I haz a sad.
I like flying Delta. There’s a huge hub here in Minneapolis. I have the Delta SkyMiles card so I can rack up points and fly places for free (well, freeish, but that’s another post), and I’ve generally had very good experiences on Delta flights.
So, I was sad when I saw this in my Twitter stream yesterday:
It turns out that Delta and In-Flight Media are presenting a nearly three-minute ad that trivializes the flu and tells the audience that:
- You don’t have to worry about preventing the flu – FALSE.
- Most illnesses that present with flu-like symptoms are not the flu – TRUE.
- Washing your hands is a good way to help you stay healthy. – TRUE.
- Covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze is a good way to minimize spreading germs – TRUE.
- Drink water to keep your body hydrated – TRUE.
- Get the right amount of sleep and reduce stress levels to decrease your chances of getting sick – PROBABLY TRUE.
- Vitamin C and D – found in nutritious food – are effective, natural preventatives – FALSE.
- Regular exercise helps keep your immune system strong. – TRUE.
- The flu shot is an option. Research the different types of flu vaccines your doctor may recommend. SURE, WHY NOT?
Who would advocate against being an informed consumer? I applaud people who are willing to research their health care options. But, when considering the source (psst – it’s one of the country’s biggest anti-vaccine organizations), and considering the place that they direct you to research flu vaccines (psst – It’s their hugely anti-vaccine propogranda-laden website filled with misinformation about all sorts of vaccines), the little alarm bells in your head should start to ring, buzz, sing, or talk – whichever you’ve got your alarm set to.
Elyse Anders – the president of the Women Thinking Free Foundation and driver behind the Hug Me I’m Vaccinated Campaign brought this story to my attention via her article on Skepchick.org. Elyse has a list of things that you can do to help protest to Delta and the associated organizations that are allowing this ad to run.
- Sign the CHANGE.ORG petition. Add your name to those of us who would like Delta to remove the advertisement. Change.org works, and it’s an easy way to make your voice heard.
- Tweet: “#fludelta @DeltaAssist @Delta If you’re so concerned about safety, stop running potentially deadly anti-vaccine ads http://wp.me/pbblq-6qu”
- Facebook/YouTube:
Add your comments about the video here. The content has been removed from Facebook, but you can still see it on YouTube. The owner, In-Flight Media, has disabled commenting, but you can still downrate it. - Share Elyse’s post on Facebook and Twitter.
- Tell your friends and family about the campaign and get them involved!
The last time Elyse was involved in a campaign against vaccine misinformation advertisements by this group placed in Times Square, the ads were pulled. With all of our help, hopefully we can make it happen again!
