Short thread. I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with @picardonhealth on numerous occasions. He is incredibly thoughtful, amazingly disciplined, ethical and a hugely talented health reporter. He uses Twitter wisely and open-mindedly. /1 https://twitter.com/drandrewb/status/1291714514069655553

He also has a very tall pulpit, is very aware of this and is careful in how it is used. He called out @dockaurG for her stance on vaccines and HCQ. She professes to be an advocate in T cell immunity and HCQ. She called him out for not being an MD. /2

Aside from the obvious red flag of immediate resort to an ad hominem reply (and Dr. Kaur’s penchant for blocking anyone who disagrees with her), there’s an important lesson for all in how fake news, confusion and misinformation is permeated. /3

Quickly, the followers of both leapt into action. On the one side Kaur’s followers heaped abuse at Picard. On the other, Picard’s followers came up with a hashtag #IStandWithPicard. But there’s only one winner in this game - oxygen for misinformation. /4

I’m sure André appreciates the support, but (apologies to him) he doesn’t need it and the hashtag serves to direct people to the source of the issue. On the contrary, anti-vaccine and pro-HCQ advocates have everything to gain by attracting attention. This fuels their cause. /5

So the best response (IMHO) is to stick to science. Counter with information. Point out what’s known and not known about T cell immunity. Discuss (like Tony Fauci) why RCTs are >>> anecdotal evidence of HCQ (and have blown that evidence apart). /6

Don’t descend to rhetoric or abuse. Call out errors and distortions. Educate and disseminate quality information. The last thing we need is to politicize this pandemic. That is exactly why the US is in such a mess. The virus thrives on our weaknesses. /7

So if you want a hashtag, try #IStandWithScience, recognizing that science also doesn’t take a side, can change over time but is open-minded and evidence-based. Don’t feed the trolls. Feed the mind. /end