Last Updated on February 16, 2022 by Neelam Singh
Quick Take
Social media posts claim that Forbes’ article suggests the ‘morality pill’ to stop the COVID-19 pandemic. We fact checked and found this claim to be False.
The Claim
Social media users shared screenshots of an August 20, 2020, article published by Forbes titled, “Could A Morality Pill Help Stop The Covid-19 Pandemic?” A Facebook post says, “Just a reminder of what they’re planning next”.
Similar claims can be seen (here), (here).
Fact Check
Does Forbes’ article suggest the ‘morality pill’ to stop the COVID-19 pandemic?
No. Author Paul Hsieh of the Forbes’ article recently added an author’s note on the article explaining that he does not support the use of a morality pill.
The title was also revised to “No, Don’t Use A ‘Morality Pill’ to Stop The Covid-19 Pandemic.” In his February 06 note, Hsieh says, “I have updated the headline to more clearly state my position, as opposed to the position being discussed.” He explains that the headline change was in response to ‘recent attention’ and reader requests that he clarify his views on the subject. At the end of the note, Hsieh says, “As I mentioned in the original piece, I regard the idea of a ‘morality pill’ as both unrealistic and undesirable. Instead, I greatly favor ‘discussion, debate, and rational persuasion’ to decide public policy.”
Hsieh also addressed the claims on Twitter by stating that his August 2020 article was being shared out of context and claims that he doesn’t support the idea of a ‘morality pill’ to manipulate people, and he wrote the 2020 piece to discuss why.
The claim is taken out of context from his article and is therefore false.
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