What Faustão’s transplant teaches us about fact and opinion – 08/31/2023 – Education

“It passed in front of a lot of people waiting for a transplant.” “I really like Faustão, but my father should also have priority.” “A lot of people in line and out of nowhere he gets a heart.” “Those who have money don’t need to stand in line at the SUS.”

Last Sunday, after the announcement that the presenter Fausto Silva had performed a heart transplant in São Paulo (SP), the content of the comments on social networks was more or less this, full of mistrust, misinformation and conspiracy theories.

Anyone accessing X/Twitter or Instagram could imagine that the platforms had been taken over by specialists in the functioning of the Unified Health System or in complex medical procedures and serious heart diseases, such was the certainty with which some statements were made.

The speculative hysteria was such that the Ministry of Health and the government of São Paulo issued notes explaining the technical criteria for carrying out transplants, with data that refute, with facts and figures, the flood of unfounded opinions that swept the timelines.

After all, why is it easier to discredit the SUS than to believe in the speed of the system? There is not just one answer to this question, as we live in a country where there is no shortage of accusations of corruption and favoring elites and influential people. There is also no denying that, in Brazil, belief in public institutions is low.

Data such as those from the Edelman Trust Barometer 2023 help to understand the scenario: according to the study, 40% of Brazilians distrust the government and 46% the media —both are seen as sources of misinformation. The report, which involved a sample of 32,000 people from 28 countries, still shows that, here, institutional leaders are unreliable and that “divisive forces”, such as the rich and government authorities, are seen by large portions of the population as groups that intensify inequalities (62% and 49%, respectively).

Indices like these must be understood in the context of the hyperconnection and infodemic we are in, without forgetting the scenario of political polarization experienced with more emphasis in the last five years. The dissemination of conspiracy, denialist and anti-democratic content finds meaning, we know, in the beliefs and opinions of a large part of the population.

The so-called confirmation bias, the human tendency to validate and believe only what our values ​​and prejudices endorse, always seeking support for them, also helps to explain why for so many people it can be easier to believe in hoaxes than in data and statistics positive from official sources.

This can also occur in everyday situations involving anonymous users. A recent example is a video that went viral a few weeks ago, in which a dog chased a car in Nova Iguaçu (RJ). The images were quickly interpreted, without evidence, as yet another case of animal abandonment and the tutor suffered several attacks on social networks. The problem is that it wasn’t about that: the dog had run away from home.

Skipping the transplant line or abandoning an animal are socially reprehensible acts that are rooted in the preconceived ideas we have of ourselves as a society. In Brazil, it became common to discuss the privileges of the few under the lack of access to the rights of many.

However, being aware of social injustices should not be a justification for validating points of view that are not based on evidence, distorting facts and, consequently, sharing disinformation that hurts the reputation of others. Even because such acts can be classified as defamation, slander and injury and, thus, punished as such in accordance with the Brazilian Penal Code.

The internet is full of traps for situations like these to be repeated, but it is up to each user to behave responsibly and ethically. “Inform yourself before judging”, said João Silva, Faustão’s son, when refuting the accusations against his father and the SUS. If we looked for information before posting our opinions and pointing fingers, maybe we would be able to value what works in Brazil.