In an exclusive report, The Blaze revealed the results of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request regarding government-sponsored COVID advertisements by mainstream media outlets.
The Blaze reports:
In response to a FOIA request filed by TheBlaze, HHS revealed that it purchased advertising from major news networks including ABC, CBS, and NBC, as well as cable TV news stations Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC, legacy media publications including the New York Post, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post, digital media companies like BuzzFeed News and Newsmax, and hundreds of local newspapers and TV stations. These outlets were collectively responsible for publishing countless articles and video segments regarding the vaccine that were nearly uniformly positive about the vaccine in terms of both its efficacy and safety.
Hundreds of news organizations were paid by the federal government to advertise for the vaccines as part of a “comprehensive media campaign,” according to documents TheBlaze obtained from the Department of Health and Human Services. The Biden administration purchased ads on TV, radio, in print, and on social media to build vaccine confidence, timing this effort with the increasing availability of the vaccines. The government also relied on earned media featuring “influencers” from “communities hit hard by COVID-19” and “experts” like White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci and other academics to be interviewed and promote vaccination in the news.
While these news outlets were producing stories that covered the COVID vaccines, they did not disclose to their audiences that they were taking in taxpayer dollars to advertise them at the same time. When reached for comment by The Blaze about the conflict of interest, the excuse used by some of the publications was that common practice dictates that editorial teams operate independently of media advertising departments and news teams felt no need to make the disclosure.
The Biden administration’s campaign to ‘educate’ the public and promote these vaccines was massive. Congress allocated $1 billion in fiscal year 2021 for the secretary of health to spend on activities to “strengthen vaccine confidence in the United States.”
Federal law authorizes HHS to act through the CDC and other agencies to award contracts to public and private entities to “carry out a national, evidence-based campaign to increase awareness and knowledge of the safety and effectiveness of vaccines for the prevention and control of diseases, combat misinformation about vaccines, and disseminate scientific and evidence-based vaccine-related information, with the goal of increasing rates of vaccination across all ages … to reduce and eliminate vaccine-preventable diseases.”
Most Americans who spent time watching TV news, reading the news, or even scrolling through social media in 2021 likely saw the government’s advertising. HHS ads posted to YouTube have reportedly been viewed millions of times, and commercials featuring celebrities like singer Sir Elton John and actor Sir Michael Caine have been the subject of news coverage, such as this ad (below) from NBC News:
According to The Blaze:
“Fear-based vaccine ads” from HHS featuring “survivor” stories from coronavirus patients who were hospitalized in intensive care units were covered by CNN and discussed on ABC’s “The View” when they were unveiled last October.
Though the federal government was paying each of these companies and others for pro-vaccine advertising while news reports covered the same vaccines, many editorial boards say they have firewall policies that prevent advertisers from influencing news coverage.
Shani George, vice president of communications for the Washington Post, released a statement claiming that the government’s ads had no effect on her company’s news coverage.
“Advertisers pay for space to share their messages, as was the case here, and those ads are clearly labeled as such,” she explained. “The newsroom is completely independent from the advertising department.”
A spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Times released a similar statement, emphasizing that the “newsroom operates independently from advertising.”
TheBlaze reached out to several other publications that either declined to comment or did not respond before publication.
Source: The Blaze
