Misrepresenting Australia’s Fires

Article By Meredith Steinberg

Since late December 2019, Australia’s fires have killed at least 25 people along with up to a billion animals, and had at least 150 arson fires. The effects of these fires have been devastating to both the environment and its inhabitants. While it is important for users to use their following on social platforms to spread awareness about urgent matters, it is also important for these users to make sure they are circulating accurate information. Amid the crisis, people have begun to use social media to spread awareness about the consequent damage of the fires and to direct people towards donation websites. Maps and pictures of Australia’s unprecedented fires have circulated widely throughout social media as well. The problem is, however, that many of these maps that have gone viral are both inaccurate and misleading.

Figure 1, created by Anthony Hearsey, has been shared widely through social media platforms, including Instagram and Twitter. The picture depicts Australia’s coastline that looks to be up in flames around significant portions of the country. While users have interpreted this image to be a current depiction of the spread of fires in Australia, the map was created to represent one month of data of locations where fire was detected. While some parts are still burning, other areas have ceased to continue. This map, therefore, is NOT a current image of Australia– it is a compilation of fires that occurred over a period of time. While it is important to recognize the impact of these fires, it is deceitful to be intentionally spreading inaccurate images of a very real disaster.