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w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, A ug us t 13 ,2 02 0 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 80 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca editorial@waterloochronicle.ca facebook.com/waterloochronicle @wlchronicle WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional General Manager Nelson Parreira nparreira@metroland.com Regional Director of Media Heather Dunbar hdunbar@starmetrolandmedia.com Advertising Representatives Cassandra Dellow, Jan Bodanka, Matt Miller, Lisa Humphreys, Sheri-Lyn Blair, Chris Rego Managing Editor Robyn Wilkinson Online Editor Adam Jackson Reporters Bill Jackson Namish Modi CONTACT US Waterloo Chronicle 475 Thompson Dr. Cambridge, ON N1T 2K8 Phone: 519-886-2830 Fax: 519-623-9155 Web: www.waterloochronicle.ca Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at waterloochronicle.ca Delivery For all delivery inquiries, e-mail customerservice@metroland.com or call 519-894-3000 OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA It's about trust. Our rela- tionship with our readers is built on transparency, hon- esty and integrity. As such, we have launched a trust initiative to tell you who we are and how and why we do what we do. This column is part of that project. Your voice is important. As a media company with a long history of cham- pioning equality for all, Tor- star is uniquely positioned to amplify the diverse voices in our communities. We seek to learn from our past, give voice to the present through our news coverage and provide opportunities for frank, honest and open conversations about race and diversity. We have recently adopt- ed the seven recommenda- tions made by Canadian Journalists of Colour and the Canadian Association of Black Journalists to im- prove diversity within our ranks and in the content that we produce. We recog- nize that we are not repre- sentative enough of the com- munities we serve and we're committed to doing better. Joanne Burghardt, the director of content for Tor- star's community news brands, recently wrote a column detailing the ways we are working quickly to answer the call to action. We are committing to an internal, voluntary demo- graphics survey on an on- going basis. We recognize the need for a more diverse news team and commit to establishing recruitment initiatives and hiring prac- tices to make that happen. We are committed to iden- tifying and developing tal- ented journalists of colour in our newsrooms. We will take part in representation training and workshops to hone our skills as journal- ists. We have set up a number of diversity committees, in- cluding an outreach team with a goal to build stron- ger relationships with un- der-represented communi- ties. I am part of that team. Our goal is to amplify and elevate a more diverse range of voices in our news coverage, both by seeking out more Black, Indige- nous and other racialized experts, and by covering the issues that matter to people of colour, members of the LGBTQ2+ communi- ty and anyone else who has been under-represented in the media. Perhaps you are some- one whose voice should be amplified in our pages? If you would like to have that conversation please con- tact me at rwilkin- son@metroland.com. Robyn Wilkinson is the managing editor of Tor- star Communities newspa- pers in Guelph, Cam- bridge, Waterloo and New Hamburg, a member of the Torstar diversity and in- clusion committee and part of our trust committee. We welcome your questions and value your comments. Email our trust committee at trust@metroland.com. AMPLIFYING DIVERSE VOICES IN OUR COMMUNITIES IS A PRIORITY 'WE ARE NOT REPRESENTATIVE ENOUGH OF THE COMMUNITIES WE SERVE,' WRITES ROBYN WILKINSON EDITORIAL Conspiracy theories are nothing new. They have a rich history. Here in the time of COVID-19, they continue to prolif- erate and take on a new and ominous tone. Canadian researchers are warning that conspiracy theories grow- ing across the internet are spreading misinformation that could lead people to shun important safety mea- sures. A study released last month by McGill University researchers centred on COVID-19 misinformation and its impact. The findings should worry us. The study found people who rely on social media to learn about COVID-19 are most likely to be exposed to misinformation, and to believe it. That can cause them to disregard physical distancing and other public health guidelines, which have been proven by real science to be essential to control the virus. This and other research suggests about 16 per cent of Canadians use social media as their primary source of information on the virus and pandemic. Those of us who know and understand social media might be skeptical. How could anyone believe that CO- VID-19 was developed in a laboratory by people associat- ed with Microsoft founder and billionaire philanthro- pist Bill Gates? Why would anyone accept as true a Face- book claim that wearing a mask can cause lung damage? Or that governments have already decided to make vac- cination mandatory once a vaccine is available. Or that you can protect yourself from infection by rinsing your nose with a saline solution. None of these things are true. The reality is that too many information consumers do rely entirely on sourc- es like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Reddit and Tumblr. These and other social platforms lack the checks and balances regularly applied by credible media sources. But they are out there, and they spread at light- ening speed, so fast experts say it is often hard to tell where they actually originate. Some platforms are concerned enough to act. Twitter and Facebook are removing videos and other posts that spread false information about COVID-19. Public health experts and researchers agree conspir- acy theories must be countered with facts and support- ing evidence. And people vulnerable to such misin- formation should be encouraged to think critically about where information comes from. This sounds like a tall order, and it is. Why is it our responsibility to help educate other adults? Right now, COVID-19 conspiracy theories are worri- some but manageable since the majority of us continue to do the right things. But as the pandemic drags on, as people get more and more tired of restrictions and a struggling economy, more may become vulnerable to misinformation, especially if it supports their objective of "getting back to normal." If there are enough of them, they could put at risk all we worked hard to achieve. CONSPIRACY THEORIES A PUBLIC HEALTH THREAT ROBYN WILKINSON Column