Yale University professor William Summers believed that silencing and downplaying tactics amidst the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic are commonplace globally , instead of limited to mainland China .
William Summers , a Yale University professor of medicine , told Undark Magazine though that such silencing and downplaying tactics are `` not unique to China '' , and `` seems to be standard operating procedure ” worldwide.. On 20 January , Xi Jinping made his first public remark on the outbreak and spoke of `` the need for the timely release of information '' .
2019–20 coronavirus pandemic in mainland China