Hundreds of fraudulent job search advertisements have been published in various regional newspapers across the Rhine. Their common point? They were written by antivax activists who want to give the impression of mass departures linked to the vaccination obligation in the field of health.
While the debates on the generalized vaccination obligation begin this Wednesday, January 26 in the Bundestag, another fight is being played out in the German regional newspapers: that of information. “A first classified ad campaign has been launched in the Bavarian newspaper Traunstein daily newspaper, drawing attention to unvaccinated caregivers,” assure T-Online. In early January, job searches from the medical community were published en masse. Afterwards, “l’Oberlausitzer Courier saxon relayed more than 120 similarly styled classifieds, written by so-called healthcare workers”.
“The main objective of these announcements was not to find a job, specifies the German online media. It was all regarding getting attention and creating a climate of fear.” The authors of these announcements wished in particular to give the impression that the compulsory vaccination for caregivers, in force on March 15, will deprive German hospitals of a significant part of their staff.
However, a large part of the ads posted are fraudulent. “Behind the number on the ad for a nurse supposed to be called Olivia, for example, hides a man, a fan of the metal band Rammstein”, assures the title, which has embarked on a vast verification enterprise, alongside a journalist from the chain Radio Berlin-Brandenburg and data analytics Twitter account @Datenliebe1. “A job search ad was even posted [par une prétendue infirmière] without any coordinates to contact her.”
Antivax groups on Telegram
“These ads initially had the desired effect”, comments the online media. Several local newspapers, such as the Bautzen Messenger Saxon, thus worried regarding the lack of medical personnel to come. On Telegram, antivax activists have also posted their intentions to continue to send classified ads, in a coordinated manner.
However, “no one can say for sure whether the worries [vis-à-vis d’une éventuelle pénurie de main-d’œuvre] are realistic”. In the region covered by the Bautzen Messenger, even the proven departure of 120 caregivers and employees appears relatively low. According to the authorities of Saxony, more than 15,000 people work in the medical sector in the district of Bautzen.
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Created in 1995, this online media has been run since 2017 by the former editor-in-chief of the Spiegel, Florian Harms. Focused on so-called “hot” information and on German politics, this news site also has sections
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