By Hannah Mitchell

As protestors in Michigan demonstrate their frustrations over the stay-at-home order and parts of the state begin to reopen, Detroit broadcast reporter Jenn Schanz, shares how she curbs the spread of misinformation and the importance of local news in the times of COVID-19.

“In the early onset of the pandemic, this was one of the hardest-hit areas,” she said. “Metro Detroit has seen how serious this is from the get-go. I reported on the need for additional space for morgues. And that was like sort of a really sobering story to do because that put it in context as well.”

As Michigan’s COVID-19  fatalities are the fourth highest in the nation, Schanz has transitioned into a role as a gatekeeper of misinformation. A role she assumes as her civic duty as a local news reporter.

“When it first started, people either weren’t aware of how serious it was or wanted to downplay it,” she said. “Something common in Michigan is ‘Oh, it’s just the flu. It’s not as bad as the flu.’ It was one I think a lot of people were comfortable with sharing. Every time we talk to experts, and we have doctors on the air and they are saying ‘Hey, it’s not just like the flu and here is why it’s not just like the flu’, we could give people that information just so they can digest it themselves.”

Schanz’s Detroit Metro team received backlash from these reports.  She said that certain people were very angry because they had connected with a narrative that made them comfortable and they didn’t like contesting information.

“They didn’t like hearing different and I think I definitely know where that comes from,” she said. “There’s been so much anger and people are frustrated, and people are out of work. And people aren’t doing well. And the economy is tight. You’re gonna have people looking for someone to blame. And that’s definitely happening in Michigan.”

With 44% of Americans getting their news from Facebook, social media is a big player in how people perceive the news. According to Schanz, viral videos circulating in Michigan claimed the origin of COVID-19 was a lab in China and the virus was intentionally implanted by the Chinese government to hurt the United States.

“A lot of people are now getting their news from Facebook quickly,” she said. “We know that’s the truth. So, the danger is that if people are constantly treating Facebook as their source and people are sharing conspiracy theories and misinformation, you run the risk of a huge portion of your community not happy with that.”

As a local news reporter, she deals with accusations of being called ‘fake news’ by social media hecklers. Although not a daily occurrence, it is a phrase she said that has been very common during the pandemic.

“I’ve been called fake news and harassed on social media. And that’s not unique to me. That is not like my story. I think that’s several reporters’ stories.”

According to a Statista survey, 65% of North Americans trust traditional news outlets to provide general news and information, with 10% reporting to knowingly share fake news on social media.

In order to curb the spread of misinformation, Schanz has set personal guidelines with how she responds to inaccurate comments on her social media accounts.

“I always respond if the person is spewing misinformation, commenting, and commentating something that potentially someone could read and believe true, I immediately correct it,” she said. “I feel that is my responsibility.”

Along with correcting false information, Schanz supplements her corrections with resources to factual information.

“If someone wants to share a conspiracy theory, I immediately comment and say, ‘That’s not accurate. Here is the information if you want to see more on the facts of the situation.’”

The survey also reported that 40% of Americans rely on local news to stay informed. Schanz takes this seriously and said that her role in halting the spread of misinformation and clearing confusion in Detroit emphasizes the importance of local news.

“That’s why I think local news is so important, it’s always been important, but it’s especially important right now,” she said.

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