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Pandemic denialists PANDA abandoned by media followers

 Pandemic Data and Analytics, better known as Panda, burst onto the scene a year ago with their infamous report the economic consequences of the lockdown would allegedly kill more people than Covid-19.

 The media gave them significant coverage but no one questioned their and front man Nick Hudson’s faulty, mischievous assumptions and analysis.

 Later when they issued a “study” that questioned epidemiological models predicting Covid deaths could exceed 50,000, and they said deaths would not exceed 20,000, the media still reported them, although with less interest.

 But as the pandemic wreaked its heavy toll, Panda fell out of favour and was eventually sidelined.

 Recently Daily Maverick’s Nafeez Ahmed and Rebecca Davis took down Panda – “Kung Flu Panda: dodgy analytics or pandemic propaganda”. But like most of the media, they have a short memory. At the time the media never critically examined Panda for what they obviously are: pandemic denialists. They called them “experts”. 

 Now with hindsight they’re distancing themselves from their careless oversight, downgrading Panda to a far right, conspiracy, unscientific “lobby group” with links to similar organisations worldwide.

 I immediately saw Panda for what they were, though, and wrote criticising them. It’s strange it’s taken particularly media so long to find out, and only following real time evidence of Covid’s wreckage, which always was counter pandemic denialism.

 While Panda’s members are scientific quacks and conspiracy theorists, it’s obvious from the outset their agenda is that of the rightwing and loony far-right, among them big business, like Allan Gray whose CEO Andrew Lapping wrote an op-ed repeating the unsubstantiated theory of the alleged impact of the lockdown, also fulsomely covered by the media; Sanlam subsidiary Santam which refused to pay policy holders for loss of business (Panda co-spokesman Peter Casteldon is a Santam executive) and others that put profits before lives.

 The irony is these pandemic denialists are among the first to hide in their bunkers and jump the line for vaccines like Johann Rupert, a major investor in Sanlam, did.

 As in other matters, South Africa’s media are dire and culpable for not having the competence and interest to interrogate or credulously accept as fact what’s presented. And as I noted before, DM, the self-styled conscience of the nation, is first among them.

 It’s always timely exposing false prophets, but it’s hypocritical when its present critics were among Panda’s original subscribers.

 

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