'Stop It Now': Biden Rebukes Cable News, Social Media For COVID Vaccine Lies

In a rare moment of anger, President Joe Biden castigated social media users and cable news outlets that spread false and misleading information about coronavirus vaccinations, saying at a press conference Tuesday that the behavior is not only immoral but deadly.

The unvaccinated are responsible for their own choices, but those choices have been fueled by dangerous misinformation on cable TV and social media, he said while addressing the need for unvaccinated Americans to protect themselves against the fast-spreading new omicron variant.

You know, these companies and personalities are making money by peddling lies and allowing misinformation that can kill their own customers and their own supporters. Its wrong, its immoral, he said, his voice rising. I call on the purveyors of these lies and misinformation to stop it. Stop it now.

Biden did not identify any of his targets by name.

Biden: These companies and personalities are making money by peddling lies and allowing misinformation that can kill their own customers and their own supporters.\" pic.twitter.com/pWH82R9HjV

The Recount (@therecount) December 21, 2021","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"The Recount","author_url":"https://twitter.com/therecount","cache_age":86400,"description":"Biden: These companies and personalities are making money by peddling lies and allowing misinformation that can kill their own customers and their own supporters.\" pic.twitter.com/pWH82R9HjV The Recount (@therecount) December 21, 2021\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_hide_thread":{"label":"Hide previous Tweet in conversation thread","value":true},"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":639,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/amplify_video_thumb/1473382694151143438/img/hDGwebEHCkom7JHT.jpg","thumbnail_width":1200,"title":"The Recount on 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Biden: These companies and personalities are making money by peddling lies and allowing misinformation that can kill their own customers and their own supporters." pic.twitter.com/pWH82R9HjV
The Recount (@therecount) December 21, 2021

Fox News conservative commentators have routinely played down COVID-19 risks to viewers and have raised alarms about the vaccines, which have proved to reduce serious illnesses and deaths. This angle comes even as Fox News employees at the networks New York headquarters are required themselves to be vaccinated against the virus. All employees, regardless of location, are also required to disclose their vaccination status to the company.

A study by the Kaiser Family Foundation released last month found that people who trust Fox News and other conservative-leaning media outlets are more likely to believe falsehoods about COVID-19 and vaccines than those who get their news elsewhere.

Biden appeared to directly call out to the conservative fan base of former President Donald Trump in his vaccination plea on Tuesday, noting that he and Trump have both gotten their COVID booster shots .