Disinformation

This week Pontus and András bring you the latest from all over Europe mixed with some history and a little bit of Poking the Pope(s).
This week marks the 646th anniversary of the onset of the Aachen Dancing Plague. After exploring that phenomenon, we move on to how Pope Francis regards women and weather Palpatine is up to no good on his visit to his homeland Germany.
Then, in the news:
– COVID-19 superspreading centre in Gütersloch, Germany now in lockdown
– Swedish coronavirus quack bites the dust
– The Guardian’s article on revised climate models deemed misleading by experts
– Spanish authorities finally publish COVID-19 statistics
– ARP-SAPC’s Skeptical Magnifier Award announced
– Novartis stops Hydroxychloroquine study for lack of participants
– New survey in University of Oxford’s Digital News Reports shows how much people care about climate change
– Political consensus in Norway to remove VAT exemption status for SCAM practitioners
– European Commission identifies Russia and China as origins of disinformation campaigns
– Almost half of Italians would not get a COVID-19 vaccine

The Swedish Food Safety Agency gets this week’s Really Right price for stepping up against illegal food supplement ads.

Enjoy!

Segments:
Intro; Greetings; This Week in Skepticism; Pontus Pokes the Pope; News; Really Right; Quote and Farewell; Outro; Out-takes

Events Calendar: https://theesp.eu/events_in_europe

0:00:25 INTRO

0:00:52 GREETINGS

0:03:11 THIS WEEK IN HISTORY
24th June 1374 – “Medieval Dancing Plague” in Aachen, Germany

• • The Lancet: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2809%2960386-X/fulltext
  • The Smithsonian Magazine: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/strange-case-dancing-mania-struck-germany-six-centuries-ago-today-180959549/
  • Ripley’s Believe it or Not: https://www.ripleys.com/weird-news/dancing-plague-choreomania/

0:11:58 PONTUS POKES THE POPE
Francis says “we” must respect women’s bodies – and then defines what “we” should use them for…

• • Twitter: https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/1273925994789953539
  • Crux (1): https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2020/06/papal-shout-outs-for-dads-persecuted-christians-migrants-and-the-publci/
  • Crux (2): https://cruxnow.com/church-in-oceania/2020/06/cardinal-pell-to-publish-prison-diary-musing-on-case-church/
  • Crux (3): https://cruxnow.com/news-analysis/2020/06/the-perils-of-overactive-imaginations-as-two-brothers-say-goodbye/

0:21:42 NEWS

1. GERMANY: Meat processing plant outbreak in North Rhine Westphalia
   • Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: https://www.faz.net/aktuell/gesellschaft/gesundheit/coronavirus/fuenf-toennies-beschaeftigte-auf-intensivstation-behandelt-16825375.html
   • BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-53087139
   • The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/22/meat-plant-must-be-held-to-account-covid-19-outbreak-germany
2. SWEDEN: Another corona quack bites the dust
   • Expressen: https://www.expressen.se/nyheter/fettdoktorn-stoppas-gav-falska-coronarad/
3. INTERNATIONAL: The Guardian’s article on revised climate models potentially misleading
   • ClimateFeedback: https://climatefeedback.org/evaluation/article-in-the-guardian-misleads-readers-about-sensitivity-of-climate-models-by-narrowly-focusing-on-single-study-jonathan-watts/
4. SPAIN: Authorities finally publish COVID-19 death statistics
   • EL Pais: https://english.elpais.com/spanish_news/2020-06-19/spain-updates-covid-19-death-count-says-flare-ups-are-under-control.html
5. SPAIN: ‘Skeptical Magnifier’ Award announced
   • Escepticos: https://www.escepticos.es/node/7465
6. SWITZERLAND: Novartis halts study for lack of participants
   • Le Monde: https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2020/06/20/hydroxychloroquine-novartis-arrete-son-etude-faute-de-participants_6043580_3224.html
7. INTERNATIONAL: Just how much do people care about climate change?
   • The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/how-much-do-people-around-the-world-care-about-climate-change-we-surveyed-80-000-people-in-40-countries-to-find-out-140801
   • BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-53100800
8. NORWAY: Consensus to remove VAT exemption status for SCAM
   • AftenPosten: https://www.aftenposten.no/norge/politikk/i/awgP6O/regjeringen-vil-innfoere-moms-for-alternativ-behandling
9. INTERNATIONAL: European Commission identifies Russia and China as responsible for disinformation
   • European Commission: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_1006
   • EU Observer: https://euobserver.com/eu-china/148618
   • Snopes: https://www.snopes.com/ap/2020/06/16/report-russia-linked-disinformation-operation-still-active/
   • https://euvsdisinfo.eu
10. ITALY: Almost half of Italians would not take a COVID19 vaccine
    • News1: https://www.news1.news/en/2020/06/covid-half-of-italians-will-not-undergo-the-vaccine-why.html

1:03:51 REALLY RIGHT
Swedish Food Safety Agency invites the public to report illegal ads for supplements against COVID19

• • Livsmedelsverket: https://www.livsmedelsverket.se/om-oss/press/nyheter/pressmeddelanden/olagligt-att-pasta-att-kosttillskott-och-andra-livsmedel-skyddar-mot-covid-19?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

1:08:45 QUOTE AND FAREWELL
„Science is constantly proved all the time. You see, If we took something like any fiction, any holy book, and any other fiction and destroyed it, in a thousand years’ time, that wouldn’t come back just as it was. Whereas if we took every science book and every fact and destroyed them all, in a thousand years they’d all be back because all the same tests would be the same result.“
/Ricky Gervais, British comedian, actor and producer/

Thank you Jelena, we miss you already!

1:09:54 OUTRO

1:11:08 OUT-TAKES