Official denial of a phenomenon enables that phenomenon to expand unchecked

Evidence

Perhaps denying the existence of something is what enables it to swell, spread, and garner sanction. This was true for French and American politicians’ claim that “racism does not exist” because their societies were, magically, colorblind. Or more ominously, when the Chinese government expels all foreign journalists and brazenly claims, despite mounting evidence, that there is “no such thing as [Muslim] detention camps” in the country. — Khaled A. Beydoun, The New Crusades_ Islamophobia and the…, 347

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: A twelve-year retraction delay let the misinformation spread unchecked. — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 259