight against the epidemic. The title of the article was based on the content of the third story, which was about Yang Lang, an auxiliary police officer in Yang County, who volunteered to be on duty at the epidemic inspection point less than 20 days after his child was born. However, in the process of integrating the events of the anti-epidemic in Hanzhong on the 15th, the editor of the "Huashang Hanzhong" headline account made a mistake due to rushed work, confusing two of the events, resulting in the incorrect mention of "a child less than 20 days old" in the article, causing many misunderstandings.
Two radio and television media outlets spread a "major violation of discipline news" rumor
Causing a huge uproar
On February 15th, Gao Fu, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, who had not appeared in public for a long time, suddenly became a hot topic.
In the morning, Guizhou Comprehensive Radio and Television and Heilongjiang TV, two official Weibo accounts, released news stating that Gao Fu had been placed under investigation, and even specified that the information came from the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gao Fu's many statements have been repeatedly contradicted, leading to dissatisfaction and criticism from netizens:
On March 4, 2019, during the Two Sessions, Gao Fu stated that China would not see a virus like SARS again. However, 10 months later, the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, with a much higher infectivity than SARS.
On December 31, 2019, Gao Fu and a team of experts from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention went to Wuhan for an investigation and believed that this new coronavirus was "preventable and controllable" and "would not be transmitted from person to person." However, on January 20, 2020, academician Zhong Nanshan confirmed that the new coronavirus could be transmitted from person to person, and the State Council included COVID-19 as a statutorily notifiable infectious disease.
On January 22, 2020, Gao Fu stated at a press conference that the current evidence does show that children and young people are less susceptible to the virus. On February 2, 2020, the National Health Commission issued a notice on the prevention and control of COVID-19 in children and pregnant women, clearly stating that "children and pregnant women are susceptible to the novel coronavirus infection."
After being widely spread, the news was quickly debunked by netizens. On the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the only information related to "Gao Fu" was about Gao Fubo, the former Party Secretary and Chairman of Jilin Trust Co., Ltd., who was under investigation, with the announcement made in December 2018.
Guizhou Comprehensive Radio and Television quickly deleted the false information and issued an apology.
If it weren't for Guizhou Comprehensive Radio and Television as the source, it would be impossible to know the origin of the rumor that "Gao Fu has been placed under investigation."
In the afternoon of February 15th, the official WeChat account of China Science Daily, ScienceNet, published an article titled "Gao Fu: Discussing and Communicating Epidemic Prevention and Control with WHO Experts." The article immediately responded to the rumor: Academician Gao Fu is currently receiving World Health Organization experts who have come from all over the world to discuss and communicate about the prevention and control of COVID-19. This can be considered an official debunking of the rumor.
Frequent low-level mistakes
Beware of the "information epidemic"
As the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the country, various false rumors have also emerged. Previously, someone photoshopped a picture of Dingxiang Doctor, claiming that "clinical research data shows that drinking the urine of children under 8 years old can prevent the novel coronavirus." In response, the Dingxiang Doctor team debunked the rumor: The PS technique is quite good, I almost believed it myself.
△ Fake image
△ Official debunking by Dingxiang Doctor
On February 1st, a screenshot of the digital edition of People's Daily was circulated on social media. After verification by the WeChat public account Media Observation, it was confirmed to be a fake image.
△ Fake screenshot of the Party newspaper's digital edition
△ Real page 3 of People's Daily on February 1st, without the rumored news.
However, this fake screenshot fooled the news director of Jiangsu TV, and it was officially broadcasted on TV that evening, turning the fake screenshot into fake news.
In the past two days, the media has made mistakes similar to those made by People's Daily with the fake screenshot. These are very low-level mistakes that could have been avoided with just 3 minutes of fact-checking on the official website and 5 minutes of proofreading.
In an article published yesterday, ScienceNet discussed these unfounded rumors on social media. On February 12th, MIT Technology Review's "Technology and Health" column published an article stating that the novel coronavirus is actually the first "information epidemic" spread through social media - social media has compressed information and rumors from around the world at an unprecedented speed, making it difficult for people to obtain accurate information, which has exacerbated the spread of panic, racial discrimination, and the desire for hope and other emotions and behaviors.
For journalists, the more pressure there is, the more cautious they should be, providing readers with channels to obtain the truth and preventing the spread of the "information epidemic."