Quote (IceMage @ 27 Jul 2021 23:55)
At the same time, this talking point about how the American public just need the cold hard facts, and they'll make responsible decisions, is so insanely laughable I'm not even sure those repeating it believe it. It's perfectly reasonable for public health officials to sound the alarm and present data in a way that makes the virus sound more scary, because that will encourage people to take it seriously. They shouldn't lie of course, but people are stupid, particularly Americans, so officials presenting data that encourages people to not take safety precautions, which will result in hundreds of thousands more Americans dead, makes no sense.
I think there's a real disconnect between the wider public and PaRD in this regard. This sub's regulars should skew heavily toward high education and willingness to dive into details and complicated matters. Types like us want to be presented with plain facts because we can handle info like "2% case fatality rate". To get the message to the yokels, officials can't present info like that and have to resort to stuff like "this virus is really really dangerous, jesus wants you to wear a mask".
That said, I still don't think that officials do themselves any favors in the long run when they intentionally present facts in misleading fashion. Even uneducated hillbillies will notice when someone tries to nudge or manipulate them, the typical reaction will be non-compliance.
This post was edited by Black XistenZ on Jul 27 2021 07:01pm