FIGHTING DISINFO

White House Recruiting ‘Influencer Army’ to Get Young People Vaccinated: NYT

The campaign hopes to get more 12- to 18-year-olds vaccinated while also pushing back against vaccine misinformation online.

The White House has been recruiting social media influencers to push back against vaccine misinformation and encourage 12- to 18-year-olds to get the COVID-19 vaccine, The New York Times reports. The influencers range from Twitch streamers to YouTubers, TikTokers, and, most famously, Olivia Rodrigo, who spoke at the White House last month. Ellie Zeiler, who boasts more than 10 million followers on TikTok and was reportedly part of the White House campaign, used her opportunity to speak with Dr. Anthony Fauci to bring up the false rumor about vaccines causing infertility. Zeiler shared the conversation with Dr. Fauci on all her social media and has since made content telling her followers about her own vaccination experience. “I know I won’t stop until all my followers are safe and vaccinated,” she told The New York Times.