Biden shamed for ‘vax shaming’

To vaccinate or not to vaccinate — that is the question. And it is being asked at a complicated moment when the American public is in a state of flux over the COVID-19 pandemic. One day they are hopeful, the next day they are weary, alarmed, annoyed or despondent. And who could blame them after 16 months of coronalife, which has included endless media coverage of people getting vaccinations?

A particularly handy term has emerged at this juncture, freshly coined by Doug Badger, a health policy advisor and senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation who cites President Biden and his “unsuccessful vax-shaming campaign” to prompt those unvaccinated against the COVID-19 virus to change their status and just get the shot.

“We have a pandemic because of the unvaccinated, and they’re sowing enormous confusion. So, get vaccinated.  If you haven’t, you’re not nearly as smart as I said you were,” Mr. Biden told a recent audience of intelligence officers.

Such shaming continues amid mixed messages about the pandemic from federal agencies. But there is a more positive method to consider.

“Instead of smearing unvaccinated people as menaces to society, states can stress that vaccines protect individuals against the worst consequences of COVID-19 even if they don’t always prevent infection. States should also encourage people to listen to their doctors — not their Twitter feeds — when deciding whether to get immunized,” Mr. Badger advises.

“It will be hard for state officials to make themselves heard above the Washington noise, but people will more likely respond favorably to rational and balanced messaging than to insults, coercion, and contradictory messages,” he says.

SHAMING AND BLAMING

Fox News media analyst Howard Kurtz also has addressed the phenomenon of the unvaccinated — and the “shot shaming” which has erupted. It’s gotten very partisan, he found.

“Pundits have tried shot-shaming the refuseniks, calling them idiotic, arrogant and SOBs. That’s worked about as well as you would expect,” Mr. Kurtz said in an analysis on Tuesday.

“As more reporters interview those who have refrained so far, the stereotype that it’s mostly conservatives turning their backs for political reasons has been shattered. Many are concerned about side effects, missing work, or the FDA’s appalling failure to update its emergency approval with an official green light,” Mr. Kurtz later added.

TWITTER TAPS THE NEWS

Well, it is an interesting pairing, that is for sure. A social media giant is now seeking the help of two prominent news agencies to bolster their credibility.

“We’re excited to share that Twitter is collaborating with The Associated Press (AP) and Reuters to expand our efforts to identify and elevate credible information on Twitter,” the social media giant revealed in a formal announcement this week.

“We are committed to making sure that when people come to Twitter to see what’s happening, they are able to easily find reliable information. Twitter will be able to expand the scale and increase the speed of our efforts to provide timely, authoritative context across the wide range of global topics and conversations that happen on Twitter every day,” Twitter said.

And of interest to those who have been banned from Twitter:

“The scope of this program is independent of the work Twitter’s Trust & Safety teams do to determine whether Tweets are in violation of the Twitter Rules. AP and Reuters will not be involved in enforcement decisions.”

MORE TO COME

Judicial Watch has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for information on “asylum-seekers and other aliens participating in the Migrant Protection Protocols program (‘remain in Mexico’ policy) who have been charged with crimes after entering the United States.”

The organization seeks information regarding “aliens charged with crimes after entering the U.S. under new Biden policy,” according to an announcement issued Wednesday.

“The Biden administration should come clean about crimes committed by aliens as a result of its reckless decision to end the Migration Protection Protocols, a commonsense measure put in place by the Trump administration to try to control the border,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton in a statement.

FOXIFIED

Fox News continues to earn the highest ratings across the entire cable kingdom, averaging 2 million primetime viewers last week according to Nielsen Media Research. MSNBC drew 1.1 million viewers and CNN had 706,000 during the period.

This is the 24th consecutive week Fox News has bested the competition — which also includes such on-news outlets as USA Network, HGTV, TLC and Hallmark Channel.

As usual, prime-time host Tucker Carlson rules the realm with an audience of 2.9 million. Also of note, Tammy Bruce, who writes a column for The Washington Times, guest-hosted “Fox News Primetime” during the 7 p.m. hour last week, enjoying an audience of 1.6 million.

And some news from a sister channel: Fox Business Network will debut “FBN Prime” in September — prime-time programming that celebrates “American industry and ingenuity.”

Now isn’t that refreshing?

The new program will showcase such talent as Stuart Varney, Cheryl Casone, John Rich and Kacie McDonnell. And a charming note: veteran television personality and likable guy Mike Rowe will serve as narrator of a new series titled “How America Works.”

POLL DU JOUR

• 87% of U.S. adults favor “preventing people with mental illnesses from purchasing guns”; 87% of U.S. adults who own guns and 88% of those who don’t own guns agree.

• 81% overall favor making private or gun show sales subject to background checks; 72% of gun owners and 87% of non-gun owners agree.

• 66% overall favor creating a federal database to track all gun sales; 46% of gun owners and 77% of non-gun owners agree.

• 63% overall favor banning assault-style weapons; 37% of gun owners and 74% of non-gun owners agree.

• 43% overall favor allowing teachers and schools to carry guns in K-12 schools; 63% of gun owners and 33% of non-owners agree.

SOURCE: A Pew Research Center poll of 5,109 U.S. adults conducted April 5-11 and released Wednesday.

• Helpful information to jharper@washingtontimes.com.