I made this short YouTube video series on #FilmYourHospital (sorry for all the posts!).

I’m going to explain my motivations, strategy, and what I learned from the feedback.

There are some important communication takeaways here. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYFl282IO9xn6kbdbzODDh_SOdKyUyXaT

I thought this was an important issue to tackle because of two, main reasons:

Need - few articles on the topic and no one breaking down their arguments

Frustration - infuriating to see people doing this given the current landscape of #MedTwitter

Honestly, I found the conspiracy offensive.

I thought about pulling from the literature to explain the issues & define some of the blind spots in their rationale, but I decided against it because my audience was not the conspiracy theorists. There is no way I would persuade them to think differently about the pandemic.

My main audience was the people who already know that film your hospital is a bogus theory. I put the series out basically for the types of people who follow me on Twitter.

Why? I know all of you are also frustrated with the film your hospital trend, too.

My secondary audience was the people who may be curious about the conspiracy. These folks might entertain the theories and weigh the merit of the claims.

So, yeah, I decided against the academic route and went for a more causal approach because most of my intended audience already recognizes the issues.

My tone is lighthearted and I approach the issues at a high level.

I wanted to be careful not to get too into the weeds on the videos and theories that are out there.

If I went any deeper, I would be giving the conspiracy theorists more opportunity to form a rebuttal.

Remember: I’m not trying to change their minds. I don’t think a deeper and more thought out argument would alter their opinions.

I wanted to add context to the videos they were sharing on social media. Watching all the videos, I saw so many holes in their explanations and I thought it would be easy to point out the issues.

They were mad for a few reasons.

1. My tone wasn’t appreciated. It’s a huge contradiction to their more serious videos.
2. They didn’t like being called conspiracy theorists. Many felt it was insulting.
3. They felt I didn’t address the glaring concerns they raise in their vids.

Yup, this is what came up frequently

There’s a reason I avoided this argument.

I wanted to focus solely on what the conspiracy theorists were sharing. I didn’t want to build an argument off of what the content creators were insinuating.

https://twitter.com/satmanm/status/1248314995361931265?s=21 https://twitter.com/satmanm/status/1248314995361931265

The media messes up sometimes, sure. That doesn’t completely discount all of the news they’re reporting. That doesn’t mean that the entire world is faking a pandemic.

It’s a slippery slope & one I had no intention of entering.

Once again, my audience wasn’t the people filming.

I knew I would get some heat for it, but I never expected the overwhelming response I received.

What this says is the theories are tied to something much deeper in their being. It’s attached to their moral fabric, personality, and world views.

I barely scratched the surface on the theory and people were VERY offended. They took it personal.

In return, I received insults and personal attacks.

When that happens, the conversation is over.

If your “opponent” has to hit below the belt in order to argue, they’ve already lost.

I have about 200 comments that are waiting for review.

Keep in mind that I only have 120 subscribers. It was under 100 when I posted the first video.

See what I mean? Just got another one!

Here’s the full comment.

They all want to argue.

Ok, what were the risks?

My main concern was alienating my intended audience.

I intentionally took on a tone that was lighthearted. If anyone perceived that to be offensive or tone deaf, I’d be causing a lot of harm.

And another one

How’d I minimize risks? More later...

First, I focused exclusively on the claims from conspiracy theorists. I stayed within my area of expertise by addressing the misinformation and communication tactics.

Second, I did not joke about covid19. Amusement was directed only at the film your hospital content.

Third, I had several people review the videos prior to uploading. After receiving initial feedback from them, I followed up with specific questions.

Fourth, once the first video was uploaded, I monitored the feedback closely.

If there had been criticisms from my intended audience, I would have addressed it or removed the video.

Tips for you to consider with your own content.

Second concern: losing credibility.

This concern isn’t exclusive to this video series. I mention it because it’s important to remember that ever piece of content you post can either help or harm your reputation.

Once a reputation is tarnished, it’s difficult to rebuild.

How’d I mitigate the risk? I asked the people who were reviewing the videos initially if the content or tone would cause harm.

Not a fail proof approach, but it’s better than posting without any feedback.

https://twitter.com/sarah_mojarad/status/1248365360996184064?s=21 https://twitter.com/sarah_mojarad/status/1248365360996184064

There is nothing wrong with asking for feedback before posting content.

Please do it often.

The worst that can happen is that the person says no. In that case, you can find someone else.

If I have the bandwidth, I’m happy to provide quick feedback, too.

Third concern: attacks from conspiracy theorists.

So far everything is manageable, but this one remains a serious concern. People are interpreting the videos as personal attacks. Some folks have posted my videos in groups to critique privately.

I mention it because you should know that it is a bit reckless to post videos that dissect conspiracy theory arguments.

This theory in particular is concerning because so many different groups are participating in it.

A few examples:

Right wingers
Truthers
Anti establishments/government
Anti science
Anti media and journalists
Catch all consipiracy theorists

Right wingers

Truthers

Anti-establishment/government

Anti science

Anti media and journalism is what unites them. It’s honestly scary how many of the comments mention distrust of msm. I hope journalists have some form of a buffer or protection against these people.

Catch all conspiracy theorists

Other things in the comments:

TV hired crisis actors
Epstein didn’t kill himself
I’m a paid shill
Virus is a distraction from 5G towers
Bill Gates did it

One person went to my IG account & found this clip from when I attended Gates’ keynote in Feb...therefore I’m not credible.

I always tell people: know the conversation before you enter it. This is a good case in point.

I knew the videos would get some attention. I had a good sense of the conspiracy theorist types who would come out of the woodwork, but I never thought it’d be this many people.

Another reminder - any content that is public facing could get more attention than you intend.

On personal attacks and insults...I received many.

So many! (What’s a brown haired snow bunny btw?)

That’s the ugly side of the internet.

If you’ve followed me for awhile you’ve heard me say “critique the content—not the individual.” This is an example of why you should do that.

No matter how offensive the content is, be the bigger person.

(I’m totally fine btw)

It’s a bummer that YouTube doesn’t have better reporting options.

I’m new to the platform, but it seems like the only option is to report comments as spam.

( @DrEricStrong @MamaDoctorJones am I missing something?)

Phew, long thread! I think that’s all I have to say. It’s been a weird week.

Thanks for all the public and private support.

The constructive feedback on my videos has been helpful, too.

Oh, if like what I post and want to “buy me a coffee,” you can do so here https://ko-fi.com/sarah_mojarad