The federal government has been found to have launched a "comprehensive media campaign" to portray COVID vaccines in a positive light.
In response to a Freedom of Information Act request by a right-leaning outlet, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or HHS admitted that it purchased advertising from a number of major news networks and media publications to launch a campaign about how COVID vaccines are effective and safe. Hundreds of news organizations were allegedly paid by the federal government to talk about COVID vaccines in a positive light, the report said.
The Blaze filed an FOIA request and in response to that request, the HHS admitted that they paid hundreds of news organizations to launch a "comprehensive media campaign" to advertise COVID vaccines. The Biden administration's strategy to build vaccine confidence was to purchase ads on TV, radio, print, and even social media, all timed with the increasing availability of vaccines in the U.S.
Some of the familiar media outlets that were tapped by the Biden administration were NBC, ABC, and CBS, as well as CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News. For print, they enlisted the New York Post, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post and for digital, they went for companies such as BuzzFeed News and Newsmax, as well as hundreds of local newspapers and TV stations, which were then tasked to publish or air numerous articles and stories that drew the picture of COVID vaccines in a positive light.
According to the report, the Biden administration also enlisted "influencers" from "communities hit hard by COVID-19" and public health "experts" such as controversial White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci and other scientists to be interviewed and talk about COVID vaccines in a positive light in the news.
Little did Americans know, the news that they were getting about COVID vaccines were paid for by their very own taxpayer funds. News companies however, would not disclose this fact as the assumption is that they were acting and reporting independently. The Biden administration had indeed launched a massive campaign to encourage Americans to get vaccinated and to promote the COVID vaccines as the best way to avoid serious illness or death from the coronavirus, despite the actual statistics on the matter.
The report also found that the U.S. Congress has allotted up to $1 billion in fiscal year 2021 for the HHS to spend on projects that would "strengthen vaccine confidence in the United States." Meanwhile, federal law states that the HHS can act through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies to fund public and private entities to enforce a "national, evidence-based campaign" on increasing awareness on the "safety and effectiveness of vaccines."
"People have been injured and died as a result of the most extensive propaganda campaign in U.S. history and it was paid for with our taxpayer dollars," Liberty Counsel chairman Mat Staver denounced the HHS' campaign, as per WND. "These COVID shots are neither safe nor effective."
Staver argued, "The American public has been given propaganda instead of truth from the news media. Sadly, most of the American corporate media has been paid off by the Biden administration to publish propaganda. The consequence is that many people have needlessly suffered as a result of the censorship and propaganda."
