EXPERT REACTION: Pandemic levels of abuse directed at COVID-19 experts

It’s absolutely unacceptable that scientists are being subjected to abuse, particularly in relation to the vital work they’re doing to ensure survival through the pandemic.
 
Scientists create and apply new knowledge to the benefit of society: it’s crucial that they are free and able to speak about this work, and grow public understanding of the evidence behind important decisions. This is particularly important in times of major challenge, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, when listening to scientific advice can make the difference between life and death.
 
The Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering is committed to supporting a thriving diverse scientific and technological research community, and to supporting leaders and members of the public to access the best available evidence to inform decisions and behaviour. We encourage scientific experts to continue to share their work in public, and condemn those who would seek to shut down access to evidence and expertise.

Scientists speak to the media and public because they want to educate and empower people with the information to make good choices for their health and safety.
 
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many researchers and healthcare professionals are going above and beyond, working tirelessly to keep Australians safe and contribute to the pandemic response.
 
Scientists are not above criticism or questioning – robust debate has always been part of the scientific and learning process – but they should be able to do their jobs without harassment and abuse.
 
It’s particularly disappointing that women scientists, and scientists from diverse backgrounds, experience abhorrent abuse that targets their gender and background. This stifles important voices and valuable contributions to science.

The results of the Australian Science Media Centre survey are shocking but not surprising. The Academy has also received a number of anecdotal reports from researchers who have been bullied, harassed or the subject of death threats during this pandemic, simply for doing their job.

It is unacceptable that scientists have been subject to this abhorrent behaviour, particularly while many have been working tirelessly for the public good and providing their expertise and advice on COVID-19 as Australia has navigated the pandemic.

This is a global issue with researchers around the world also facing serious threats to their personal and professional lives as a result of their research on COVID-19, as highlighted recently by the International Science Council.

All scientists should be free to go about their work, share their expertise and promote their research in appropriate fora without fear of intimidation or violence from individuals, groups or governments.

Despite these attacks on scientists by a vocal minority, it is important to note that Australian’s trust in scientific bodies remains high as evidenced by a number of surveys

I wrote an OpEd for The Australian a few years ago after Pauline Hanson made comments in Parliament about how children with autism shouldn’t be in mainstream schools because they prevented others learning. I was trying to counter her argument regarding the benefits of inclusion of students with autism in mainstream school settings for all students. I spoke to some of the challenges we had experienced with both mainstream schools and schools for children with disability and how much he was excluded from community life.  I pointed out how the overt discrimination of Hanson and others like her perpetuated exclusion and had harmful effects. The toxic comments made about me were so bad that The Australian had to turn off the comments, something they rarely, if ever, do. I stopped reading them because I honestly felt like folk did not want people like me or my son in the world."

For me, the trolling and harassment of scientists during the pandemic has been a real problem. I get regular anti-semitic hate online, occasional death threats, and a load of the expected nasty lies about myself posted everywhere just for discussing issues in certain research areas. And, frankly, as a white man, I’m far luckier than some of my colleagues, who receive orders of magnitude more hate than I do.

Trolling is common, and some of it is organised and orchestrated around specific agendas, to silence and discredit anyone who exposes the truth.

Classic tactics are used, like repeating a lie over and over. The pandemic has seen an anti-science agenda become mainstream, with themes such as anti-vaccination (of children), anti-masking and conflation of all public health measures with lockdown.

Trolling can be on social media, or on mainstream media. I have had some extraordinary personal attacks against me in media pieces, the likes of which I have never seen directed at white men. Racism and misogyny seem to be a factor.

The saddest, however, is trolling by doctors, other health professionals and academics. Some may be driven by an agenda, but others just seem to have been broken by the pandemic, lost their bearings and sense of professionalism. They band together like schoolyard bullies and act like bullies and stalkers. I was shocked to see a colleague who I have worked with and known has become a well-known troll, and unrecognisable from the professional I used to know.

After reflecting on one particularly threatening email earlier this year I decided to make a report to the police - whilst not personally feeling anxious I decided to make a stand on behalf of the younger female researchers at our Institute. When talking with younger female staff, a number said they were reluctant to post or put information online or to engage in discussions/debate in the press due to the trolling that immediately follows and feeling threatened. For me, this was a terrible thing.

I know we are sometimes instructed to ignore trolling and threats but I disagree. I think we should be reporting these activities to the police (and ensuring they follow it up which they did in my situation) and calling it out in multiple forums.  

In the same way that domestic abuse and violence was ignored as being unimportant for many years, abuse and threats on social media are similarly dismissed but they can be very impactful on people’s lives in many different ways. For young women, it is particularly hard.

Yes, I have indeed experienced a fair dose of this, in both social and mainstream media. More and more all the time. But more so I’ve witnessed it in others; especially in those who are not white, privileged, straight men like me, where the abuse reaches extraordinary low and abusive levels.

Scientists don’t covet speaking in the media, it is not how they get their energy. Some may be interested in the limelight, but certainly not many. Duty to serve the public good is the overwhelming motivation scientists do this, especially given there is so much poor quality information in the public domain and so much at stake.

Apart from the mental health impact on the victims, my main concern about scientists being engulfed in trolling negativity is that we just stop. Which, sadly, is the main purpose of the harassment. I am a little ashamed to admit that I already say no to many requests for interview for this reason and engage less in social media than I would like to. Debating robustly on intellectual grounds is a sport we enjoy, indeed are energised by. The type of argument that scientists face mostly in relation to COVID-19 bears no resemblance to that. It’s simply bullying abuse.

As a white middle-aged male, I am less vulnerable to trolling than other experts. Nevertheless, abusive emails and messages bordering on death threats are common.  During this pandemic, I have reported one threatening text officially to my University who forwarded it to the Police – I think I should have reported more. I have blocked several phone numbers, and diverted to junk email several email addresses based on vile material.

It is also salient, I think, to note the many people out there who spontaneously contact you with positive intent. I have received useful feedback on what I say in public, messaging, new papers and research from members of the public I have never met before.

For me, as a medical virologist, talking to the general public through the media is about providing information. It is the same approach that I do for patients, or medical, scientific and public health colleagues. 

We know the information on the origins of SARS-CoV-2 is still incomplete, but these gaps shouldn’t be used to support a political stance, encourage the blame game or criticise others, especially behind the anonymity of social media. It should be about how to go forward collaboratively to better answer the questions.

I define trolling as attacks on the person, or the tone, delivery, or format of a message rather than the substance of an argument. There are two types of trolling I experience frequently as someone who is outspoken in the media advocating a precautionary response to COVID. Firstly, that from the general public which is predictable, easily ignored, and amplified often by bots, and a more concerning variety that I think comes from politicians, bureaucrats and colleagues.

The latter is more organised and can involve multiple people, phone calls and texts to me and my close colleagues, triangulation of people I respect who are asked to "have a word with me" and even face to face meetings being organised, without me, to see if my message can be silenced or changed. I have been mentioned in a speech, without any right of reply, at a medical College plenary meeting and defamed in the media.
 
I believe the main thing protecting me, and making all of this ultimately ineffectual, is that I am a white middle-aged man of means, and therefore difficult to marginalise, and that I am in elected positions where I represent thousands of doctors. I do not have any government or other employment, and as such there is no "policy" that can be used to quietly threaten my contract renewal as there is for so many. I am legally educated and willing and able to exert my rights, spending my own money on legal fees where I have to. All of that is unavailable to so many others who are silenced or threatened.
 
I also have a large Twitter following and have been able to get a message across on mainstream media through op-eds and interviews so I make no claim to having been silenced myself, but those who do have more to lose - a job or a future career path, are clearly having to weigh their options when advocating publicly. I am sure that doors previously open to me such as government advisory boards are now closed, but that is no big price for me. I put all this on the record so that ironically people realise advocacy does have an effect - or the people who have power would not try all this nonsense to silence people like me, and also to highlight how much richer the conversation could be if all the diverse experts were not frightened into submission by bullying tactics such as those I have experienced in relatively small measure.

Researchers are human and we have feelings!

I’ve always considered it vital – a moral and ethical imperative – to engage in public outreach and communication activity. After all, the public pays our salaries and for our research. Therefore, writing news media stories and other activities is a really important part of sharing research that makes society, the environment and the world a better place.

However, after almost every story I do as a specialist on hazards and disasters, I’ve been trolled, verbally abused, received death threats, and most recently had threatening material sent to my home. This is really unacceptable, and researchers are human beings with feelings and trolling really is a poisonous process. It has negative emotional and mental health impacts on us and acts as a discouragement to that public engagement work. This article shines a light on these practices. Much more needs to be done to stop trolling in the first place and support ordinary researchers going about their daily work.