



{"id":22455,"date":"2020-06-28T11:16:51","date_gmt":"2020-06-28T11:16:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/media.am\/?p=22455"},"modified":"2020-07-01T18:09:21","modified_gmt":"2020-07-01T18:09:21","slug":"coronamyths-june-19-26","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/verified\/2020\/06\/28\/22455\/","title":{"rendered":"CoronaMyths: June 19-26"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Although the main topic of the past week was the developments around the Constitutional Court, the press and social networks continued to spread Coronamyths about masks, Pashinyan&#8217;s canceled visit and the registering of false causes of death at morgues.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The &#8220;broken telephone&#8221; rang again<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">During a public poll conducted by Kentron TV on June 20, one of the citizens stated, &#8220;One of our acquaintances died the other day, they <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=szZarQUtRQc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, &#8216;Let&#8217;s write, that you are sick with the coronavirus.'&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">According to the citizen, the incident took place in the South-Western district of Yerevan (known as Bangladesh) and the death had nothing to do with the coronavirus. The citizen did not provide more detailed information on the air.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c This is not the first time that <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/media.am\/en\/verified\/2020\/05\/02\/21165\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">news is spread about<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> the relatives of the deceased having been offered to write the coronavirus as a cause of death.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c In all of the cases, those who spread the news could not provide detailed information about the incident. The <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/fip.am\/11295\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">&#8220;broken telephone&#8221; effect<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> was at play.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This part of the &#8220;Kentron&#8221; report was <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nelly.babayan77\/posts\/10217423546280350\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">spread<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> on Facebook, whether it is necessary to follow in the footsteps of the citizen&#8217;s statement or &#8220;allow&#8221; to spread false information with a question.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Minister of Health Arsen Torosyan responded to the discussion, noting that they will find out the identity of the citizen and will get an explanation.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Why didn&#8217;t Pashinyan go to Moscow?<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">On June 19, it became known that Nikol Pashinyan had canceled his visit to Moscow. Hraparak newspaper <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/hraparak.am\/post\/2e3314e74e5b6c66248b1c96b9cdc3a0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">wrote<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> that Pashinyan&#8217;s visit was canceled due to the demands of the Russian side.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">According to the newspaper, Russia &#8220;had doubts about his infection and his speedy recovery.&#8221; The newspaper referred to its sources and did not bring any other evidence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">168.am also <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/168.am\/2020\/06\/20\/1322846.html?fbclid=IwAR3agPmBlmy8NHhjrBN_NamFBCM0IJDLfAgQT4RJSafJob-7TIxgUZcDjPA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">referred to<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> the cancellation of the visit and listed several versions. No agreement was reached on the Pashinyan-Putin meeting, the Russian side demanded that Pashinyan take a test, and the Russian side canceled the visit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The newspaper did not provide any evidence for any of these hypotheses. Instead, he spoke with an expert from the Russian Defense Ministry, who complained that the Russian business in Armenia was under pressure, and Pashinyan did not allow Russian specialists to visit the &#8220;Pentagon-funded biolaboratories in Armenia.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Russian expert&#8217;s remarks refer to the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which is often targeted by Russian propaganda. These propaganda theses <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/media.am\/en\/verified\/2020\/05\/13\/21398\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">have been refuted<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> many times.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Azerbaijan has not funded the coronavirus epidemic in Armenia<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">On June 22, Livenews.am website <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/livenews.am\/press\/2020\/47287\/22\/19\/26\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">published<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Doctors&#8217; Marina Khachatryan and Ruben Hovhannisyan&#8217;s &#8220;State Betrayal: Is Azerbaijan Paying Pashinyan for Death?&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Many of the claims made by doctors during the one-hour conversation were false or manipulative.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c The Coronavirus does not contain &#8220;elements of AIDS.&#8221; The similarities between the two viruses <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/coronavirusfrontlines\/2020\/04\/22\/this-hivaids-specialist-explains-its-similarities---and-differences---to-covid-19\/#445cc8d549f8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">cannot be the basis to suggest<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> that the diseases branching from them are similar.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c Wearing a mask <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/fip.am\/11933\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">does not harm<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> your health.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c Azerbaijan has not financed the coronavirus epidemic in Armenia.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Marina Khachatryan has been <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/medmedia.am\/?p=19934\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">spreading <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">the claim that Azerbaijan is &#8220;financing&#8221; deaths in Armenia for the past few days. She says Azerbaijan paid $10 million to the World Health Organization and &#8220;ordered these Armenian deaths.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Each member state of the WTO pays an annual fee, the amount of which depends on the population of the country and the economic situation. Armenia also pays money to the organization every year. <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/open.who.int\/2018-19\/contributors\/contributor?name=Azerbaijan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Azerbaijan&#8217;s last payment<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> was about $574,000, <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/open.who.int\/2018-19\/contributors\/contributor?name=Armenia\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Armenia&#8217;s<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> $57,000.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The urges not to wear a mask<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Marina Khachatryan and Ruben Hovhannisyan were not the only doctors who spread false rumors about the Covid-19 virus.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/media.am\/en\/verified\/2020\/06\/11\/22037\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Urologist Gevorg Grigoryan<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, who recently <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/media.am\/hy\/verified\/2020\/05\/28\/21668\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">came to the attention<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> of the international press due to the creation of a website spreading false news about the coronavirus with US funding, also made manipulative allegations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Grigoryan posted a series of Facebook live videos <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/watch\/live\/?v=339094827096086&amp;ref=watch_permalink\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">accusing<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> the government of &#8220;bringing&#8221; the coronavirus to Armenia.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In another video message, Grigoryan <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/watch\/live\/?v=753316358740860&amp;ref=watch_permalink\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">urged viewers<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> not to wear a mask in the open air.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Anna Kostanyan, a member of the &#8220;Bright Armenia&#8221; faction of the National Assembly, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/anna.m.kostanyan\/posts\/10219496083045213\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">wrote<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> on Facebook about the need to stop wearing the mask while walking alone in the open air.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Ordinary medical masks, however, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=mRurMToVqto\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">are safe<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> and do not harm health.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c Masks do not cause oxygen starvation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u274c Masks do not cause the possibility of breathing carbon dioxide in dangerous doses.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Only N-95 masks can increase the level of carbon dioxide in the blood for a long time. However, this problem can be solved by simply removing the mask. Therefore, if a person does not have any contraindications to wearing a mask, there <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eu.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/factcheck\/2020\/05\/30\/fact-check-wearing-face-mask-not-cause-hypoxia-hypercapnia\/5260106002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">is no reason to believe<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> that masks can cause health problems.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: right\"><b>Karine Ghazaryan<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Although the main topic of the past week was the developments around the Constitutional Court, the press and social networks continued to spread Coronamyths about masks, Pashinyan&#8217;s canceled visit and the registering of false causes of death at morgues. The &#8220;broken telephone&#8221; rang again During a public poll conducted by Kentron TV on June 20,<a class=\"moretag\" href=\"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/verified\/2020\/06\/28\/22455\/\"> Read the full article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":22399,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-verified","author_posts-karine-ghazaryan"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22455"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22462,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22455\/revisions\/22462"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}