Baba Ramdev has denied any connections to the website RamdevMedicine.com that claimed to offer an ayurvedic “health pack” to cure & prevent Ebola disease and noted that he has not given any statements pertaining to the disease. He now plans to now take legal action against the site.
This site http://t.co/KXYoux0wjh is NOT our website. I have NOT given any statement on Ebola pic.twitter.com/Mcp2f7F7js — Swami Ramdev (@yogrishiramdev) October 15, 2014
We ‘ll take legal action against http://t.co/KXYoux0wjh,the website which is using my name and pictures to make unsubstantiated Ebola claims
— Swami Ramdev (@yogrishiramdev) October 15, 2014
This follows a couple of reports from The Hindu earlier yesterday that mentions an advertisement from RamdevMedicine.com in which Ramdev had allegedly claimed that Ebola virus can be prevented by using this health package.
However, it looks like The Hindu jumped the gun since the site does have a disclaimer at the footer saying it “is not an official website of Swami Ramdev and Divya pharmacy or Patanjali Yog Peeth, Haridwar”.
And The Hindu was not the only one. Several people on Twitter including journalists also fell for this unofficial site:
Baba Ramdev claims cure for Ebola. Shd be useful to ask Swamiji if he believes this also caused by homosexuality http://t.co/iTN9ZHZw5V — Shekhar Gupta (@ShekharGupta) October 15, 2014
ramdev claims cure for ebola. dangerous, stupid. `civilizational ethos’ left to such as these, with modi’s support. http://t.co/cdHqzcK2VO — Hartosh Singh Bal (@HartoshSinghBal) October 15, 2014
Chalo ji, not only can he cure homosexuality, also Ebola. Bhakt jan mil ke bolo BABAJI KI.. Ramdev claims Ebola cure http://t.co/TaycIdyfh9 — Abhinandan Sekhri (@AbhinandanSekhr) October 15, 2014
World should stop worrying about Ebola. Baba Ramdev has cure for Ebola and is selling it http://t.co/2Rf1BOyMdi — Joy (@Joydas) October 14, 2014
Move over quacks. Baba Ramdev to the rescue! http://t.co/KrQ1OYJcqo #Ebola #CureEbola — Biswarup Gooptu (@CarnageCrow) October 14, 2014
A couple of things to note about this development (Nikhil adds):
1. Visibility of disclaimers: This development raises a question as to how visible such disclaimers need to be, because even though there is a disclaimer, it is usually hidden in the footer, due to which consumers can get easily fooled.
2. The pace at which information spreads and the liability of the tweeter: A story in the Hindu is deemed to have been verified, and readers spread this information without verifying it for themselves. It’s not their liability, and one can’t expect them to verify this information, because that onus is of the publication. Then again, how many people click on these links?
3. The ability to clarify via the web: While traditionally, clarifications on issues such as this needed to be issued directly to publications, Ramdev has a verified Twitter account, via which he can issue an official disclaimer, and point out the publications issues. The self correcting nature of the social web keeps publications accountable.
4. A few days later: Someone might chance across a tweet making fun of Ramdev, despite the clarification, might have absolutely no context of the fact that it’s been denied and still believe it.
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As a sidenote, while Ramdev doesn’t have a cure for Ebola, he still does claim to have cures for other things like AIDS, Cancer and Homosexuality.
Odd. Ramdev/ his site claimed in the past his potions + yoga can cure 1. AIDS 2. Cancers 3. Homosexuality. Real q is: why *not* Ebola too? — Mihir Sharma (@mihirssharma) October 15, 2014
We are crestfallen, Ramu @yogrishiramdev but confident that you’d find a cure for Ebola very soon 🙂 @smitaprakash — Sunil Varma *SWL* (@rjsunilvarma) October 15, 2014
Poor Ramdev. Bola toh problem, Ebola toh bhi problem! — manu prasad (@manuscrypts) October 15, 2014
