Sunday, April 26, 2009

The Swine Flu is a Pig for Media Attention

Today I turned on CNN and heard story after story about the Swine Flu. You might have thought that NYC was having an epidemic. Of course it's bad when any type of flu (especially the dreaded "Pig Virus") hits anywhere. But when the headline states that eight school children in New York City contracted the Swine variety, ya gotta take notice.

Of course when the stories played out we find that none of the eight needed any medication or went to the hospital...they just rode it out and are all fine. Mild cases that make the news and help spread fear. Ya know...it's that old news media saying - "If it bleeds, it leads."

Now, that doesn't mean that we all shouldn't be made aware of a Flu Virus invading our shores. But at the same time - let's keep it in perspective.

I know that eighty or so people in Mexico City have died from the virus and about 1400 have been infected. However, twenty million people live in Mexico City. Again...let's put that in perspective! More people died during an excessive heat wave in Chicago a few summers back.

So...wash your hands, keep things clean, and don't travel to Mexico City right now...ok? Good. And - if you feel sick, please see your doctor. Of yeah...if you have a tendency to watch the news, don't go all goofy.

Hmm - maybe I'll pass on that ham sandwich!

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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousApril 27, 2009 at 7:01 PM

    Hey Dan,

    It is the media's job to tell the public what's going on; however, I agree that they tend to blow things a bit out of proportion from time to time. Don't get me wrong, if there's a flu or an epidemic, like the Swine Flu, I want to know about it. But, I do think the way in which the media portrays things can cause unnecessary worrying. A good example of this is when there is a snow storm and the news tells you to go out and stock up on groceries and then it only snows 1 inch.

    Thanks and take care,
    Kimmy K. (business, ethics, & society)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dan GoldbergApril 28, 2009 at 7:56 AM

    Kimmy,

    You hit it on the head! Snow storms are a perfect example. As I might have mentioned...Linus Pauling (the man who discovered that Vitamin C can help prevent colds) once told me that he never said that Vitamin C was good for everyone (like people who suffer from kidney stones), but the media just ran with the story without checking or delving deeper.

    Best,
    Dan

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kirill DorkoMay 4, 2009 at 12:30 PM

    Dr. Goldberg,

    I was just checking out some info on the H1N1 Flu, and from the 286 reported cases in the USA, only one person died. Now i'm not saying that the death is not significant, but those chances don't really strike my concern for this "cold." At least not enough to go out and slaughter some pigs...I think that with the current advances in our medicine, the outcome for this virus is pure embarrassment!


    Great Class,

    Kirill

    ReplyDelete
  4. AVI5011May 5, 2009 at 10:42 AM

    Mr. Goldberg,
    I really learned a lot from this article.I always thought that the Swine flu was a disease which was transmitted by eating pork.Being from Europe i talk to a lot of people over there and none of them new that the flu had nothing to do with eating pork.
    I really enjoyed your class and your way of teaching.

    Anthony Ivanov

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