Ebola in the US: Thomas Eric Duncan vs. Dr. Craig Spencer; Is the Media Coverage Bias?
New York City announced its first confirmed case of Ebola last Thursday after New York doctor Craig Spencer tested positive for the deadly virus. His case has raised concerns amongst some critics about the media coverage compared to that of Ebola victim Thomas Eric Duncan.
Spencer, 33, had been treating Ebola patients in Guinea and ended his work there on Oct. 12. He returned to New York from West Africa on Oct. 17, but did not immediately display any symptoms.
The Harlem resident was volunteering with Doctors Without Borders in Guinea, which is one of the three Ebola-plagued West African nations. On Oct. 23, the same day that he first began to exhibit symptoms, he tested positive for the virus at Bellevue Hospital. He is the ninth case of Ebola in the United States, and the seventh U.S. patient to have contracted the deadly virus while treating infected patients.
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On Oct. 8, Duncan, a Liberian national, became the first Ebola victim to die on U.S. soil. Duncan had traveled to the U.S. after having direct contact with a neighbor in Liberia who died from Ebola.
Critics on social networking site Twitter, where #Ebola has been trending for weeks, recently raised concerns about the media coverage surrounding Duncan and Spencer, whose plights share some similarities.
"Anyone care 2 discuss why Thomas Duncan was criminalized and DIED, yet no talk of charging Spencer? #Ebola," one Twitter user claimed on Friday.
Both Spencer, an ER doctor, and 42-year-old Duncan, who worked as a driver, contracted Ebola, also known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever in West Africa. They also both tested positive for the virus more than one week after entering the U.S.
Spencer, who works at New York Presbyterian Hospital, was hailed a "hero" on Thursday by ABC News chief medical editor Richard Besser.
On the other hand, Duncan was widely criticized by the press immediately after he tested positive for Ebola.
While laying on his death bed, he was investigated for possible criminal charges. The idea behind the investigation, as previously stated by Debbie Denmon, a spokesperson for the Dallas County prosecutor's office, was to determine whether Duncan "intentionally and knowingly exposed the public to the virus."
Critics accused him of lying on health forms regarding whether he had had any contact with a person infected with the virus.
In a CNN report published on Friday, Spencer, who was described as being "responsible," was hailed for his humanitarian work in Guinea. Meanwhile Duncan, who contracted Ebola whilst unknowingly helping an Ebola-infected pregnant neighbor in Liberia last month, was branded a "liar" by multiple news outlets.
Michael S. Wotorson, who is a former Liberian government official, said the U.S. media coverage of Duncan has not been fair, particularly when compared to that of Spencer. He attributed this "bias" to the Liberian government's handling of the case.
"Yes, I do think that there has been an enormous amount of bias in the coverage. … Why is it that we in Liberia, in Africa, as well as people in this country, automatically assume the worst about the motives of Thomas Duncan and you see no discussion on anything like that about Craig Spencer?" Wotorson told The Christian Post. "Is it because Spencer is an educated medical doctor and Duncan is a lowly driver?"
Duncan's former fiancée, Louise Troh, maintains that he did not know he had Ebola before he traveled from Monrovia to the U.S. on Sept. 20. He reportedly also did not know that the pregnant woman he helped was infected. However, MSNBC host Melissa Harris Perry reported that Duncan did know that his neighbor was infected with Ebola, which is why he transported her to a local hospital, and the hospital refusd to admit her as a patient.
Wotorson accused the Liberian government of rushing to judgment in the case of Duncan, which in essence, he says, has shaped the U.S. media's coverage.
"I don't entirely blame the western press, I primarily blame the Liberian government because there was no test done on Mr. Duncan prior to his leaving Liberia. The young lady who he supposedly contracted the disease from (who he offered what was essentially a humanitarian gesture) that young lady was not tested," he said. "So when the Liberian government said that Mr. Duncan would be prosecuted upon his return, they immediately criminalized him and they immediately sent a message to the world about Mr. Duncan's motives."
Wotorson also believes that race has been a factor in the way both cases have been covered.
"I think it's quite easy for the press to criminalize to dehumanize ... just as it is easy for them to view things through a certain lens when they come out of black America," he said. "Ferguson comes to mind … so none of this is surprising quite frankly. I just think the Liberian government lit the match. They were more concerned about protecting their image."
Denise Clay, who has worked as freelance journalist for more than two decades, recently shared her thoughts on the media coverage of Ebola in an article that appeared on Time.com. She described the coverage as "racist media hysteria" and said Duncan's case is concerning, particularly for blacks.
"Overall I think the media coverage of Ebola has gone from ridiculous to really ridiculous," she told CP. "You hear a lot about how it's perceived to be a conspiracy. Where if you're black and you have this disease, you're going to be treated differently or you're not going to get the same kind of care as you would if you're white. ... The only reason why the [two nurses] of color who had this disease have gotten the treatment that they did is because they were healthcare workers."
Adding to the growing concerns about the Ebola media coverage, Josephus Weeks, Duncan's nephew, believes that his uncle was treated poorly by hospital staff in comparison to other Ebola patients. He attributed this to race.
"Had (he) been another color, he probably would be living today, he would have survived it," Weeks told CNN's Erin Burnett. "And that's what's really hurting me the most. ... They treated him the way they did because of the color of (his) skin. … You stand a chance if you're white, but not if you're black."
Duncan was not able to receive a blood transfusion from Ebola survivor Dr. Kent Brantly due to his blood type. Brantly was able to donate his plasma to NBC cameraman Ashoka Mukpo and Dallas nurse Nina Pham.
To date, Duncan is the only Ebola patient to have died in the U.S.
