The Cult of the Vaccine – by Matt Taibbi – TK News by Matt Taibbi
Within a day, though, the tone of coverage turned. Writers began stressing a Yeah, but approach, as in, Any new treatment is of course good, but get your fucking shot. A CNN lede read, A pill that could potentially treat Covid-19 is a game-changer, but experts are emphasizing that it’s not an alternative to vaccinations. The New York Times went with, Health officials said the drug could provide an effective way to treat Covid-19, but stressed that vaccines remained the best tool.
If you re thinking it was only a matter of time before the mere fact of molnupiravir s existence would be pitched in headlines as actual bad news, you re not wrong: Marketwatch came out with It s not a magic pill : What Merck s antiviral pill could mean for vaccine hesitancy the same day Merck issued its release. The piece came out before we knew much of anything concrete about the drug s effectiveness, let alone whether it was magic.