Truth Distancing? Whistleblowing as Remedy to Censorship during COVID-19
Truth Distancing? Whistleblowing as Remedy to Censorship during COVID-19
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DOI：
10.1017/err.2020.49
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发表时间：
2020-05-06
影响因子：
2.9
通讯作者：
ABAZI V
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
ABAZI V
在 COVID-19 大流行中，举报人已成为破坏信息压制和控制的重要监督者。许多政府故意不披露信息或未能及时披露信息，误导公众甚至宣扬错误信念。强烈的公共利益捍卫者正在抵制这种审查制度。芬博士和文亮博士是中国第一批报告可能正在发生新的流行病的举报人，从那时起，世界各地的许多其他举报人一直在报道病毒的传播、医疗设备的缺乏和其他公共利益信息。本文梳理了中国、美国和欧洲的相关举报案例，并显示许多举报人最初受到审查，并面临纪律处分甚至解雇。与此同时，COVID-19 大流行期间的举报引起了公众对机构报告系统缺陷的关注，并更广泛地认识到举报人在早期阶段具有独特的暴露风险的能力。最终，举报作为一种透明度手段不仅变得越来越没有争议，而且在 COVID-19 期间，它已成为审查制度的“补救措施”。
In the COVID-19 pandemic, whistleblowers have become the essential watchdogs disrupting suppression and control of information. Many governments have intentionally not disclosed information or failed to do so in a timely manner, misled the public or even promoted false beliefs. Fierce public interest defenders are pushing back against this censorship. Dr Fen and Dr Wenliang were the first whistleblowers in China to report that a new pandemic was possibly underway, and ever since, numerous other whistleblowers around the world have been reporting on the spread of the virus, the lack of medical equipment and other information of public interest. This paper maps the relevant whistleblowing cases in China, the USA and Europe and shows that many whistleblowers are initially censored and face disciplinary measures or even dismissals. At the same time, whistleblowing during the COVID-19 pandemic has drawn public attention to the shortcomings of institutional reporting systems and a wider appreciation of whistleblowers as uniquely placed to expose risk at early stages. Ultimately, whistleblowing as a means of transparency is not only becoming ever less controversial, but during COVID-19 it has become the “remedy” to censorship.