CNN’s host Dana Bash took aim at right-leaning media and singled out Fox News in an apparent criticism of their reporting on vaccines.
The story: Bash was discussing the latest disagreement between the White House and Facebook with Surgeon General Vivek Murthy when she said that right-leaning media outlets are spreading misinformation as well. She then played a video of several clips of Fox News personalities speaking against forcing Americans to take the vaccine.
Tucker Carlson suggested it’s a medicine “they don’t want or need” and Laura Ingraham said it was an “experimental drug.”
After the video ended, Bash said: “President Biden did accuse social media platforms of killing people. Do you think conservative media, like Fox News, are doing the same? Are they killing people, too, with rhetoric like you just heard?” Bash asked.
Murthy said everyone has “a responsibility to share the truth about health as science dictates.”
How we got here: The Biden administration sparked controversy after Press Secretary Jen Psaki revealed they’re working with social media platforms to crack down on misinformation. Then on Friday, President Joe Biden declared that Facebook is “killing people,
“The only pandemic we have is among the unvaccinated. And they’re killing people,” he said.
A Facebook executive fired back, saying “[t]he White House is looking for scapegoats for missing their vaccine goals.”
A spokesperson for the company later released a lengthier statement.
“We will not be distracted by accusations which aren’t supported by the facts. The fact is that more than 2 billion people have viewed authoritative information about COVID-19 and vaccines on Facebook, which is more than any other place on the internet. More than 3.3 million Americans have also used our vaccine finder tool to find out where and how to get a vaccine. The facts show that Facebook is helping save lives. Period,” the spokesperson said.
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