COVID-19 media surveillance - 20 April 2020

This media surveillance collects articles reported through publicly available web sites.

It is created with the Europe Media Monitor (EMM).

The selection and placement of stories are determined automatically by a computer program.

Headlines

• USA: state governors warned that they need more federal help with testing, specifically in acquiring reagents and swabs; testing needs to triple according to Harvard University to ease lockdown restrictions
• Spain: daily coronavirus deaths in Spain fall to 410, the lowest figure seen in a month
• Italy: daily coronavirus death toll hits one-week low with 433 deaths
• France nears 20,000 COVID deaths but situation 'improving'; minuscule traces of coronavirus found in non-potable water in Paris
• UK: PPE shipment including 400,000 gowns delayed on way to UK; Boris Johnson criticized for missing five key meetings
• Germany's coronavirus cases rise by 1,775, deaths by 110 according to Robert-Koch-Institute
• Cases in the vicinity of EU institutions: in Belgium, coronavirus-related hospital admissions fall below 5,000; genetic testing revealed that there is no dominant strain in Belgium; 3,550 cases and 73 deaths reported in Luxembourg
• Russia reports record daily rise with 6,060 new cases in 24 hours
• Turkey: case numbers are highest in Middle East overtaking Iran
• Egypt: Number of cases passes 3,000
• Brazil’s president Jair Bolsonaro joined a protest calling for a military coup; intensive care units reach capacity limits or are already overwhelmed
• India has eased some restrictions, mostly for farming to avoid food shortages
• Singapore now has most cases in South-East Asia as a new daily high with 1,426 cases was reported
• South Korea confirms 13 new cases as social distancing rules on bars, gyms and other high-risk places are eased
• Japan: 102 new COVID-19 cases in Tokyo area while emergency care units are under stress
• China: the northeastern province of Heilongjiang has seen a rise in infected travellers arriving from Russia
• Economy: US oil prices drop to 21-year low as demand dries up; Spain proposes a €1.5 trillion coronavirus recovery fund

Twitter

The following news were found among the most mentioned/retweeted items:

• Coronavirus: 38 days when Britain sleepwalked into disaster (thetimes)
• New Zealand’s Prime Minister may be the most effective leader on the planet (theatlantic)
• Three coronavirus whistleblowers still missing after two months (metro)
• Indian hospitals refuse to admit Muslims as coronavirus causes Islamophobia surge (telegraph)
• How does coronavirus kill? Clinicians trace a ferocious rampage through the body, from brain to toes (sciencemag)
• Americans at World Health Organization transmitted real-time information about coronavirus to Trump administration (washingtonpost)
• The White House has erected a blockade stopping states and hospitals from getting coronavirus PPE (nymag)

The most mentioned English sources were the New York Times, the Times, CNN, the Guardian and the Washington Post.

Infobae, Okdiario, RT (Spanish Version) and El País and Le Parisien and Le Monde were among the most mentioned Spanish and French sources, respectively.

Extracted Quotes

Jacinda Ardern (New Zealand, Prime Minister):

"We have done what very few countries have been able to do"; "We have stopped a wave of devastation"; "New Zealand will move out of Alert Level 4 lockdown at 11.59pm on Monday April 27, one week from today".

Sebastian Kurz (Austria, Chancellor):

"People have to wear masks in shops, but also in restaurants or elsewhere in the future. I think that can be helpful"; "It will take months and the situation will remain difficult"

Matt Hancock (UK, Secretary of State for Health & Social Care):

"We are tight on gowns, that is the pressure point at the moment".

Tedros Adhanom (WHO, Director-General):

"Wet markets are an important source of affordable food and livelihood for millions of people all over the world. But in many places, they have been poorly regulated and poorly maintained"; "WHO's position is that when these markets are allowed to reopen, it should only be on the condition that they conform to stringent food safety and hygiene standards. Governments must rigorously enforce bans on the sale and trade of wildlife for food".

Fact Check

Fact checked: fear mongering

• Venezuelan fact checkers debunk photos claiming to show people dying of COVID-19 on the street (efectococuyo).
• Indian fact checkers debunk a photo claiming to show a family who committed suicide out of hunger during the lockdown imposed to tackle coronavirus – the photo is from an old, unrelated incident (altnews).

Fact checked: emergency response

• Fact checkers explain the reasons why a Facebook post comparing coronavirus and flu deaths in Germany is misleading – the post implies that the restrictive measures implemented to contain the pandemic are exaggerated (correctiv).

Fact checked: treatment

• Fact checkers debunk claims that tonic water and zinc can cure COVID-19 (afp).

Fact checked: conspiracy theories

• Fact checkers debunk claims that Bill Gates called the novel coronavirus a “great corrector” (boomlive).
• Fact checkers debunk claims that the novel coronavirus has not reached the capitals of China, Russia and Syria, suggesting that the pandemic was engineered for politico-economic purposes (animalpolitico).
• Fact checkers debunk yet another video of an alleged doctor claiming that the COVID-19 pandemic is caused by 5G technology (maldita).

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Contact

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