Misinformation proving challenge to relief efforts after Japan quake

"Strictly refrain?" That statement from Kishida was pathetically weak. A real leader would have emphatically stated that anyone creating false messaging related to the disaster would be diligently pursued by police. And follow through on that threat.

In a 2016 earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture, a man who spread a false rumor that a lion had escaped from a zoo was arrested for allegedly interfering with the operations of the zoo.

Interfering with the operations of the zoo? Is that one on the books? Or is it business, not zoo. This was hardly the worst rumour spread post-earthquake in Japanese history though. And the social media in 1923 was word of mouth.

This from Wikipedia suggests that government awareness of the perils of misinformation is far from being a new thing: "The importance of obtaining and providing accurate information following natural disasters has been emphasized in Japan ever since (1923 Great Kanto Earthquake). Earthquake preparation literature in modern Japan almost always directs citizens to carry a portable radio and use it to listen to reliable information, and not to be misled by rumors in the event of a large earthquake." Maybe the advice needs to be more robustly disseminated.

Right, I see. It’s misinformation which we should blame for thousands of people going without food, water, shelter and sanitation for a week of freezing conditions.

And here was I, foolishly suspecting the total inaction of the weak Kishida government, which assumes soundbites are the same as rescue.

I would reinforce castrating the idiots that do this. I know it's impossible and illegal, but it would greatly benefit the society.

Right, I see. It’s misinformation which we should blame for thousands of people going without food, water, shelter and sanitation for a week of freezing conditions.

No, it isn’t.

What a very odd statement to make after reading this article.

I would reinforce castrating the idiots that do this. 

A bold idea no doubt. With what implement would you castrate them? What if they are women?

@TrevorPeace In my opinion I think Kishida message to discourage the spread of potentially confusing or harmful information during this and any future emergency situations should have been to encourage and ask the people to verify the information they receive before sharing it and to only share the information from reputable sources. Encourage the people to share updates from official government agencies, local authorities, or trusted news outlets and to ask the people to fact check their information before posting it on social media and to remind the users to think critically and consider the potential consequences of sharing unverified or sensationalized information. Also encourage the citizens to report false or misleading information on social media platforms so that it can be addressed promptly to stop things from getting worse. Last but not least being that Japan is a country that is prone to many disasters as the leader he should also get on his disaster preparedness team and request that they promote awareness about the importance of responsible sharing in emergencies through public service announcements, community organizations, or social media campaigns and ask them to provide links to official websites or emergency management resources that offer accurate and up-to-date information to stop the spread of such rumors. This is only my opinion but if it counts I think these points could help reduce the spread of misinformation during such events and contribute to a keeping the community informed and during critical situations.

"Strictly refrain?" That statement from Kishida was pathetically weak. A real leader would have emphatically stated that anyone creating false messaging related to the disaster would be diligently pursued by police. And follow through on that threat.

Will always exist.

The van story is no misinformation until it was known it was just a professional vehicle.

If it had been some real robbers, it would have helped.

Common sense is naturally not present within all people.

One always need to check source of info and add a pinch of salt.

Since this quake hit, political "excuse" that justify Govt's slowness of mobilizing rescue teams or transporting supplies are full of Japanese social media.

Many different accounts are sending pro-government comments with completely same sentences everyday, like order from "somewhere".

Japan underwent many massive natural disaster. present Govt haven't been able to use lesson from disaster history.

Giving misinformation on purpose is a crime. It should be prosecuted!