Lauding Beijing’s pandemic response reveals journalistic naivety and stunning lack of due diligence.

Shane Miller | The Epoch Times

Within the last week or so, news outlets such as the New York Times and CBC have declared that the United States has now taken China’s place as the “epicentre” of the pandemic. “The U.S. Now Leads the World in Confirmed Coronavirus Cases,” blared the headline of one NYT article published on March 26, which outlined the missteps that supposedly hastened the spread of the virus throughout America. It also describes China’s response as a belated start that quickly turned into a “ferocious intensity” to fight the virus that has now been “contained” through “draconian measures.”

A CBC headline reads, “Canada’s next-door neighbour is now the epicentre of global pandemic. Here’s what that U.S. surge means,” for an article that lists the possible implications of Canada’s contiguous cousin having by far the “most reported cases” of any country. Other CBC coverage regurgitates Beijing’s highly dubious claim that there haven’t been any new cases confirmed in Wuhan for the past week and that the majority of new cases have been “imported” by travellers.

These specimens of contemporary journalism reveal a troubling lack of critical thinking by reiterating easily questionable claims made by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) propagandists.

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Shane Miller is a researcher for Probe International and freelance contributor to The Epoch Times.