BILL GATES, 5G, AND OUTRIGHT DENIERS
Zoë Wallace
Head of Political and Global Impacts
Co-Editor-in-Chief
Secretary and Outreach Officer
Introduction:
As the end of May approaches, and the COVID-19 death toll exceeds 100,000 in the United States, many states are beginning to lift the restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of the virus. Though many people may be feeling the effects of “cabin fever,” or are now bored by the restrictions that have kept them away from their favorite restaurants and beaches, the number of infections and deaths due to the virus continues to rise each day. President Trump has recently expressed pride in the state of the stock market, and he claims on Twitter that the “Transition to Greatness has started, ahead of schedule,” prompting numerous supporters to double down on their pushes to reopen businesses.
It is important to remember why we are practicing social distancing and wearing masks: we do not want to flood our hospitals with critically ill patients. “Flattening the curve” to prevent overcrowding of hospitals has proven to be an effective method to mitigate the effects of the virus. Those who visit newly-opened beaches or restaurants without a mask are not only risking their lives but potentially putting hundreds of other people in danger. If they were to be infected with COVID-19, and pass it to someone else (for example, an older family member) who is vulnerable to the disease, this person is now at risk of dying. If they visit a crowded public place and infect multiple people, the newly infected people will in turn potentially infect others, leading to an outbreak that may eventually overwhelm hospital resources and cause preventable deaths. Many of the deaths in New York were due to overwhelmed healthcare providers and a lack of ventilators and other medical equipment necessary for keeping critically ill people alive. The more people who are infected, the more ventilators, oxygen tanks, PPE, and other hospital resources will be needed. These resources are in limited supply.
Coronavirus has often been compared to the flu, but there are a few things that make COVID-19 much worse:
We have no antibodies to fight infection against this virus since it is new (meaning that everyone is susceptible to illness, either asymptomatically or with symptoms).
We have no vaccine, meaning that anyone can be infected.
Coronavirus has both a higher infection rate and a higher mortality rate than the flu.
Coronavirus has a higher hospitalization rate than the flu. Hospitals may be overwhelmed.
There are many unknowns concerning the coronavirus in comparison to the flu, including the best treatment regimen for infected patients.
On top of all of this, asymptomatic carriers may make up 25 to 50% of all carriers. This means that even if a person is not experiencing any symptoms, they can still infect others. To top it off, tests are not widely available for routine testing to find and quarantine asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic carriers and improve contact tracing. People will be forced to question their values: Is their barbershop reopening worth the risk of all visitors contracting the coronavirus? Is their trip to the beach important enough to take up numerous hospital beds and ventilators if things do not go as planned? Where does your right to freedom end, when your actions begin to affect the health of others?
Complicating the situation even further is the rampant spread of misinformation and disinformation over social media, often finding expression in the form of conspiracy theories. In this article, the conspiracy theories surrounding Bill Gates, 5G cell towers, and deniers of the virus will be explored, as well as how they have impacted the ongoing battle against the coronavirus.
Conspiracy Theory: Bill Gates
In the first few months of the coronavirus, many internet conspiracy theories about the virus were centered around billionaire Bill Gates. During the initial stages of the outbreak, Bill Gates was quick to begin funding efforts to find a vaccine to the virus, which some have extrapolated to mean that he created or at least patented the original virus. Although there are no facts to support these theories, on March 19, a youtube video appeared which argued that the vaccine that Bill Gates produced would include a microchip that would track everyone who received it. The video went viral. A news article from the New York Post covering the video did not reveal that the information was false, leading to a rise in confidence in this theory, especially within the Facebook community. The anti-vaccine community, as well as those who believe the vaccine will be harmful, have staged multiple protests throughout the nation.
Walter Quattrociocchi, a data scientist at the Ca’Foscari University of Venice, Italy, asserts that since so many people have been staying home during the pandemic and are searching for answers online, misinformation has had the opportunity to spread throughout various internet communities. This is due to the rapidly developing nature of information about the virus, and the many unknowns that still exist. With this air of uncertainty, conspiracy theories and false information have been able to fill the gaps to fit the narrative that people would like to believe.
Although conspiracy theories have been an issue all over the world for hundreds of years, this specific situation (the coronavirus pandemic combined with the free flow of unverified information on social media) allows for misinformation and disinformation to affect matters of life or death. If the movement to distrust vaccines becomes large enough, herd immunity will be very difficult to achieve and those who refuse to inject the vaccine may die due to their unfounded beliefs. The development of technology that allows like-minded people to connect around the world can be dangerous for the spread of misinformation, since those who begin a movement based on false information may gain a following of many people who are looking for answers and wish to believe what they find.
Conspiracy Theory: 5G
Another movement, which also found traction on social media platforms, is the conspiracy theory that 5G cellular towers are causing the coronavirus pandemic. These believers have argued that “5G suppresses the immune system or accelerates the spread of disease” (National Post). Some have even asserted that the 5G towers are diffusing the virus through noxious waves and that coronavirus lockdowns have been put in place to give the government time to construct more 5G cell towers without obstruction from the public. These claims have no evidence whatsoever, and numerous leaders have expressed their annoyance when faced with questions of the legitimacy of these theories, including British Cabinet secretary Michael Grove, who described them as “dangerous nonsense.”
These theories have found expression in the burning and destruction of multiple 5G cell towers in England and Australia. The people who perpetrated these acts, which caused severe damage to phone lines (which are extremely necessary for emergency communications during a pandemic), believed they were doing the right thing.
Conspiracy Theory: Deniers
The final group that will be addressed in this article is the Coronavirus Deniers. In March, these groups organized behind the hashtag #FilmYourHospital, for which supporters would drive to their local hospitals and take videos of empty offices and parking lots. This was supposed to prove that the virus itself was a hoax, and that the hospitals were in no danger of being overwhelmed.
This movement did not take into account the fact that hospitals were encouraging people at this time to stay home and cancel all appointments unless you were experiencing an emergency. This was intended to curb the spread of the virus in hospitals and leave room for those who may need more intense care. Many doctors were working from home, and were receiving calls from patients who believed they had the virus. Due to the lack of coronavirus testing capacity, doctors would usually recommend that the patients stay home, keeping their distance from others for two weeks, unless their symptoms were severe enough to merit a trip to the hospital.
In addition, many of these seemingly “empty” hospitals were preparing for a flood of people. San Diego did not experience the same number of cases as New York City, but San Diego hospitals continued to prepare for the worst so that if the virus begins to spread within the community, the hospitals would be ready to handle the surge.
The family and friends of the 100,000 people who have died due to the coronavirus in the US would most likely not share the views of the “Coronavirus Deniers,” and the expression of these views has not only been viewed as factually incorrect, but also insensitive to those who have lost someone they loved due to the coronavirus.
Conclusion:
The coronavirus was not created by Bill Gates, and the vaccine will not contain microchips to track every citizen. The coronavirus is not spread through 5G cell towers and the government is not conspiring to keep all citizens locked in their houses while 5G cell towers are being constructed. And finally, the coronavirus is real.
Misinformation and disinformation are dangerous threats to the world during any time of crisis. It is important to understand the distinction between these two words: misinformation refers to false information that is not intended to mislead the reader, while disinformation refers to false information provided with the intention of misleading the reader. Relatively new advancements in technology allow social movements founded on false pieces of information to gain traction and result in potentially dangerous action, such as protesting without masks or refusing to comply with physical distancing, and even arson in the destruction of 5G cell towers.
Another threat to the progress being made in “flattening the curve” (reducing the rate of infection) is the surge of protests to reopen the economy. Although this is not a conspiracy theory, ending lockdowns and restrictions early will likely result in just as much damage as believing the lies on the internet. People will die, which many have argued is more important than the economy suffering for a few more months. Haven’t we lost enough people?
Stay safe, and always fact check.
Sources:
Plater, Roz. “50 Percent of People with COVID-19 Aren't Aware They Have Virus.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 24 Apr. 2020, www.healthline.com/health-news/50-percent-of-people-with-covid19-not-aware-have-virus.
Ball, Philip, and Amy Maxmen. “The Epic Battle against Coronavirus Misinformation and Conspiracy Theories.” Nature News, Nature Publishing Group, 27 May 2020, www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01452-z.
Marsh, Calum. “5G, Bioweapons, Bill Gates: Why Are COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories Gaining Traction?” National Post, 27 May 2020, nationalpost.com/news/5g-bioweapons-bill-gates-why-are-covid-19-conspiracy-theories-gaining-traction.
Gruzd, Anatoliy, and Philip Mai. “'Coronavirus Deniers' Say They Can Prove the Pandemic Is an Elaborate Hoax.” National Post, 24 Apr. 2020, nationalpost.com/news/now-coronavirus-deniers-are-claiming-that-the-covid-19-pandemic-is-an-elaborate-hoax.
Weber, Paul, and Frank Jordans. “Protesters Decry Coronavirus Stay-At-Home Orders Across The US, Including San Diego.” KPBS Public Media, KPBS, 19 Apr. 2020, www.kpbs.org/news/2020/apr/18/protesters-us-san-diego-coronavirus-stay-at-home/.
Radcliffe, Shawn. “Here's Why COVID-19 Is Much Worse Than the Flu.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 26 May 2020, www.healthline.com/health-news/why-covid-19-isnt-the-flu.
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