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What's happening in Italy? Media rant.

114 replies

Flippetydip · 03/04/2020 06:53

The media in general and the BBC specifically are really beginning to grate on me. They are only reporting the negatives in every situation. Since the USA death toll has become high that's all they've focused on. What is happening in Italy now? Has it levelled out? If so, why aren't we hearing about it? Why are the recovery rates (far greater numbers) never mentioned at the same time as new cases and death rates?

People need some positivity. I realise that the situation is dire, believe me, I do, but if we are not given some hope in the situation, morale is going to become incredibly low.

OP posts:
KaronAVyrus · 03/04/2020 10:17

The BBC has always had a bizarre obsession with the USA. They often forget that there are 7 billion people on the planet.

I watched Victoria Derbyshire read the news the other morning and she pretty much had her phone in her hand the entire time and read out snippets of crap from the Twittersphere. It was how I imagine your average 13yr old would behave as a newsreader. It was extremely unprofessional.

And don’t get me started when one BBC newsreader “interviews” another BBC journalist.

The BBC is one step above the Daily Mail.

Bluntness100 · 03/04/2020 10:19

There is a huge difference between a channel broadcasting what is conflicting views and picking the worst case every time, fair enough, but the bbc are factually inaccurate.

As said, I sat and watched fergus Walsh early this week on the six o clock news proclaim that our death rate was doubling every two days and we would hit a thousand deaths a day by now.

This was utterly factually inaccurate, there is no way round it. We have been doubling every three to four days, and have not doubled every two days since the beginning a few weeks ago.

To sit there and say we are doubling every two days and would be hitting a thousand deaths a day is either hugely incompetent or the man was scaremongering. There is no excuse for it. It was basic most kids could do.

So, we can say fair enough, the bbc goes for worst case and treating it with the caution and seriousness it deserves, fine. But no one can excuse factually incorrect reporting. Particularly not at a time like this, or when to check the facts is as simple as getting your calculator out and adding two sets of numbers together. Or even friggen listening to the press conference where the math was even done for them.

As said, the editor also did an interview on the six o clock and proclaimed experts looks only at death rates. If he’d bothered his arse to watch the press conference at any stage, he’d have heard them say they look at transport, rate of infection, hospitalisations, icu cases, and deaths.

These are only two examples, but it’s a regular occurrence these men go on that program and talk absolute and utter bollocks.

KaronAVyrus · 03/04/2020 10:23

The BBC used to be amazing 20yrs ago but has really gone down the pan. No idea why.

C8H10N4O2 · 03/04/2020 10:38

The BBC used to be amazing 20yrs ago but has really gone down the pan. No idea why

Because their funding has been slashed and they no longer have the budget to pay for researchers and investigative journalists to fully investigate stories. So "briefings" from political parties, companies, lobby groups end up being broadcast as fact because nobody is available to check them.

We get the public services we pay for.

tobee · 03/04/2020 10:39

Hmm... successive governments trying to destroy the BBC and cap the license fee maybe? 🤔

tobee · 03/04/2020 10:39

X post

C8H10N4O2 · 03/04/2020 10:42

To sit there and say we are doubling every two days and would be hitting a thousand deaths a day is either hugely incompetent or the man was scaremongering.

Which model(s) were in use? I've heard officially appointed government advisors who build the models give equally inconsistent answers as the different models focus on different parameters (eg some only count deaths certified as CV and not where it is a factor in premature death).

The woeful lack of testing makes it impossible to predict accurately in any of the models so its hardly surprising that appointed experts form different view points and reporting reflects that.

If you are dealing with an organisation which deals in spin and not clear communication of facts (and is clear where they are not binary facts) you will get sloppy reporting.

Balhammom · 03/04/2020 10:43

Have any good daily broadsheet delivered (or get it online) and you will find out exactly what is happening!

NoMorePoliticsPlease · 03/04/2020 10:45

You really cant rely of stats. Even the countable deaths, as these dont include deaths at home or nursing homes, either here or in Italy. My friends in Italy are hoping the rpeak will be in two weeks ( it is working its way down the country from the north, the the centre badly affected just now. Please dont rely on the press or most other information, just lock down for as long as it takes. If people relax, the whole thing will take longer and the NHS will not cope

KaronAVyrus · 03/04/2020 10:45

Yeah, I might treat myself to a subscription with The Times now and get some proper reporting.

TheCanterburyWhales · 03/04/2020 10:46

Very true Lee.
I keep going to dp and saying "are there people rioting in the streets?"
The worst sensationalism I've seen is from Sky news.

ChardonnaysPetDragon · 03/04/2020 10:48

My friends in Italy are hoping the rpeak will be in two weeks

Are you friends epidemiologists?

Matildathehun77 · 03/04/2020 10:51

My friends in Italy are hoping the rpeak will be in two weeks ( it is working its way down the country from the north, the the centre badly affected just now. Please dont rely on the press or most other information

So we don't rely on the press or any official statistics, but the word of @NoMorePoliticsPlease 's "friends in Italy" however are an excellent and reliable source Grin

Zaphodsotherhead · 03/04/2020 11:00

I agree with Flippertydip.

We all KNOW it's a terrible thing that's happening. We know we have to stay indoors, restrict movement etc etc. But without a little bit of good news people are just going to start thinking 'oh well, I'm going to die anyway, I might as well just go on with life as normal' and start breaking lockdown.

People have to be given something to live for and look forward to. The daily round of bad news, death lists and numbers is fine, factually, but fgs give us something to aim towards! A bit of light at the end of the tunnel!

tenlittlecygnets · 03/04/2020 11:06

@Flippetydip - THIS is what we should be given news of.

There are a million reliable news sources out there. Try www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

Don't wait passively to be 'goven' news - seek out the news and think critically about what source you are using.

tenlittlecygnets · 03/04/2020 11:07

or given Hmm

TheCanterburyWhales · 03/04/2020 11:14

If you look at the map and table I posted with Wednesdays figures you can see that overwhelmingly cases remain in the north. Initially, there were fears that there would be widespread infection in the south due to the mass exodus on the 7th but at least for now, and because national lockdown followed, that hasn't happened and hopefully now won't. Obviously there are some areas more affected, as can be seen on the map, but I'm in a south eastern town of 100,000 people, and we have had 10 confirmed cases and 1 death. (He came down from Milan on the 7th)

tenlittlecygnets · 03/04/2020 11:16

The Guardian's coverage of coronavirus is excellent. I'm not sure it's optimistic, though, especially re Ecuador.

Melassa · 03/04/2020 11:20

I echo everything LeeMiller wrote. I’m in Lombardy and the hospital admissions have dropped right off, so there is cautious optimism that we have turned the corner here at least, with the possibility of a staggered return to work after Easter or in early May.

I’ve seen no riots, no violence, everyone is excruciatingly polite in the supermarket queues. At present the only unrest that has been reported in the Italian papers is in Palermo and Naples, where there is a lot more poverty and a large black economy. There is also a criminal group instigating people to raid supermarkets and walk out without paying.

The UK press are showing themselves up with excess sensationalism. First Brexit, now Covid. Any crumb of bad news from elsewhere is seized upon and amplified, whereas good news is generally ignored, or at the very least played down. Added to this is the British perception of some nationalities, which is quite often insulting.

TheCanterburyWhales · 03/04/2020 11:24

Agreed Melassa.
Hope you are keeping safe up there.

WeBuiltCisCityOnSexistRoles · 03/04/2020 11:29

The BBC are fucking laughable at the moment.

A particular highlight for me was yesterday's press conference when Matt Hancock was asked how he was tested (given the shortage etc etc) and the BBC hastily ended their coverage to put the weather update on. Yes, it's 6pm so I would rather find out if it'll rain tomorrow even though I'm not leaving the fucking house Hmm rather than watching Matt Hancock squirm when trying to justify the government's total fucking ineptitude in the face of a global pandemic killing thousands in the U.K.

Still, at least it won't rain today.

Gin96 · 03/04/2020 11:34

Yes and people coming on here and bashing any good news, I was actually told I shouldn’t be spreading good news at it will give the wrong impression and will encourage people to break lockdown 🙄 I do wonder if an agenda is being pushed here, plus death numbers being way over exaggerated 😡

TheCanterburyWhales · 03/04/2020 11:46

Well, most medical sources seem to say that death figures are being underreported everywhere tbf.
And by definition there are more infected people who have not been tested if countries only test those presenting in hospitals etc.

Gin96 · 03/04/2020 11:58

That maybe true but you can’t just make a number up re death figures from coronvirus, it was over exaggerated by 960,000

Gin96 · 03/04/2020 11:58

If that isn’t scaremongering I don’t know what is.