Broniatowski, David A., Mark Dredze, and John W. Ayers. ““First Do No Harm”: Effective Communication About COVID-19 Vaccines.” (2021): 1055-1057. Web.
The article by Broniatowski et al. explores the social media influence over the vaccine hesitancy despite the visible effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines available. Social media platforms demonstrated their intent to prohibit content that results in the spread of misinformation. Namely, the content which explicitly involves conspiracy theories or false claims about vaccines will be subjected to removal. However, the authors suggest that it is not a proper solution due to the algorithms involved being immature and leading to varying collateral damages. Therefore, proper engagement with vaccine-hesitant citizens is necessary to address the issue at hand.
In terms of evaluation, the paper acknowledges that the research was financially supported by a grant from John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, and the John and Mary Tu Foundation. At the same time, the researchers also indicate conflicts of interest. Consequently, the credibility of the authors and the article can be considered low-average.
Mays, Vickie M., Susan D. Cochran, Aleta Sprague, and Jody Heymann. “Social Justice Is Not the COVID-19 Vaccine Alone: It Is Addressing Structural Racism Through Social Policies That Shape Health.” (2021): S75-S79. Web.
The article by Mays et al. investigates the social justice perspective on the COVID19 vaccination situation, addressing structural racism that contributes to early mortality for various minorities. Historically, it is evident that the lack of social justice within the US is underscored in consideration of the infectious diseases on racial or ethnic minorities. The situation with a pandemic is indicated to be no exception by the authors. Authors argue that the difference in the protection of the minority employees and their families during the pandemic could have been equitable if a flexible and universal policy of paid sick leave had been introduced from the beginning. Low-income workers “with little savings—disproportionately Black and Latinx workers”—encountered significant obstacles to following recommended guidelines to social distance and quarantine in case of exposure.
In terms of evaluation, the paper does not indicate the involvement of conflicts of interest. The article acknowledges reception of the funding from the National Institute of Minority Health Disparities, National Institutes of Health and National Institute of Mental Health. As a result, the credibility of the authors and the article can be considered high-average.