As coronavirus suspends life in America, Fox changes its tone

Why Fox's coverage is so important

Given that Republicans largely turn to Fox for their news, it's likely the network's previous dismissive coverage has affected how Republicans view the crisis. A Gallup poll published Monday found that "political party identification reflects the starkest differences in levels of worry about coronavirus exposure."

According to the poll, "Democrats (73%) are the most worried of any group, and their level of worry has increased the most out of any group. Meanwhile, less than half of Republicans (42%) report having this level of concern -- the lowest of any group Gallup measured." Hopefully things will change with the network's shift in tone...

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/17/media/fox-news-coronavirus-reliable-sources/index.html

Coronavirus: UK changes course amid death toll fears

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-51915302

Change course or a quarter of a million people will die in a "catastrophic epidemic" of coronavirus - warnings do not come much starker than that.

 

Trump, finally, takes the coronavirus emergency seriously

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/17/politics/white-house-donald-trump-coronavirus-emergency/index.html

This version of Donald Trump will save lives.

The President offered Americans something they have rarely seen from him in his latest and most somber press conference yet on the coronavirus pandemic on Monday.

He dispensed unimpeachable information based on fact. He called for national unity and seemed like he meant to help forge it. And he ditched his normal habit of hyping the best possible outcome to a situation with improbable superlatives -- instead communicating the gravity of a fast-worsening crisis.

Entire Dead Sea Scroll Fragment Collection at Washington, D.C.'s Museum of the Bible Is Fake, Investigation Reveals

https://www.newsweek.com/entire-dead-sea-scroll-fragment-collection-washington-dc-museum-bible-fake-1492470

"After an exhaustive review of all the imaging and scientific analysis results, it is evident that none of the textual fragments in Museum of the Bible's Dead Sea Scroll collection are authentic," Loll concluded in a report describing the findings of the investigation. "Moreover, each exhibits characteristics that suggest they are deliberate forgeries created in the twentieth century with the intent to mimic authentic Dead Sea Scroll fragments."

New White House Coronavirus Guidelines Tell Older People to Stay Home, All Ages to Avoid Groups of More Than 10

https://time.com/5804402/white-house-coronavirus-guidelines/

President Donald Trump, employing a newly somber tone about the crisis enveloping the globe, urged all older Americans to stay home and everyone to avoid crowds and eating out at restaurants. The president for the first time acknowledged that the pandemic may send the economy into a recession and suggested that the nation may be dealing with the virus until “July or August.”

 

The conspiracy theories about the origins of the coronavirus, debunked

https://www.vox.com/2020/3/4/21156607/how-did-the-coronavirus-get-started-china-wuhan-lab

Meanwhile, on Fox News and social media, a dangerous conspiracy theory about the origin of the health crisis won’t die.

There are two main versions of the rumor, and they have one common thread: that the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, originated in a level 4 (the highest biosafety level) research laboratory in Wuhan.

In one version of the rumor, the virus was engineered in the lab by humans as a bioweapon. In another version, the virus was being studied in the lab (after being isolated from animals) and then “escaped” or “leaked” because of poor safety protocol.

 

The U.K.’s Coronavirus ‘Herd Immunity’ Debacle

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/03/coronavirus-pandemic-herd-immunity-uk-boris-johnson/608065/

There was a time when it seemed possible for the world to contain COVID-19—the disease caused by the new coronavirus. That time is over. What began as an outbreak in China has become a pandemic, and as a growing number of countries struggle to control the virus, talk of “flattening the curve” is increasing. That is, a lot of people are going to get sick, and delaying infections as much as possible is imperative, so that cases occur over a long period of time and health systems aren’t suddenly inundated. Almost every country is trying to achieve this goal through the standard arsenal of public health—testing people and tracing contacts—and through more restrictive measures that include instituting quarantines, closing public spaces, banning mass gatherings, and issuing strong advice about social distancing.

White House advises public to avoid groups of more than 10, asks people to stay away from bars and restaurants

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/16/politics/white-house-guidelines-coronavirus/index.html

The guidelines -- and specifically the recommendation that people don't gather in groups of more than 10 -- marks a notable escalation from the guidance put out by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Sunday recommending that no gatherings with 50 people or more take place for the next eight weeks to slow the spread of the virus.

Striking a far more somber tone than previous press conferences, Trump acknowledged that the coronavirus is not under control in the US or internationally just one day after saying the virus is "something we have tremendous control of."

Asked by CNN to revisit that statement, Trump claimed he was "not referring to it" -- meaning the virus -- when he talked about the situation being under control.

"When I'm talking about control, I'm saying we are doing a very good job within the confines of what we're dealing with," Trump said, adding that the virus is "not under control for any place in the world."

The President also predicted the coronavirus outbreak could start to subside in July or August of this year, although he conceded that it could continue to be a threat even longer.

 

Trump claims coronavirus is under control -- contradicting reality and his own top expert

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/16/politics/coronavirus-us-president-donald-trump-fauci-politics/index.html

 America's top infectious diseases expert is warning that hundreds of thousands of Americans could die unless every citizen joins an effort to blunt the coronavirus pandemic -- only to be contradicted by President Donald Trump, who insists the virus is under "tremendous" control.

The fresh sign of Trump's unwillingness to accept the full, sobering reality of the outbreak came as an anxious America knuckles down to its new self-isolating reality. The country is bracing for the full fury of the virus that is already escalating sharply and is set to subject the foundations of basic life — the nation's health care, economic and political systems — to a fateful test.

 

Dr. Siegel warns people not to go to bars and concerts as coronavirus spreads in US

https://www.foxnews.com/media/dr-siegel-bars-concerts-coronavirus-highly-contagious

https://www.foxnews.com/media/dr-siegel-bars-concerts-coronavirus-highly-contagious

Fox News medical correspondent Dr. Marc Siegel said on Monday that it is important to cancel large social gatherings because the coronavirus is classified as “highly contagious.”

“For every person that has it, two or two-and-a-half more people get it,” Siegel told “Fox & Friends.”

“If you’re at a bar drinking with your buddies, which everybody is still doing, unfortunately — it’s a free-for-all. It’s going to spread from one person there who has it to two to three or more people,” Seigel said.

Rep. Nunes: China 'downplayed' the virus

Joe: Trump Was So Ill-Prepared On Airport Screenings | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Disconnect From Scientists, Trump On Coronavirus Continues | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Meet The Press Broadcast (Full) - March 15th, 2020 | Meet The Press | NBC News