CNBC
Germany, like many other countries, had a contingent of people who fought lockdowns and argued that Covid-19 was a hoax. But it also had a handful of prominent scientists communicating regularly and openly with the public. That played a huge role in drowning out rumors and misinformation, locals tell CNBC.
“We have a great educational system and everyone has access to it,” said Dennis Traub, a tech worker in Hamburg, Germany. “So I believe that many people and the majority listened to both sides and one of those sides sounded much more reasonable.”
On the side of science, virologist Christian Drosten grew his podcast, “Das Coronavirus-Update” to millions of followers in the early days of the pandemic. Drosten is now a cult icon in Germany akin to Dr. Tony Fauci in the United States. He doesn’t dumb down the science. Instead, he shares complex ideas in an accessible way and gets real with the public about aspects of the virus that are not well understood. In addition to that, the public regularly hears from the (now very well-known) Minister of Health Jens Spahn, as well as Germany’s chancellor, Angela Merkel.
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