The Utter Cringeworthiness of Scrolling Through Instagram During a Pandemic
Let’s normalize the social-media Covid disclosure
For health journalists like me — and, I suppose, for basically any well-informed person who believes in science and cares about public health and, like, the greater good — social media has become an utter minefield. (Social media has always been a minefield, so this is really saying something!) Everywhere you look there are alarming behaviors and questionable, or nonexistent, personal protective equipment.
Even in person, saying something to a stranger not wearing a mask, or wearing one improperly, feels uncomfortable at best, bear-poking at worst. And, look, we know that shaming individuals for bad pandemic behavior really only makes them feel stigmatized and drives them further away from what they should be doing.
So I’ve scrolled past these images of parties and maskless fun and said nothing. But here’s what I would like to say:
Hey bb! Your eyebrows look amazing! FYI a face shield is a supplement to, not a substitute for, a mask!
OMG the view from your hike is so beautiful, also just a heads up that a mask with a valve does not prevent the spread of infectious diseases!
