The Israeli Vaccination Campaign Though the Prism of Trust

• In Event: Corona Truth Wars: Testing and Contesting Knowledge in a Hyper-Mobile Pandemic - III

Abstract

On December 20, the State of Israel began a vaccination campaign. To date, Israel has administered the most COVID-19 vaccine doses per capita, thereby becoming a world leader in vaccination. The willingness of the population to get vaccinated and the consequent success of this campaign could be thought of as a knockout to corona deniers, anti-vaxxers, and those who intentionally spread misinformation about the vaccines. However, despite the success of Israel's vaccination campaign, many Israelis still hesitate or refuse to get vaccinated. Hesitancy and refusal are found at every demographic and political extreme, and have diverse causes. I analyze the Israeli vaccination campaign through the prism of trust.

Instead of analyzing trust in the vaccination campaign as a whole, I identify a few objects of trust and show how they mostly fail to act in keeping with the interest of citizens. I examine trust relations with pharmaceutical companies, the US FDA, the Israeli government and health organizations, along with scientific institutions and new vaccination technologies. Despite common mistrust, distrust, and a lack of trust in these objects, another kind of trust plays a crucial role: trust that the vaccine is safe and works effectively. I contend that this type of trust can be increased by opening a dialogue with parties who refuse vaccines. Contra to the current refusal of Israeli mainstream media to give airtime to anti-vaxxers and hesitaters, I argue that a discussion based on honesty, knowledge, and trust is the only democratic way to persuade vaccine-skeptics to take the plunge and get vaccinated.

Author

• Ori Freiman, Bar-Ilan University