Question

The unvaccinated survived the greatest psychological fear campaign in human history.

Answer 1

Upon doing extensive research, the claim "The unvaccinated survived the greatest psychological fear campaign in human history", is false. While these initiatives occasionally highlighted potential side effects, they were primarily aimed at transparency and building trust, not deterring vaccination. Many celebrities and athletes would back their campaigns up by promoting a normal life. A major red flag lies in the fact that this contention didn't get any coverage from major news outlets, let alone any coverage at all. Not even Reuters, a source known for accuracy had anything regarding this claim. The CDC and WHO would often promote educational campaigns seeking a common goal, ending the spread. This suggests that this is a one-sided claim. 

Sources: https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2024/05/06/covid-19-vaccination-public-education-campaign-saved-thousands-lives-billions-dollars.html
https://www.cdc.gov/covid/?CDC_AAref_Val=https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/key-things-to-know.html

Comments

I think this is a good factcheck, although I think it could be strengthened by an assessment of the ways this claim was started. Additionally, it could be strengthened by an additional source that draws the connection between the accurate information provided by the CDC and how it disproves the original claim.

Answer 2

While the author doesn't cite which "psychological fear campaign" they are referring to, it's fair to assume that they are pointing to the government's efforts to push out the Covid-19 pandemic. Although the efforts were national and widespread, it is highly misleading to refer to federal attempts to quell a global pandemic as a "fear campaign." The FDA has been around since 1906 and is the agency in charge of approving vaccines. The process for approval and dissemination have been around for a century, and it is the bureau's job to promote public health. This was the case when a vaccine was discovered for influenza. The purpose of promoting vaccines is not to instill fear in the public, but to support public health in the country. Thus, if the author is referring to the covid pandemic, then no unvaccinated group survived any sort of psychological fear campaign. 

Comments

I like that you stated what you believed to be the "psychological fear campaign". I think that if you included sources that would strengthen your fact-check.