A State of Fear: How the UK government weaponised fear during the Covid-19 pandemic
Page 32
14.www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2405-7;science.sciencemag.org/content/369/6500/eabb9789;www.bmj.com/content/370/bmj.m2743
15.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/eci.13484
16.www.cebm.net/covid-19/excess-mortality-acrosscountriesin-2020/
17.https://omni.se/folkhalsomyndighetens-chef-i-ku-vi-har-fattratt/a/WOK81g
18.www.spectator.co.uk/article/covid-and-the-lockdown-effect-alook-at-the-evidence
19.www.spiked-online.com/2021/03/18/the-myth-of-our-latelockdown/
20.https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3764553
INDEX
9/11 45, 46–7, 55, 223, 255
50c army 20, 74
77th Brigade 63, 73–4, 139
1984 (Orwell) 188
abusive relationships 141–4
Academy of Ideas 60–1, 243
‘accursed’ people 51, 54
Acheson, Donald 98
Adams, John 39
advertising 29, 105, 117–20, 137, 256
Advertising Standards Authority 117–18, 119, 239
advisory groups, unelected 70, 256 see also specific groups
Agamben, Giorgio 51
age of death 5, 150
age-adjusted mortality 276
Agence-France Presse 24
agoraphobia 16, 177
Ahmed, Samir 130, 131, 135
AIDS 98–9, 100, 187
aliens 206
‘All in, All together’ campaign 29
‘all in this together’ 86, 92, 111
altruism 105, 106
American Institute for Economic Research 275
amulets 180
Analysis of the health, economic and social effects of COVID-19 and the approach to tiering 219
Animal Farm (Orwell) 122, 123
anonymous sources 60, 63–4, 67, 88
anti-lockdown protests 50–1, 54, 82, 173, 203
anti-vaccine information 72–3, 87, 134, 138, 184
Anti-Virus (Covidfaq) website 181
‘apocalypse’ 13, 18, 84, 200, 208, 214
apotheosis 124
app (NHS) 137, 224
Árbenz Guzmán, Juan Jacobo 42–3
archetypes 13, 179
Ardern, Jacinta 65, 78
army 73–4
assemble, right to 82
Associated Press 24
Associated Press Factcheck 154
Astra Zeneca vaccine 132–4
asymptomatic ‘cases’ 160
asymptomatic transmission 51, 119
Atwood, Margaret 110
Auken, Ida 211
authentic messaging 10
authenticity checking 18, 24
authoritarianism
collectivist values 265
creeping 90
fear induces desire for 267
fear of 9, 201–2, 234, 235
and lockdown 218–19, 266
personal threat perception 104
‘seeding’ 19
authority
moral authority 47, 241–2
perceived 100
when under threat our brains listen to 13
autocracy 248
availability bias/heuristic 21–2
‘back to normal’ 93, 247, 264
Bad News Has Wings: Dread Risk Mediates Social Amplification in Risk Communication 252
Baker, Norman 241
Baker, Steve 69–70, 256, 265
balanced coverage 22, 25–6, 99
Bank Holiday Monday 172 ‘bare life’ 51
Basu, Neil 138
Baudrillard, Jean 146
BBC
cautionary tales 108
Covid coverage 22–3, 26, 37, 105, 153
government-media-public relationship 30, 156
headlines 32, 33
research tactics 203–4
as state broadcaster 30
Behaviour Change 61–2, 259
Behavioural Government 40, 183
Behavioural Insight Teams (BIT) 20, 59, 71, 100, 109, 183, 260
behavioural science/behavioural psychology see also SPI-B (Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviour)
and democracy 243
ethics of 61–2, 185, 238, 260
future of 265
government advisors 58–9
infantilisation by 243
inquiry into 258–62
and journalism 109
and masks 111, 205, 237
neuroticism 90–1
in the NHS 246–7
nudge theory 58–75
and politics 88, 253
propaganda 43, 56
role in healing from epidemic 87
SPI-B (Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviour) 78–95
tools of the trade 98–120, 242
vaccines and the language of coercive control 245
weaponisation of 63, 98–120
Bernays, Edward 42, 43, 58, 104, 244, 265
Biderman, Albert 141, 142, 245
Big Brother state 45
Big Brother Watch 46, 72, 138, 221, 223–4, 227
Big Tech 191, 224, 256
biopolitics 51
biosecurity state 48, 49, 53, 180, 248
bio-terrorism 48, 52
Black Lives Matter 82, 173
Black Mirror 11
Blair, Tony 47, 55
Blitz spirit 12
block policing 88
Bloomberg 264
BMA (British Medical Association) 153–4
BMJ (British Medical Journal) 136, 212
bodily sovereignty 53
‘body blow’ 23
body counts 41
body language 8, 10–12
body storage facilities 163
boiling frogs 110–11
border control 39, 40, 51–2, 272
bots 138, 139, 252, 256
Bournemouth beach 173
brainwashing 43, 141, 185, 196–215, 242
Breakthrough Media 126, 138
Brexit 41, 253
Brimelow, Kirsty 220–2, 226
British Medical Islamic Association 134
British Psychological Society (BPS) 113, 185, 217, 238
‘build back better’ 78, 211, 213
Bunker-Smith, Harrie 141, 185
Cabinet Office 29, 63, 71–4, 130, 131, 135, 163, 260
Cabinet Office for Civil Emergencies Unit 254
Cain, Lee 68
Cambridge Analytica 104
Cameron, David 59, 85
Canada 65
cancer deaths 140, 232
Captain Tom 124
carbon emissions 78–9
care homes 53, 155, 165–7, 200, 248–9, 273
Carlo, Silkie 46, 47, 72, 138, 223–4, 226, 227
Carlson, Johan 276
case isolation 272
case studies 108–9
cases
counting/defining 147, 154–5, 159, 160, 272
as key metric 115, 149
lockdowns based on 159
cashless society 210
Caspian, James 214–15
Cassell, Jackie 99, 100, 246, 248
cautionary tales 108–9
celebrities 134, 136, 137
censorship 55–6, 72, 143, 180–1, 186–7, 190, 191, 256
Changes to Human Medicine Regulations to support the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines 4
Channel 4 26, 135
Channel 5 135
Chart of Coercion 141, 142, 245
chevrons 105, 108, 264
children see also schools
behavioural science 108
burdened with responsibility/blame 87, 107
effects of lockdown 184–5
Kawasaki-like disease reports 64
and masks 91
mental health 91, 167, 170–1, 231, 239–40
poverty 232
as scapegoats 193
used to create shock effects 66
China
Belt and Road Initiative 20
collectivism
89
Cultural Revolution 43–4
Great Firewall 20
lockdown 272–3
quarantine 52
response to virus 9
social credit 89, 206
social media propaganda 19–21
Trump’s ‘Chinese virus’ 40
videos 18–19, 252–3
choice 53–4, 62
Chomsky, Noam 27
Christmas 116–17, 174–5
churches 173–4, 180, 234
citizen policing 114
civil liberties 218–28
Civitas 150, 274
Clap for Carers 68, 94–5, 122–5, 199
clickbait 18, 29, 253, 256
climate change 65, 78–9
clinical diagnosis versus PCR alone 53
clinically vulnerable people 14
COBRA (Cabinet Office Briefing Room) 74, 81
‘cocooning’ the vulnerable 68
co-creation 86, 88, 91
coercion 53, 56, 109–10, 132, 141–4, 198, 245–50
Coetzee, J.M. 179, 180
cognitive bias 102
cognitive dissonance 200
Cohen, Nick 54
cohesion 67, 68, 86, 177
Cold War 15, 39, 42, 47, 55, 214
collective conscience 86
collectivism 81, 86, 92, 95, 105, 111, 144, 213, 215
Collins, Damian 138
Communism 20, 42, 43–4, 88, 197, 266
Community Champions 87–8, 129, 136
Community Party of Britain 88
community support 257
compliance
incentives 101, 107, 202, 243
stories of 109
through fear 54, 86–7, 91, 94, 108–9, 113, 128, 148, 192, 259
through penalties for non-compliance 101
through shame 114
concentration camps 51, 52
conflicts of interest 55, 212
conformity 279
confusion, creation of 64, 116, 117
conscience, relaxation of 199–200
consensus 83
consent 43, 61, 70, 81 see also informed consent
conspiracy theories 19, 55, 184, 185, 202–15
contact tracing 224, 272
Contagion 24
contagion of fear 214–15
Continuous Mortality Investigation 157
contracts, government-awarded 212–13, 241
controlled spontaneity 122–39
convergent agendas 212, 242
Cook, Sue 22, 23, 25
Coronavirus Act (2020) 164, 205, 219, 221
coroners 163–4, 166
corpses, images of 24
cortisol 147, 237
cost-benefit analysis 70, 147–8, 150–1, 183, 219, 239, 260, 272
“costly signalling” 137
Counter Disinformation Cell 63, 72
counter-terrorism 46, 47, 71, 126
covert strategies 56, 62, 129–30, 131, 137, 224, 243 see also psyops
Covid certification schemes 206 see also vaccine certification
Covid deniers 184, 271
Covid Social Study 86
COVID-19 and the 24/7 News Cycle: Does COVID-19 News Exposure Affect Mental Health? 240
Covidiots 54, 101, 105–8, 176, 200, 204, 271
Craig, Clare 182
criminalisation 221
crises, government exploitation of 45, 55, 71, 235–44
critical thinking 83, 148, 199, 215, 242, 280
cults 196–215
Cummings, Dominic 23, 68, 253
curfews 68–9
Curie, Marie 235
Curtis, Adam 42, 47
Cygnus 162, 164
Czech Republic 276
Daily Express 32, 33
Daily Mail 33, 34, 35, 36, 111, 115, 241 see also Mail Online
Daily Mirror 32, 35, 36, 108
Daily Star 35
Danmask study 188–9
data analytics 46, 252, 253
data dashboards 150, 155, 236
data science 253
de Moliere, Laura 260
death
certification of 162–9
counting deaths 146–7, 162–9
daily death tolls 146–7
daily media coverage of 21–2, 29, 146–7
date of death 150, 276
deaths from other causes 146
difficulties in counting 162–9
disconnection from 44–5, 244, 267
excess deaths 4, 5, 25, 157, 162, 163, 230, 232, 275
expectations of immortality 44–5, 162, 234
fear of 65, 162, 234, 244, 267
global death rates 3
inability to be with loved ones 168–9, 216, 225
as key metric 41, 115, 149
lethality of Covid 47–8
and lockdown 273–4
metrics 146–60
non-Covid excess deaths 48, 163, 167, 230, 232, 274
overestimated by public 4, 148
peak on 8th April 2020 11
predictions of 25
time lags in reporting 150, 276
what counts as a ‘Covid’ death 153
debate, curtailment of 30, 55–6, 70, 103, 181–2, 185, 256 see also censorship
debiasing 279
defaults 101
dehumanisation 53, 54, 91, 106, 144, 224, 267
democracy
accretion of power above democratic oversight 71
bypassing 222
‘engineering of consent’ 43
and journalism 50
moral authority 241
and moral duty 227–8
and performative safety 47
and propaganda 42, 56
and the right to assemble 82
use of fear is anti-democratic 242–4
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport 72
depth psychology 44
Derbyshire police 220
desensitisation 199–200
deviants 101, 106, 114
devil shift 183, 191–2
DHSC Collaborate 60
Dick, Cressida 114
digital ID 206, 210, 224
Dingwall, Robert 84–5, 113, 247, 248, 254–5
Dinou, Marie 221
disaster capitalism 207, 213, 242, 248
disaster recovery specialists 63, 75, 117, 126, 136, 163, 236
discharges from hospital, not reported 29, 115
disease vectors, everyone seen as 4, 51, 53
disinformation 63, 72, 181, 191, 203
disproportionality 9, 70, 85, 183, 221, 223, 225
dissent, disapproval of 85–6, 184–6, 198, 202, 204, 256
‘do no harm’ 241
doctors
death certifications 164
as government advisors 85
Medical Examiner systems 163–4
Dolan, Simon 225
domestic abuse 141, 142, 163, 167, 232–3
‘doom-mongering’ 21, 23, 25, 98, 117–20
dopamine hits 281
dots on the ground 15, 114, 144, 258
Downing Street briefings 26, 105 see also Fright Night
drones 224
dystopia 66, 70, 78, 95, 118, 260, 265
EAST (Easy, Attractive, Social and Timely) 100, 260
Easthope, Lucy 117, 126, 136, 163, 167–8, 190–1, 236–7, 254, 256
Ebola 162, 254
economic impacts
collateral damage 239
cost-benefit analysis 70, 147–8, 150–1, 183, 219, 239, 260, 272
economic recovery 112
fines 222
as the goal/cover 206, 207, 209–10
‘Great Reset’ 211–12
on health 123
inequality 207, 209
not forecast for second lockdown 149
printing money 209, 210
rationality 202
statistics 233
Sweden 209
Edelman’s Trust 26
Edmunds, John 1
75
education see schools
educational psychology 91–2, 261
Effectiveness of Adding a Mask Recommendation to Other Public Health Measures to Prevent SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Danish Mask Wearers 113
ego 102, 105, 122
Ellwood, Tobias 73, 173
emergency legislation 52, 53, 70, 82, 162, 218–28
End of Days 18
enemies, identification of 39–40, 41, 47, 48
‘engineering of consent’ 43
enjoyment of fear 70–1
environment 78–9
ethics
journalistic ethics 25–6
medical ethics 132
nudging 100, 103–4
propaganda 56
use of behavioural psychology 62–3, 81, 84, 103–4, 113, 185, 186, 217, 238, 259–62, 265
European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) 112
European Convention of Human Rights 82
Evening Standard 32
evidence-based decision-making 68–9, 111, 112, 260
evidence-based medicine 111, 159
evidence-based pandemic planning and preparedness 253–5
evolutionary purpose of fear 2–3, 8–9, 94
excess deaths 4, 5, 25, 157, 162, 163, 230, 232, 275
existential crisis 84, 93, 103
exit plans 93, 237
expert panels 256 see also specific bodies
extremism 46, 128, 138
face coverings see masks
Facebook 17, 191, 224
facial recognition 224
fact-checking 18, 19, 24, 130, 132–3, 181, 252–3
Factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among minority ethnic groups 128–9
‘facts’ 84, 85
Fagan, Patrick 103, 104, 106, 108, 239, 252, 258, 279–81
‘fake news’ 72
‘false’ information 191 see also disinformation; misinformation
false positives 158–9
Fancourt, Daisy 86–7, 129
father images 44
Fauci, Dr 51, 112
fear porn 18
Ferguson, Neil 87, 151, 152, 174, 188, 266, 272, 273
fight/flight/freeze 8, 13
financial interests 90–1, 128, 212
fines 82–3, 109–10, 143, 200, 222, 264
First Literature Review: Lockdowns Only Had a Small Effect on COVID-19 277
fixed penalty notices 109–10, 222
‘flatten the curve’ 11, 48, 49, 110, 244
flattery 60
flu 9, 157, 271, 272
Flynn, Ged 167
‘foot in the door’ 110–11
Fowler, Norman 98, 100
Fox, Claire 60–1, 243
framing 40, 184
Frawley, Ashley 103, 118, 242
free speech 30, 56, 72, 182
Free Speech Union 30
freedom apps 54, 206
Freedom of Information (FOI) requests 125, 192, 202
freedoms see liberty
freeze response 8
Freud, Sigmund 42, 244
Fright Night 7–13, 104–5, 199, 208, 263
Fullfact 133
fundamental attribution error 102
funding 90–1, 128, 129, 188, 212