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Thursday, May 7th, 2020

“Although intuitively I think it probably seemed like social distancing would be necessary, there was no real scientific basis for believing that, since it had never been studied.”

Author:     Bill McCarthy
Source:     Politifact
Publication Date:     May 4, 2020 in a TV segment/ 6 May 2020
 Link: “Although intuitively I think it probably seemed like social distancing would be necessary, there was no real scientific basis for believing that, since it had never been studied.”
Stephan:   There is a trend that is having a major effect on our society that, I think, is not being seen correctly. Before the digital age and in decline going back through history, communication was to smaller and smaller groups of people. So lies and deliberate disinformation were a more limited variable in shaping society. But with the digital age, as Fox demonstrates, this has become a major factor. Here is Laura Ingraham propagating a deliberate lie that will put the lives of at least a million people at greater risk.
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“Although intuitively I think it probably seemed like social distancing would be necessary, there was no real scientific basis for believing that, since it had never been studied,” Laura Ingraham said.

Americans have widely followed social distancing directives to “flatten the curve” of new coronavirus cases and prevent hospitals from being stretched beyond capacity. In the absence of widespread testing, most Americans have supported such mitigation efforts. 

But scattered protests have also captured attention and led pundits like Ingraham and fellow Fox News host Tucker Carlson to call for an end to more statewide shutdowns as U.S. deaths due to the coronavirus top 70,000.

Members of the White House coronavirus task force have encouraged social distancing. President Donald Trump credited nationwide closures with saving “millions of lives” as recently as May 3 in a town hall.

But while it’s difficult to assess the exact impact of social distancing policies so far, experts told us Ingraham’s claim is wrong. There’s plenty of science behind social distancing.

“It’s one of the few tools that we know works in the case of an unknown, novel virus such as this,” said Thomas Novotny, an epidemiologist at San Diego State University.

Fox News did not respond to requests for comment.Studies […]

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