4 ms·
Hmm... let's pick one of these guys at random. Okay, Malone. Let's pull up his file (from WP): Starting in mid-2021, Malone received criticism for propagatin
by lisasays 3y ago
Hmm... let's pick one of these guys at random. Okay, Malone. Let's pull up his file (from WP):
Starting in mid-2021, Malone received criticism for propagating COVID-19 misinformation and conspiracy theories, including making "dangerous" and misleading claims about the toxicity of spike proteins generated by some COVID-19 vaccines; using interviews on mass media to popularize medication with ivermectin; and tweeting a study by others questioning vaccine safety that was later retracted. ... In November 2021, Malone shared a deceptive video on Twitter that falsely linked athlete deaths to COVID-19 vaccines. In particular, the video suggested that Jake West, a 17-year-old Indiana high school football player who succumbed to sudden cardiac arrest, had actually died from COVID-19 vaccination. However, West had died years earlier, in 2013, due to an undiagnosed heart condition. ... On December 29, 2021, Twitter permanently suspended Malone from its platform, citing "repeated violations of our COVID-19 misinformation policy", after he shared on that platform a video about supposed harmful effects of the Pfizer vaccine. In an April 1, 2022 interview, Malone made the unfounded claim that COVID-19 vaccines are "damaging T cell responses" and "causing a form of AIDS". Malone claimed that he had "lots of scientific data" to back up his claim, but did not cite evidence.
Bhattacharya and Atlas went on to promote the antivax Great Barrington Declaration, sponsored by a liberatarian think tank known until that point mostly for rabid climate change denialism.
Point being: it's a huge stretch to say these guys were "proved right". And quite alarmist to assert that de-platforming them "proved deadly".