are you frustrated by ontario’s covid messaging?

@HeidiTworek + I offer some solutions in our new @OttawaCitizen oped: using our recent report ( https://bit.ly/dhc-covid20 ), we offer 4 immediate + easy fixes for the province’s muddled comms strategy (1/7) https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/tworek-and-beacock-ontarios-covid-19-messaging-needs-a-reset-heres-what-to-do

as ontarians are finding, poor communications are a major public health blunder: they lead to frustrations + resentment + inadvertent rulebreaking.

on the other hand, good comms are a key part of the toolbox for covid response: a non-pharamaceutical intervention, or NPI (2/7)

FIRST, too many people are communicating. like places with the most effective covid responses (e.g. bc, nz), ontario should entrust the podium to 1-2 messengers: ideally one person to convey science, another person to do values-framing (3/7)

SECOND, ontario needs messaging with more emotional intelligence. memorizing facts + social gathering limits will never be enough. speaking to the hearts of citizens matters, using emotional language (eg taiwan) and powerful stories (eg senegal) (4/7)

THIRD, shaming citizens is counterproductive. the province first shamed bad actors, then the entire public. messaging should focus on gratitude, patience, + solidarity. this part of our report was highlighted last week by the NYT (5/7) https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/16/opinion/shame-masks-coronavirus-covid.html

FOURTH, ontario needs new metaphors. doug ford has favored combat/military imagery; the most effective covid responses have avoided it. south korea talks about covid as a relay race; others have used natural disaster metaphors (6/7)

as we argue in the oped (which you should read!), these changes are easy + cost virtually nothing -- but they could give ontario’s covid messaging strategy the reset it needs, saving lives + restoring public trust (7/7)

possibly of interest to @DFisman @richardwarnica @picardonhealth @trishhennessy @MoriartyLab @JuliaLMarcus