Fox News host Tucker Carlson sparks backlash by spreading ‘dangerous’ vaccine misinformation

Fox News host Tucker Carlson has sparked a backlash by spreading “dangerous” misinformation about the coronavirus vaccine.

He said:

“Even with a vaccine, they’re now telling us – a vaccine they’re going to make you take – you’re going to have to stay home, alone, with your face covering.”

President-elect Joe Biden has confirmed that vaccines won’t be made mandatory in the United States.

Self-isolation may still be necessary after receiving the vaccine, however, because it typically takes a few weeks for immunity to build up.

There is also no chance of herd immunity building up from a vaccine that could usher in the end of coronavirus restrictions until far more people have received one than is currently possible.

But people won’t be forced to wear masks in their own homes or remain completely isolated for long periods of time as Carlson seems to suggest.

Elsewhere during his show, Carlson encouraged viewers to react “nervously” to the “glitzy” vaccine rollout. He said:

“How are [we] supposed to respond to a marketing campaign like this? Well, nervously.

Even if you’re strongly supportive of vaccines, and we are, even if you recognise how many millions of lives have been saved over the past 50 years by vaccines, and we do, it all seems a bit much. It feels false, because it is. It’s too slick.”

The Pfizer-BioNTech was approved for use in the US by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) after rigorous testing.

They are now also considering approval of the Moderna vaccine.

Carlson has been criticised for trying to “undermine public confidence” in the vaccine.

More than 300,000 people have died from coronavirus in the United States.

Confidence in the vaccine which could save thousands of lives and livelihoods is crucial.