疫苗专家表示：必须停止网络上的错误信息

疫苗专家表示：必须停止网络上的错误信息

The head of an international vaccine group says that misunderstandings and false information about vaccines are spreading on the internet and should be stopped.

国际疫苗组织的负责人表示，关于疫苗的误解和错误信息正在互联网上传播，应该被制止。

Seth Berkley of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, spoke Tuesday to a gathering in Geneva, Switzerland, where the World Health Organization is meeting. Berkley said that false information “kills people.” He noted strong scientific evidence of the safety of vaccines.

疫苗联盟Gavi的塞思·伯克利周二在瑞士日内瓦世卫组织的一次会议上发表了讲话。伯克利说，虚假信息是会“杀人”的。他指出，强有力的科学证据表明疫苗是安全的。

But, he said social media algorithms favor misinformation over facts. He added that such misinformation easily influences people who have not had a family member die from a preventable disease.

但他表示，社交媒体算法更喜欢错误信息，而不是事实。他补充说，这样的错误信息很容易影响那些没有亲人的人死于可预防的疾病。

Berkley said people must consider the belief in misinformation as a contagious sickness.

伯克利说，人们必须有一种信念，把错误信息看作是一种传染性疾病。

He added, “This is a disease.This spreads at the speed of light, literally.”

他补充说：“这是一种疾病，毫不夸张地说，它是以光速传播的。”

The World Health Organization says not enough people are getting the vaccine that prevents measles. It says this is why the disease is spreading around the world.

世界卫生组织说，没有足够多的人接种预防麻疹的疫苗。它说，这就是这种疾病在世界各地蔓延的原因。

The organization says vaccines save two million lives every year.

该组织称疫苗每年拯救200万人的生命。

Measles infections have risen sharply in countries that earlier had few cases, including the United States.

包括美国在内的早些时候病例很少的国家，麻疹感染病例急剧上升。

Seth Berkley argues that misinformation about vaccines is not a freedom of speech issue. He said Tuesday that social media companies should remove such content from their websites.

赛思·伯克利认为，关于疫苗的错误信息不是言论自由的问题。他在周二表示，社交媒体公司应该从其网站上删除此类内容。

Alex Azar is Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He made similar comments in his speech to the yearly meeting of the WHO. He said in the U.S., social media conspiracy groups confuse parents so they avoid getting needed vaccinations.

亚历克斯·阿扎尔是美国卫生与公众服务部部长，他在世界卫生组织年度会议上的讲话也做出了类似的评论。他说在美国，社交媒体上的错误信息让家长们感到困惑，因此他们避免接种所需的疫苗。

The American official also spoke of U.S. efforts to strengthen immunization programs around the world. He said, “Just recently, the U.S. supported a mass measles vaccination campaign in Nigeria that reached almost 10 million kids. We assisted with a diphtheria outbreak among Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.”

这位美国官员还谈到了美国在世界各地加强免疫项目的努力。他说：“就在最近，美国在尼日利亚支持了一场大规模的麻疹疫苗接种运动，惠及近1000万儿童。我们帮助孟加拉国罗兴亚难民应对白喉。”

And he noted U.S. support of recent research about the yellow fever vaccine.

他还指出，美国支持最近有关黄热病疫苗的研究。

Azar has rejected criticism of comments about vaccines made by U.S. president Donald Trump before he became president. Trump posted on Twitter that vaccination could cause autism, a developmental disorder.

美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在当选总统之前就疫苗问题发表了评论，对此阿扎尔表示否认。特朗普在推特上说，接种疫苗可能导致自闭症，即一种发育障碍。

“A study says @Autism is out of control – a 78% increase in 10 years. Stop giving monstrous combined vaccinations.”

“一项研究表明，自闭症已经失控，在10年内增长了78%，应停止接种可怕的联合疫苗。”

Azar said that Trump was “extremely firm” in support of vaccinations.

阿扎尔表示，特朗普“非常坚定”地支持接种疫苗。

Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam also spoke to the WHO delegates. She said health officials needed to do more about online misinformation. She said she was working on the issue with Twitter, Facebook, Google and other companies.

加拿大首席公共卫生官员特蕾莎・坦姆也向世卫组织代表发表了讲话，她说，卫生官员需要对网上的错误信息采取更多措施。她说，她正在与推特、脸书、谷歌和其他公司合作解决这个问题。

I’m Jonathan Evans.

乔纳森·埃文斯报道。

Words in This Story

algorithm – n. a set of steps that are followed in order to solve a mathematical problem or to complete a computer process

contagious – adj. capable of being easily spread to others

literally – adv. (an adverb) used to express strong feeling while not being literally true.

conspiracy – n. a secret plan made by two or more people to do something that is harmful or illegal

confuse – v. to make something difficult to understand

monstrous – adj.​ having extraordinary often overwhelming size​