In public health crisis, ignore media, listen to experts

The media’s involvement in recent politics illuminates the question of its bias toward one candidate or cause. Arguably the media should be neutral yet we must differentiate between a pundit and a journalist. However, as a retired public health official, I first noticed the media’s tendency to breathe hyperbole into public health issues after Cosmopolitan magazine published a feature article on genital herpes in the early 1970s.

This was my first observation of what I now call Media Disease; the association between a media report on an emerging new disease or public health event and the public’s reaction. The VD clinic I was working in when Cosmopolitan published the herpes article was filled with young women fearful they had contracted this “new” infection. This continued until the next new threat appeared and has continued for the 30 years plus since.

Remember Ebola or Zika? They have faded because at some point the public started to listen to public health officials rather than the media’s hype.

Additionally, the public is affected when politicians herd to the front to quell the appearance that no one is in charge; and throw money at the issue. When, in fact, the trained public health officials are too often pushed to the rear and intimidated by the media and politicians.

The message I offer is simple but true: Listen to the officials who are trained to investigate and prevent public health dangers to the public. And not the media, who often are more concerned about headlines and bylines and ratings. The professional public health officials appointed this awesome task will sound the siren at the appropriate time. While trained to err on the side of caution, they will never throw hyperbole and unfounded fear at the public: In a public health crisis there is no place for pundits.

This story was originally published February 28, 2017 at 4:23 PM with the headline "In public health crisis, ignore media, listen to experts."