[Reporter’s Eye] Be aware of fake news trampling the hope

Recently, the South Korean media industry is intensely disputing over a bill imposing punitive damages.

 

Democratic Party Lawmaker Noh Woong-rae issued a legislative notice on a bill to include general media and portal websites as subjects for the punitive damages, which awards compensation valuing maximum of triple the damages to a prevailing plaintiff of a libel case, where damages are caused due to intentional distribution of false and distorted information.

 

Reportedly, the media industry is strongly resisting against the bill.

 

The opposition party and the media labor union are criticizing that “The new bill is shackling the media in the name of media reform.” The public opinion survey result disclosed a day after the Democratic Party announced the bill would be brought to the National Assembly provisional session showed contrasting reactions.

 

A South Korean public opinion survey firm Realmeter surveyed 500 adults aged over 18, as requested by Oh My News, about applying the punitive damages on media outlets, where 61.8 percent approved of it, which more than doubling the opposing opinion (29.4 percent).

 

The distribution differed depending on the political view and supporting party, but the approving opinion was higher than the opposing opinion throughout most of the regions and age groups.

 

Regardless of supporting or opposing the bill, the outcome was shocking.

 

Basically, it portrayed how low the people’s trust in media has gotten.

 

Issues with fake news were apparent even from the early stage of the novel coronavirus infection outbreak (COVID-19).

 

Hateful comments burst out when the outbreak was out of hand for a while in Daegu, and misinformation of confirmed patients and their routes was shared through Youtube, KakaoTalk and online communities fast causing a massive damage to the affected ones.

 

Since the MERS outbreak in 2015, the information technology has developed rapidly and the people’s dependency on social media hiked and fired up the fake news spreading.

 

Concerned of the rapid distribution of the fake news, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of infodemic, a portamanteau of “information” and “epidemic,” and unfolded a relevant management plan.

 

And a year has passed since.

 

How are we doing amid COVID-19?

 

The treatment and vaccines that used to feel unobtainable have been developed, and the COVID-19 vaccination started from Feb.

 

26 in South Korea as well.

 

The government plans to achieve the herd immunity by coming November, and inoculate the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine to 70 percent of the people by September.

 

However, the fake news creating insecurity is still found around every corner.

 

What’s worse is that it is not spreading only by social media or individual media channel.

 

Some of articles and their provocative headlines published by news outlet are implying a specific company’s vaccine could cause more adverse reaction.

 

Without a proper investigation outcome in the cause of death, the public is thrown into turmoil with news articles reporting the death of COVID-19 vaccine recipients.

 

Healthcare providers urge, “The vaccination is essential for us to end the COVID-19 pandemic.” Besides the government, Korean Society of Infectious Diseases (KSID), Korean Academy of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases (KATRD) and Korean College of Rheumatology are raising their voices and plead “Do not get confused by fake news and participate in COVID-19 vaccination.” Looking back now, I am reflecting on myself with the thought of ‘what have I been doing as a reporter amid pandemic?’ The South Korean media should take COVID-19 as an opportunity to reflect back on themselves and regain the public’s trust.