Why are some reluctant to get the shot? ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 

May 4, 2021

Understand more. Argue less.


Good morning. Before we get into this edition on vaccine hesitancy, a disclaimer. While our narratives capture the general sentiment from the Left and Right, they aren’t representative of everyone across the spectrum. We respect the freedom of choice when it comes to vaccinations.

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Vaccine Hesitancy

Jenna Gibson


With summer right around the corner and millions of vaccines being administered daily, some Americans see the end of the pandemic coming into view. On Monday, Florida Governor Rick DeSantis lifted all COVID restrictions statewide, and New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut will ease business restrictions as well. Even as overall cases decrease, vaccine hesitancy around its long-term effects remains concerning to some Americans.


At the moment, almost 40.4% of U.S. adults have been fully vaccinated (58.3% have gotten at least one dose). These numbers are promising, but they’re still well short of herd immunity (the immunity threshold required to stop the spread of COVID-19 completely). The actual percentage needed to achieve herd immunity isn’t clear: once thought to be 60-70% of the total population, some experts say that number could be as high as 90% with new, more infectious variants on the rise.


After peaking on April 11, the average number of vaccines given per day has fallen by 27%. At the beginning of April, 14% of Americans said they were not planning on getting the vaccine, a number that has remained virtually unchanged since January. The most commonly cited reason for not getting the vaccine was that they are too new, and not enough information is known about their long-term effects. Among all groups, Republicans and white evangelicals are most likely to say they won’t get vaccinated, with almost 30% of each group saying they will “definitely not” get a shot. Black adults were the most likely (24%) to say they would “wait and see” what happens before getting vaccinated.


Here’s what else you need to know.

The Facts
  • Vaccination demographics. According to a March poll, Americans are growing more enthusiastic about being vaccinated. 55% of Black adults said they have received the vaccine or plan to soon, approaching that of Hispanics (61%) and whites (64%). (KFF)
  • J&J. Earlier this month, the FDA temporarily halted the administration of the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine due to blood clot concerns. While it has since determined the vaccine to be safe, 32% of survey respondents said they would not get the J&J vaccine following the FDA pause. (de Beaumont Foundation)
  • Teen inoculations. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will soon authorize the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to be administered for those aged 12-15 as early as next week. A new study shows that U.S. children account for 22% of new daily Covid cases, up from 3% last year. (USA Today, BBC)
  • Feeling more comfortable. On Sunday, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reported nearly 1.67 million people were screened at U.S. airport checkpoints: the highest number since mid-March of last year. (USA Today)

NARRATIVES

How It's Being Spun

Katherine Chuang

 
Here are the narratives from both sides, along with supporting headlines and article snippets. These are not necessarily factual, but instead illustrate the coverage that solidifies each narrative. The bias ratings refer to news outlets as a whole, not a specific article.

This week, the Right's narrative will appear first on mobile. Next week, we'll switch it up. These narratives capture the general sentiment for each side, but aren't representative of everyone across the political spectrum.

Narrative from the Right

As the vaccine is rolled out, the mainstream media has repeatedly targeted the Right. While plenty of conservatives have been vaccinated, it’s not irrational to be apprehensive about a rushed vaccine that the FDA hasn’t fully approved. If someone is at risk, it’s well within their right to take necessary precautions to protect themselves. However, it's authoritarian to force everyone to get the vaccine.

Supporting Headlines

Ron DeSantis hammers Biden on pandemic policies: ‘That is an anti-science posture’

Report: Some liberals have trouble quitting Coronavirus lockdowns

Analysis: After a year of being wrong, experts confused about ‘vaccine hesitancy’

Narrative from the Left

The finish line for herd immunity is finally in sight, yet it doesn’t look like we are going to be able to really cross it. After over a year of COVID-19 denial, anti-maskers, and disinformation about the virus, the Right’s ongoing vaccine reluctance is preventing our country from defeating this virus once and for all. Why can’t people understand that the vaccine doesn’t just protect you, but everyone you interact with?

Supporting Headlines

A few more ways to convince hesitant friends and family to get their vax

Forget herd immunity. Here’s how we end this nightmare

Return to pre-pandemic life seems close, but Covid-19 confusion remains for many Americans

But, It's Not All Bias 

Sometimes, the news is civil! Here are two instances of relatively unbiased coverage by news outlets on either side.

Buzzkill: Why we’re not beating, and may never fully conquer, this virus

As the number creeps up—more than 50 percent of the adult population has now received at least one dose—I get a little more hopeful that we can beat this thing. It’s been a high-stakes race, after all, between the spread of the deadly virus and getting enough shots into people’s arms. (Fox News)

The Liberals who can’t quit lockdown

Progressive communities have been home to some of the fiercest battles over COVID-19 policies, and some liberal policy makers have left scientific evidence behind. (The Atlantic)

BOTTOM LINE

What Does It All Mean?

Depending on where you get your news, your feelings towards the vaccine might feel something like this...
  • If your news outlets lean Left, you appreciate the incredible scientific effort to deliver vaccines that effectively mitigate COVID-19. You’ve taken the time to read about the safety of the vaccines and watched as millions of people receive vaccinations with no lasting negative effects. If countless people who’ve spent their life studying medicine have endorsed the vaccines, refusing them seems arrogant, selfish, and conspiratorial. 
  • If your news outlets lean Right, after over a year of COVID fear mongering, you may be hesitant to blindly “follow the science.” Even if you’ve already received the first or second dose, you feel that the vaccination drive has become too politicized and clashes with individual freedoms. Many left-wing media outlets are declaring conservatives to be the biggest roadblock towards herd immunity. You feel this is an inaccurate generalization that lumps rational everyday people in with conspiracy theorists.

In the 1950s, the polio vaccine was invented, and with it came a similar nationwide movement. At the time, a defective batch of vaccines was given to 200,000 children, causing 40,000 to contract polio, 200 to become paralyzed, and 10 deaths. However, that remains the only instance where the vaccine itself was shown to cause disease. There have been claims but no evidence of COVID-19 vaccines negatively impacting health factors like female fertility or autism rates in children.


Still, vaccine hesitancy remains a significant factor, specifically among black and evangelical Americans. Tom Frieden, former director of the CDC, said it’s important to show that community leaders trust the vaccines, especially given the U.S. government's history of medical malpractice within communities of color. Other efforts to increase vaccination rates include mobile vaccination clinics for rural areas, Governors promising to lift restrictions once a certain percentage of the population gets vaccinated, and even offering free beer.


Yesterday, President Biden announced a goal of vaccinating 70% of US adults by the 4th of July. Even if that doesn’t actually achieve true herd immunity, vaccinations at that scale will almost certainly reduce COVID to a sort of seasonal virus that circulates through the U.S., causing hospitalizations and deaths in much smaller numbers. While that may not be the ideal outcome, it’s one that we can certainly live with.

IN OTHER NEWS

What Else We're Following
  • Chauvin. Yesterday, the defense attorney for the former Minneapolis police officer requested a new trial after Chauvin was convicted in April of second-degree murder and other charges in the death of George Floyd. (USA Today)
  • Facebook. At 9 a.m. ET today, Facebook’s quasi-independent Oversight Board will announce its ruling on the status of Donald Trump’s account. If it rules in Trump’s favor, Facebook has seven days to reinstate the account. If the board upholds Facebook’s decision, Trump will remain “indefinitely” suspended. (AP News)
  • Inflation. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she wasn’t forecasting interest-rate increases to rein in any inflation spurred by President Joe Biden’s proposed spending, clarifying comments that ruffled financial markets a few hours earlier. (Bloomberg)

Finally, some good news

Repurposed. India's richest man retooled his factories to provide free liquid oxygen to 1 in 10 COVID-19 patients as COVID-19 ravages the country. (Good News Network)

Have a great rest of your week. We'll see you next Wednesday!

Edition #28 was researched, written, and edited by Max Russ, Nathan Wiley, Liam Walsh, and Max Tendero.

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