When it comes to health, people's decisions are endowed with a much stronger sense of urgency than when engaging with a policy proposal a much more pronounced sense of importance than when choosing which snack to buy.
Should we condone this pragmatism? We believe that orchestrated leaks highlight the dangers of applying to health issues the procedures designed for other contexts.
In the case of the latest French lockdown, the media was provided with an opportunity in the run-up to the Macron speech to emphasise the degradation of the epidemic situation. It permits assessment of the public reaction and addition of last-minute adjustments designed to avoid major opposition. The “leaking” of soon-to-be-announced policy is a common feature in French policy-making. They cited several sources “close to the government”, an admission indicating that the deciders had voluntarily leaked this information as had already been the case at earlier stages of the epidemic. That said, the media had wasted no time commenting on the new measures over the previous two days. On October 28th at 8 P.M, President Emmanuel Macron announced a new lockdown. The French President and government have recently given a perfect example of how the tools of political communication can be applied to the current pandemic situation. In their quest, they understandably turn their gaze beyond the medical sphere, drawing upon the experience and knowledge developed in other social domains, such as marketing and politics, in which mobilising the public is a central issue. How can the population be most effectively enrolled in the fight against the pandemic? Deciders and academics across the globe are searching for answers to this question. Public health deciders can be faced with a lack of understanding of the danger posed by the virus, resistance towards drastic measures, and overall complacency. Acceptability and compliance with the measures taken against COVID-19 are major concerns.
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