Matthew Taylor

Strategic communications, speechwriting and storytelling consulting @WHO and the @UN.

[World Health Organization (WHO) @WHO]

https://t.co/s7hs7Bbe8D

[Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus @DrTedros]

Eastern #DRC now faces a catastrophic collision of disease and conflict with the #Ebola outbreak in Ituri province outpacing the response.

The Ebola Bundibugyo virus has no approved vaccine nor treatment. Stopping this Ebola transmission depends entirely on humanitarian access. Yet ongoing clashes are driving mass displacement, pushing exposed contacts into overcrowded camps and severing critical containment corridors. Frontline workers are risking everything, while attacks on health facilities make tracking cases and their contacts nearly impossible.

We cannot build community trust or isolate the sick while bombs are falling.

We urge all warring parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire to contain this outbreak. To allow us safe and sustained access for medical teams.

We plea to prioritise human survival above everything else.

[Matthew Taylor @MTComs]

Having worked on the ground in previous Ebola outbreaks in both East and West Africa, and 7 years with @WHO, @DMiliband is spot on, at least in DRC where poverty, conflict and weak or non-existent state infrastructure make tracking and containing the virus extremely difficult.

[David Miliband @DMiliband]

First, the outbreak is spreading faster than the response.

Second, conflict and displacement are accelerating the risk of regional spread.

And third, severe global aid cuts have weakened frontline health systems and outbreak preparedness across eastern DRC.

[Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus @DrTedros]

Dear Alex @RealAlexJones

I have seen your claim that hantavirus is “COVID 2.0,” and I want to respond to you sincerely, with an open heart.

I understand where this fear comes from. COVID-19 scarred all of us. It took loved ones, disrupted lives, and shook our trust in the institutions meant to protect us. That pain is real, and I do not dismiss it.

But Alex, the facts today tell a different story. There is no “rollout” and no “hype.” As of today, there are only 10 confirmed cases globally, and no deaths have been recorded since May 2. And all deaths are linked to the outbreak on the MV Hondius cruise ship. Hence, the WHO's assessment remains that the risk for the global population is low.

I kindly ask you, Alex, to consider the weight that words carry in moments like these.

[Science Africa @ScienceAfrica5]

#Evidence without story is a spark without fire

📌In case you missed it!

According to the World Health Organization, nearly ten times more people are killed in road #crashes every year than in armed conflict.
➡️🔗https://t.co/qWTW3jKH2o
CC
@BloombergDotOrg
@SmcAfri
@AfricaAhsj

[Matthew Taylor @MTComs]

Evidence without story is a spark without fire.

What #RoadSafety tells us about narrative and policy change

👉 https://t.co/pdOGyzhsEn #Storytelling

[GIJN Africa @gijnAfrica]

NEW! @WHO seeks an experienced partner to facilitate a 3-day forum for African editors and support the production & promotion of editorial & reporting guidelines on road safety.

Send expressions of interest & quotes to [email protected] by March 20. https://t.co/DmThpjEEJn

[The Orwell Youth Prize @OrwellYouthPriz]

The Orwell Youth Prize is open now for entries from young people across the UK, with individual feedback for every entrant and free classroom resources.

Help us support the next generation of brave writers by joining as a Friend, or donating today: https://t.co/ufcSuKhn4R

[@RoadSafetyStories @RoadSafetyTales]

#RoadSafety is one of the most overlooked public health crises of our time. It is hugely misunderstood

Yet across Asia and globally, a growing cadre of journalists are coming together to share stories, knowledge and skills to set the record straight

👉 https://t.co/qN8tzvwD2p

[António Guterres @antonioguterres]

Every year 1.2 million people are killed in road crashes.

But solutions exist, from improving infrastructure, legislation & awareness, to enforcing safety laws & sharing best practices across borders.

Let’s save lives, prevent injuries & ensure that every journey ends safely.

[WHO Việt Nam @WHOVietnam]

Journalists from across Asia, including Bangladesh, China, India, Malaysia, and Viet Nam visited Vạn Phúc Primary School in Hà Đông, Hà Nội to see how safe school zone interventions are protecting children and that practical, evidence-based measures can make school journeys much safer.

In Viet Nam, every year, 2,000 children and young people lose their lives on the roads. Every single day, five families lose a child to a crash - five futures gone and families devastated.

Road crashes aren’t “accidents.” They are a preventable public health crisis — and we know what works to save lives.

That’s why over the past three days in Ha Noi, WHO and the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD), with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS) and participation by local experts, are working with journalists to strengthen road safety reporting — helping tell the stories that matter, challenge misconceptions, and inspire actions to make the roads safer for everyone.

Let’s change how we see and talk about #RoadSafety — because awareness saves lives.

Special thanks to the Viet Nam’s National Traffic Safety Committee’s support for this media training and to VOV for giving us the opportunity to see road safety reporting in action!

[WHO Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam & Singapore @WHOMalaysia]

🚦 Strengthening #RoadSafety 
We are proud to support media professionals with representation of three experts from 🇲🇾 training to report accurately and impactfully on road safety issues and helping save lives on our roads.

Let’s make every journey a safe one 🚗🛵🚶‍♀️

[World Health Organization South-East Asia @WHOSEARO]

Media representatives and communicators from Bangladesh, China, India, Malaysia, and Viet Nam gathered in Hanoi, Viet Nam, for the ‘Road Safety Reporting Workshop for Asian Journalists.’ Over the next 3⃣ days, they will exchange experiences and explore how stronger, evidence-based reporting can bring greater public and policy focus to road safety.

🛣️ Road traffic crashes claim around 1.19 million lives each year and are the leading cause of death for children and young people aged 5–29 years. In the WHO South-East Asia Region alone, more than 330 000 people died in 2021, nearly one-third of the global total in road accidents.

🛣️ Organized by @WHO, the workshop is being held in coordination with Viet Nam’s National Traffic Safety Committee and supported by the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD).

🛣️ The workshop, which is part of WHO’s participation in the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety, aims to shift the narrative from blame to prevention, helping to save lives on our roads.

#RoadSafety #WHO #journalists #media @BloombergDotOrg

[Dr. Kelly Henning @drkellyhenning]

Too often, road crashes are reported as unavoidable accidents instead of preventable tragedies. @WHO with support from @BloombergDotOrg trained over 5,000 journalists giving them the knowledge, tools, and data to think critically and produce solutions-based stories.
https://t.co/vz0QVCLjLP

[Think Global Health @ThinkGlobalHlth]

When traffic reports refer to collisions as “accidents,” they imply that fatal crashes are unpreventable. Read how @WHO is training African journalists to boost public demand for road safety governance that is rooted in lifesaving approaches. https://t.co/gxRagAQbiV

[Jean Todt @JeanTodt]

🚨 Every minute, a life is lost on Asia’s roads. Nearly 700,000 deaths each year — the leading killer of youth aged 5–29.

This silent pandemic is not inevitable. It is preventable.

Today at the Asia-Pacific Road Safety Conference in Manila 🇵🇭, I urged action :
✅ Bold leadership
✅ Investment that matches the scale of the crisis
✅ Safer systems that put people before vehicles

💡 Thank you to @ADB_HQ for your leadership. Your support for multi-sectoral road safety financing can save millions of lives and build sustainable, liveable cities. Progress in Asia can inspire global change - read more 👇

🔗https://t.co/pRkI8bsBka

#RoadSafety #MakeASafetyStatement #SafeMobility #ADB

[Matthew Taylor @MTComs]

@EmiratesSupport Ticket number isn’t visible on my boarding pass or in the online itinerary document so I couldn’t fill in the online form but I think all the key information is clear above.

[Matthew Taylor @MTComs]

@EmiratesSupport I will but I’ll just leave this here for all the world to see.

[Matthew Taylor @MTComs]

@DPotterNews The irony is of course that Lippmann was also ‘the father of PR’ and arguably propaganda.

[Matthew Taylor @MTComs]

@olex_scherba Sad to witness an epic, awful tragedy in the making.