I want to comment briefly on why I find this particular website so infuriating and why I am confident in calling it disinformation. Dr. Fauci and many other health officials have stressed the importance of randomized controlled trials as the gold standard.https://twitter.com/CT_Bergstrom/status/1291837801512595457 …
-
Show this thread
-
This very slick website presents what appears to be a research report using the language of randomly controlled trials, even talking about "assigning" countries to the control group or the treatment group.
3 replies 14 retweets 135 likesShow this thread -
We don't say randomized controlled trial, defenders of the website protest. We say country-randomized controlled trial, and that's a different thing. How many members of the public will know the difference? This is designed to confuse.
1 reply 15 retweets 177 likesShow this thread -
So what is a country-randomized controlled trial? It seems to be something *made up* entirely for this article. I did a searches on
@google, Google scholar,@webofscience, and@scopus. The term "country-randomized controlled trial" has NEVER been used prior to this article.5 replies 29 retweets 220 likesShow this thread -
Meanwhile the website's authors have recognized that they overstepped with their "assignment" language, and are rapidly backtracking—without the sort of changelog that any preprint server or reputable scientific outlet would require. Compare versions from 12 hours ago with now:pic.twitter.com/UrHOSEaYEL
9 replies 28 retweets 226 likesShow this thread -
Given the aggressive misuse of randomized controlled trial terminology—a mistake no public health professional would make—and the subsequent half-retreat without notification, I find it extremely hard to see how this could be anything other than a deliberate attempt to confuse.
13 replies 30 retweets 288 likesShow this thread
Oh, it’s astroturf, without a doubt.
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.