Aoife Moore: Government using your money to watch you (and Jurassic Arse)

Did you know that the Government spends your money to watch what certain people say about it on social media?

Through Freedom of Information requests, the Irish Examiner can reveal that the Department of Health and the Department of Education have kept detailed monthly logs and summaries of Twitter, Reddit, and message board activity on issues concerning their operations.

Did you know that the Government spends your money to watch what certain people say about them on social media?

It turns out that various Government departments have been monitoring social media accounts of high profile personalities, journalists and other so-called influencers and kept detailed accounts of topics that criticize and praise them throughout the pandemic.

Through Freedom of Information requests, the Irish Examiner can reveal that the Department of Health and the Department of Education have kept detailed monthly logs and summaries of Twitter, Reddit, and message board activity on issues concerning their operations.

The Department of Health initially outsourced the work at the outset of the pandemic in early March until the end of June, while the Department of Education staff did the reviews themselves.

Despite hundreds of pages of analysis, only two are dedicated to misinformation. One states: "Right-Wing opinion/news account Gript Media tweeted today to draw attention to YouTube deleting an interview video featuring UCD professor Dolores Cahill debunking the narrative of Covid-19."

Most of the analysis ranges from topics such as the popularity of the 6pm news, concern for chief medical offier Dr Tony Holohan, and queues at garden centres to more contentious topics like outbreaks in direct provision, anti-mask sentiment, and opposition to social distancing.

Tweets from artists such as Blindboy from the Rubberbandits, Irish rapper Mango, and Irish broadcaster Muireann O'Connell have all been included in the reviews.

Popular tweets are often broken down by interactions, such as one on the death of a hospital worker: "This tweet focusing on the Covid-19 related death of a worker for St. James’ Hospital drove over 1,500 likes and was retweeted over 400 times," one page read.

"Responses to this tweet mainly focused on the low wage for what was deemed “essential work”, with others questioning the recording of healthcare workers' deaths and some suggesting that PPE was not always available to these workers."

There is an extensive concentration on the activity of journalists throughout the reports as well as anecdotal stories about how Covid-19 is affecting different parts of society.

Certain journalists or columnists come up repeatedly in the Department of Health's analysis, including but not limited to staff from the Irish Examiner, RTÉ, Newstalk, Virgin Media News as well as other major newspapers and public figures.

The Department of Health says the reports "did not pick out specific people", but "capture the dominant trending topics on social media of that day based on the volume of interaction", however, some of the tweets included have less than 30 interactions.

Accounts with no verifiable name or identity, such as 'Dublin Girlo', 'Care2Much18', and 'Jurassic Arse, have tweets included, among others.

Tweets from artists such as Blindboy from the Rubberbandits, Irish rapper Mango, and broadcaster Muireann O'Connell have all been included in the reviews.

One report on tech-entrepreneur Pat Phelan states: "Businessman Pat Phelan has been tweeting about his experience using an antibody test at home. Pat is a vocal advocate of widespread testing to reopen society," alongside photographs.

Notable health professionals including the Tony Holohan are feature extensively as does Dr Maitiú Ó Tuathail who later found himself at the centre of a political scandal over leaked documents.

Another states: "Media organisations and journalists are increasingly focussed on insider knowledge and experiences with Covid-19 from healthcare professionals. Sunday Times journalist John Mooney put a call out on Twitter for healthcare workers to send him information on Covid-19."

Notable health professionals including Dr Holohan feature extensively as does Dr Maitiú Ó Tuathail who later found himself at the centre of a political scandal over leaked documents. Campaigners Dr Illona Duffy, John Wall, and Vicky Phelan all feature in the analysis of critical tweets about cancer screenings.

Journalists' reaction to government decisions on communications are also covered extensively.

"Frustration and anger from journalists after the cancelled Dept of Health briefing and no opportunity to ask questions after the address by Leo Varadkar," one report states before listing tweets from the Irish Examiner's Aoife Moore: "The opportunity to interrogate the next 16 weeks of Irish public policy lies in the hands of Ryan Tubridy" and Vicky Phelan: "The @RTÉLateLateShow is an entertainment programme. It is NOT, and should not, be the forum through which the Government inform us of major decisions concerning the citizens of this State."

Absolutely unacceptable Seán. The @RTELateLateShow is an entertainment programme. It is NOT, and should not, be the forum through which the Government inform us of major decisions concerning the citizens of this State.

— Vicky Phelan (@PhelanVicky) May 1, 2020

Only one report covered political criticism, citing a post by one user criticising Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty on his Covid payment plan and how much it would cost.

The report states that the user "tweeted comments from Pearse Doherty during an interview about extending the Covid payment. It generated 29 replies, majority of which agreed".

Analysis from April showed a concentration on Web Summit founder Paddy Cosgrave amid concerns about misinformation.

The report states: "Following on from the HSE’s misinformation tweet yesterday, Paddy Cosgrave has shared further content, suggesting that there is a ploy to discredit him."

Campaigners Dr Illona Duffy, John Wall, and Vicky Phelan all feature in the analysis of critical tweets about cancer screenings. Picture: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie

In June during the Black Lives Matter protests and subsequent worry about outbreaks of Covid-19 linked to the crowds assembled, Green Party TD Patrick Costello featured in the report: "Green Party TD Patrick Costello attended the protest and tweeted to explain how social distancing was being adhered in most cases."

The Department of Education's reviews are less extensive and contain only summaries of tweets and messages, mostly from non-journalists or public figures on returning to school and the Leaving Certificate, as they did not hire an outside contractor to do the monitoring. 

"These are regularly compiled into an email format which is shared with other members of the communications team and ministerial advisers," a spokesman said.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health said: "Communication of public health advice plays a vital role in encouraging adherence to public health guidelines and is a key element in Ireland's response to this pandemic.

"As per WHO guidance, the Department of Health has been actively listening to public views and concerns from the outset of this pandemic, including conducting surveys among the general public through the Amárach survey, published regularly on the department’s website here and collating commentary on social and traditional media."