As the world awaits an effective coronavirus vaccine, reporters covering the story face a daunting task: separating fact from fiction. Or, as veteran health care journalist Gary Schwitzer describes it, navigating the “perfect storm of pandemic misinformation.”
“The media have to report that at this point there are undoubtedly far more questions than answers about any of the vaccine candidates,” said Schwitzer, publisher of HeathNewsReview.org, a site that evaluates health journalism. He added: “Please do not report with certainty where certainty simply does not exist.”
Schwitzer says it makes his skin crawl when he sees news stories that quote drug companies saying, “We didn’t see any serious side effects.”
