NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Covid 19 coronavirus: Dangerous TikTok NZ lockdown prediction falls short

NZ Herald
10 Aug, 2021 07:00 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

PM Jacinda Ardern and Covid-19 Response Minister on unvaccinated Tauranga Port workers exposed to crew members aboard the container ship Rio de la Plata. Video / Mark Mitchell

A self-proclaimed "mystic" may have got it wrong with his prediction for a Covid lockdown in New Zealand, and experts say his antics are highly damaging to society.

The prediction, posted to the popular video-sharing app TikTok, claimed that New Zealand would be plunged into lockdown on the 10th of August, after community cases emerged on the 8th or 9th.

The timeline fits with Government promises to deal with any Delta outbreak, lending an air of credibility to the claims.

The wannabe prophet, who calls himself Mystic W, amassed over 1.3 million followers for his predictions.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He claimed that visions came to him in dreams and asked his followers to suspend their disbelief until the given date.

When news broke on Monday of the 11 confirmed cases on board the container ship Rio De La Plata, social media was flooded by those who took the news as proof that Mystic W was correct.

Giulio Dalla Riva, who leads the Data with Relations research group at Canterbury University, told the Herald conspiracy theorists and those who make wild baseless predictions are damaging and are creating distractions away from the real issue, a global pandemic.

In response to the "mystic's" false prediction, he said: "Making a right prediction is easy. All you need to do is make a lot of predictions and then eventually you'll get one right.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The danger is people only remember the predictions these people are getting right, not the ones they are wrong about.

"These people think they are changing the world and looking at very important issues, but they are not. Unfortunately, they are unfocused.

"They are creating distractions and people get confused. It's not easy for everybody to understand who is reliable and who isn't. It's quite easy to fall for these.

"All these conspiracies are damaging as they create distractions from the real issues. We end up talking more about conspiracy theories rather than deep structural issues within society.

Discover more

World

Australia's lockdowns costing $1b a week

09 Aug 06:57 PM
World

Delta variant sending more kids to hospital. Are they sicker, too?

09 Aug 08:04 PM
World

Aussie outbreaks: 356 cases and four deaths in NSW, 20 cases in Victoria

10 Aug 01:00 AM
New Zealand

Covid: Ship pilot's infection linked to Qld taxi driver, abuse 'not helpful'

10 Aug 01:40 AM

"People get wound up by their claims [in their search for truth] and it nurtures polarisation. Often they can end up hijacking societal discussion points for political or monetary gain."

The mystic was wrong  but what damage has been done? Photo / File
The mystic was wrong but what damage has been done? Photo / File

Dalla Riva says while it is important to debunk conspiracies, the academic community needs to be proactive in the information it shares rather than spending efforts putting out false information fires.

He told the Herald he believes the Government is doing a good job in sharing reliable data.

"[Conspiracy theorists'] information can [muddy the waters] and society has a hard time elaborating the truth. En masse, it can come across as relatable and clear even if the message is completely false.

"We need the academic community to take responsibility. The role of debunking is sometimes critical but we cannot just spend our time running after conspiracy theorists and misinformation. We need to be proactive in increasing the quality of what we publish.

"The Government is doing a very good job in being reliable and transparent with its information. We can, however, always do better by having more accessible data. However, it is also extremely important we are critical and call out when we make mistakes.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The issue with the TikTok video is it distracts from the main issue and instead points the finger [rather than looking for solutions]. We have a huge challenge facing the Covid response. So it's important to be critical of misinformation but respond with an accurate representation of reality."

False beliefs

A survey earlier this year found that half of Kiwis believe in some form of Covid-related misinformation and almost 20 per cent hold at least three false beliefs.

The findings came in a report from Te Mana Whakaatu, the Government's Classification Office, by examining the landscape of virus-related misinformation in Aotearoa.

A survey of 2301 people between February and March this year found that 82 per cent were concerned about how misinformation was spreading in New Zealand with 90 per cent believing it influenced people's views about public health.

More than 80 per cent thought misinformation was becoming more common as almost 60 per cent claimed to have experienced misinformation in the past six months, 21 per cent noticing it daily or weekly.

The report also estimated half of all Kiwis held at least one belief associated with misinformation, with as many as 19 per cent of respondents holding three or more such beliefs.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Massey University senior lecturer Dr Jagadish Thaker was not surprised by half of Kiwis believing some form of misinformation and said even those aware of the risk could be susceptible.

"This points to a double-edged sword of self-belief in identifying misinformation — we choose to believe in information that aligns with our prior beliefs and discard other information as misleading."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

Politics

Watch: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon speaks in Auckland

New Zealand

Kiwi rower apologises, cops booze ban over post-regatta incident in Seattle

New Zealand

NZ Herald News Update: July 18, 2025

Watch

Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Watch: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon speaks in Auckland
Politics

Watch: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon speaks in Auckland

Luxon is speaking alongside Dr Shane Reti this morning.

17 Jul 08:18 PM
Kiwi rower apologises, cops booze ban over post-regatta incident in Seattle
New Zealand

Kiwi rower apologises, cops booze ban over post-regatta incident in Seattle

17 Jul 07:54 PM
NZ Herald News Update: July 18, 2025
New Zealand

NZ Herald News Update: July 18, 2025

Watch
17 Jul 07:24 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP