The ‘Other’, a Virus, and the Out of Touch Media
As we near the end of this pandemic-defined year, here’s a recap of some articles that give an overview of how the coverage has progressed in the past months. While we grapple with our daily realities, it’s become evident that the mainstream Western English language media seem to have retreated further into their bubble, continuing to give us coverage on their perceived effects of the pandemic in the developing world and the ‘Other’ that is an odd combination of astounding, offensive, and even hilarious.
Democracies Triumph Over Pandemics (Obviously)
Much of the early pandemic coverage in Western English language media viewed COVID-19 as a problem limited to the dirty ‘Orient.’ It was implied that a virus such as this couldn’t possibly get out of hand in the liberal democracies of the West and the only reason that the virus spread in China is because it’s authoritarian.
The great authoritarianism vs. democracy debate started, where certain media outlets published a spree of articles on how and why Western democracies will fight and prevail over COVID-19 (should it encounter the virus of course — remember that such a thing can’t possibly happen in the West). Underpinning this debate is a story of secrecy, an overbearing state, and whistleblowers. The story needs a hero and the hero is democracy.
Early this year, The Atlantic published an article titled ‘Why democracies are better at fighting outbreaks.’ The article begins by recounting the measures taken in China to contain the spread of the virus in Wuhan and its success; but laments the fact that WHO has commended the response (?)
Even after subsequent reports indicated that the Chinese government’s secrecy and hostility to dissent had helped the outbreak spread, WHO officials have continued to laud Beijing’s response.
Because this article’s central thesis is that only a democracy can stop the spread of the pandemic. According to this simplistic logic, only democracies can accurately report on the progression of a pandemic — aiding epidemiologists and scientists to develop vaccines and understand the trajectory of the spread — and cooperate to lead a global response.
In the real world, the virus spread to both democracies and non-democracies alike. We know that countries which prepared for the pandemic, have functional public health systems and prior experience in dealing with epidemics, and have decisive governments (regardless of whether they’re democracies or not) have been more successful at controlling the infection numbers.
At no point does this article pause in its China bashing spree to seriously consider learning from Wuhan’s success but does ponder on this point:
The world may never know how many lives could have been saved if nations embraced democratic norms of transparency and collaboration.
I’d like to paraphrase this. The world may never know how many lives could have been saved if nations learned from successful infectious disease control case studies. This narrative has been challenged (you can read about this here and here), but frankly, why change it now? Who wants facts and a reality check to dampen the story? That would be such a bore.
The Great Eastern Mystery
After Sinophobia, it was the turn of the Global South. We have been treated to many articles predicting an imminent collapse of the Global South as a result of the pandemic. Rare articles that highlighted success stories often expressed shock and surprise. The New York Times’ ‘No one knows what Thailand is doing right, but so far it’s working’ article is in a different league altogether. Here are the best sections:
Is it the social distancing embedded in Thai culture — the habit of greeting others with a wai, a prayer-like motion, rather than a full embrace — that has prevented the runaway transmission of the coronavirus here?
Did Thailand’s early adoption of face masks, combined with a robust health care system, blunt the virus’s impact? Was it the outdoor lifestyle of many Thais, or their relatively low rates of pre-existing conditions?
Is there a genetic component in which the immune systems of Thais and others in the Mekong River region are more resistant to the coronavirus? Or is it some alchemy of all these factors that has insulated this country of 70 million people?
The article suggests everything — from culture, genetics, face masks and a healthcare system to… an alchemy of several conditions. Yes, you read that right. The New York Times almost touches upon some of the plausible reasons (social distancing, mask wearing, healthcare system) but resorts to irrationality. Something very mysterious is the possible success factor.
Africa Is So Confusing
Africa really did get the worst of the ‘the Global South will collapse’ coverage compared to other regions. The Guardian published an article titled ‘Confounding’: COVID may have already peaked in many African countries.’ Once you read the article closely, you’ll realize that it’s not the pandemic in Africa that’s confounding but the article itself. It begins with the now customary shock expressed at the fact that COVID-19 did not progress according to apocalyptic models that were formulated for Africa.
So naturally the experts are confused.
Now it gets a little strange. An article that is supposedly about Africa digresses to other countries in the developing world; the pandemic data in Yemen and Syria are compared to those of Africa. I’m no infectious disease expert but it is odd to compare 2 countries that are experiencing wars to an entire continent with varying socio-economic and political scenarios.
Jaw-Dropping Headlines
Then there’s the Russophobia. BloombergQuint has an article on ‘Experts question Russian data on COVID-19 death toll.’ This is the revised headline. The original headline was actually ‘Experts want to know why coronavirus hasn’t killed more Russians.’ Yes, this was actually published. But no matter. Even with the revised title, the sentiments remain the same. Similar to the coverage in the Global South, the lack of an apocalyptic scenario is a cause for concern.
Good, Superior Vaccines vs. Bad, Inferior Vaccines
A short summary of the emerging vaccine narrative before I finish. There’s the predictable skepticism over Chinese and Russian vaccines. The Guardian wonders whether China’s COVID-19 research and vaccine can be trusted. Then there’s the tale of both countries abandoning the required level of testing to introduce vaccines to the market faster for propaganda purposes. The New York Times even published an article saying Russia is ‘miffed’ that there hasn’t been greater joy expressed over its vaccine. When will we start seeing articles like ‘Democracies are better at producing vaccines, here’s why’ and the like? There’s also the emerging tale of ‘vaccine research theft’ (read this article and this).
Recently, Bloomberg published an article which denigrates the vaccine produced in China and somehow spins the pandemic in the US as some sort of an advantage. It ends with an absurd sentence:
When it comes to the ideas and people that matter, America and the West are not losing the lead.
In other words, people and ideas in some countries are superior and they will prevail no matter what happens. Insulting and hyperbolic coverage by the Western English language mainstream media about vast swathes of our world is only a continuation of colonial-era Orientalism. Such coverage is equally about the fear of the success of the ‘Other’ and a way to reaffirm cultural superiority during a very trying time. There’s plenty to learn from the ‘Other’ and we can only guess at how different things might have been had the ‘Other’ not been ridiculed.
(Views expressed are the author’s own.)
References
- Berengaut, Ariana A. “Why Democracies Are Better at Fighting Outbreaks.” The Atlantic, 24 Feb. 2020, Why Democracies Are Better at Fighting Outbreaks — The Atlantic
- Cho, Joshua. “No, China Didn’t ‘Stall’ Critical COVID Information at Outbreak’s Start.” Monthly Review. 14 Oct. 2020, MR Online | No, China didn’t ‘stall’ critical Covid information at outbreak’s start
- Bakal, Maitreya. “Some Whistleblowers Are More Equal Than Others.” Mango Press. Mango Press | Some Whistleblowers are More Equal Than Others (mango-press.com)
- Beech, Hannah. “No One Know What Thailand Is Doing Right, but So Far, It’s Working.” The New York Times, 16 Jul. 2020, No One Knows What Thailand Is Doing Right, but So Far, It’s Working — The New York Times (nytimes.com)
- McVeigh, Karen. “‘Confounding’: COVID May Have Already Peaked in Many African Countries.” The Guardian. 16 Sep. 2020, ‘Confounding’: Covid may have already peaked in many African countries | Global health | The Guardian
- Meyer, Henry. “Experts Question Russian Data on COVID-19 Death Toll.” BloombergQuint. 13 May 2020, Experts Want to Know Why Coronavirus Hasn’t Killed More Russians (bloombergquint.com)
- Meyer, Henry. “Experts Want To Know Why Coronavirus Hasn’t Killed More Russians.” MSN News. 13 May 2020, Experts Want to Know Why Coronavirus Hasn’t Killed More Russians (msn.com)
- Spinney, Laura. “Can We Trust Chinese COVID-19 Science?” The Guardian, 11 Oct. 2020, Can we trust Chinese Covid-19 science? | Science | The Guardian
- Davidson, Helen. “China Has Given Almost a Million People Experimental COVID Vaccine, Says Company.” The Guardian, 20 Nov. 2020, China has given almost a million people experimental Covid vaccine, says company | World news | The Guardian
- Cramer, Andrew E. “Russia Is Miffed by Cool Reception for Coronavirus Vaccine.” The New York Times. 24 Aug. 2020, Russia Is Miffed by Cool Reception for Coronavirus Vaccine — The New York Times (nytimes.com)
- Sabbagh, Dan. “Which Countries and Hackers Are Targeting COVID Vaccine Developers?” The Guardian. 22 Nov. 2020, Which countries and hackers are targeting Covid vaccine developers? | Coronavirus | The Guardian
- Sebenius, Alyza. “Russia, North Korea Targeted COVID Research With Cyber-Attacks.” BloombergQuint. 13 Nov. 2020, Russia, North Korea Targeted Covid Research With Cyber-Attacks (bloombergquint.com)
- Cowen, Tyler. “COVID Is Increasing America’s Lead Over China.” Bloomberg. 17 Nov. 2020, U.S., China and the Covid-19 Vaccine Race — Bloomberg
