Darryl Betts
darryllrbetts.wordpress.com
Darryl is a businessman and a post-graduate student in Philosophy at the University of Auckland, with particular interests in the philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, epistemology, logic, and AI. He holds a BSc in Computer Science and a BA in Philosophy, Logic and Computation.
I have read a lot recently about New Zealand Government funding of selected media organizations – the so-called “public interest journalism” initiative, but I was interested to witness it in action in my local community.
The first was on the front page of the February 23rd issue of the Eastern Courier which is delivered free to households in parts of Auckland:
The source of the article is made very clear with “Local Democracy Reporting” mentioned prominently. If the Eastern Courier ever had any of their own journalists who go out into the community to find topics of interest, I doubt whether they have any now.
The first narrative element which stands out is the “South Auckland Omicron surge”. Nothing unusual here – it’s the language we have been seeing constantly for more than 2 years. Of course, no data is given to justify the assumption that the South Auckland share of omicron cases is something we should be worried about. And of course, it’s the same old “cases” rhetoric – which is vague to the point of meaninglessness.
The main topic of the article appears to be criticism that New Zealand government drug regulatory body MedSafe is taking too long to approve big pharma products Paxlovid and Molnupiravir – both of which are new. Of course, there is no mention of Ivermectin – an approved drug with a well-established efficacy against Covid-19 and an excellent safety record, or any of the other existing medications which have been very effective against Covid-19. This glaring bias – both in the reporting – and in the health system for which it is speaking – is so absurd it makes me want to laugh. Except of course that this kind of behaviour has cost countless lives elsewhere in the world. Fortunately for all the people involved in this theatre, omicron is unlikely to cost many lives here – at least not directly.
It is interesting to note the language used throughout the main body of the article. The new drugs are expected to reduce hospitalization. One of the doctors quoted in the article says “We’re expecting a peak in case numbers in March…”. The article makes claims about the types of people that would be first in line for the drugs. The other doctor quoted says “We are expecting to have to deal with sicker patients…”. She also makes a prediction that the drugs won’t help stop the spread of Covid. Another person quoted says the drugs would be helpful for subsequent waves – they will make a real difference.
None of it this about what is actually happening – it’s all about what is expected or predicted, and in the past 2 years, we have been given very good reason to be sceptical of this kind of rhetoric. It does little more than keep fear alive and has a very poor track record for accuracy.
The other aspect of the narrative which is difficult to miss is the obsession with unvaccinated people. The article never misses an opportunity to point the finger at the unvaccinated. It’s too childishly transparent, but we know it works because of the way so many New Zealanders have been fooled into seeing the unvaccinated as a problem. This is peak absurdity given what is now known about the lack of efficacy of these vaccines and the mildness of omicron – although there never was a time when the unvaccinated posed a significant problem for the community or the health system.
So this article gets top marks for adherence to the narrative – their paymasters in the government will be fully satisfied.
The second article is from the same publication – this time the March 2nd issue:
Again the source is government-funded Local Democracy Reporting. This time the narrative focus is hospital delays and waiting lists. Of course, none of this is any surprise to those many of us here and overseas who could see the magnitude of the public health problem that would be created by lockdowns and other poorly thought out government policies.
But of course, there is no mention of lockdowns here. Predictably the cause is the supposed surge in omicron cases – although again no actual data is given. They mention “staff availability” as being a factor, but it must have slipped their mind to mention the 1200-1400 odd health professionals* who were recently forced out of their jobs and careers by the government’s vaccine mandates.
It is extremely sad to see this but entirely in keeping with what we have become used to from the government and their tame mainstream media.
What we should be reading on the front pages of our papers are ground-breaking exposes. The journalists working for this paper (if it has any) should be asking hard questions of those in power.
Like why they backed lockdowns when a severe public health backlog affecting the local community was an inevitable consequence.
Why they allowed local health professionals to be pushed out of their jobs when they were needed most.
Why the New Zealand government is still ignoring the most effective therapeutics.
And why they are not being honest with the people in our communities about the mildness of omicron.
*Footnote: I have seen various numbers suggested for the number of health workers forced out by vaccine mandates. I believe it is somewhere in the vicinity of 1200-1400 but I do not know the exact number or whether an exact number is even known.