My new column at Columbia Journalism Review critiques the initial coverage of Jenny McCarthy's views on vaccines in stories on her hiring at The View. Here's how it begins:
ABC’s announcement yesterday that actress/comedian Jenny McCarthy will become a co-host of The View brought forth a torrent of condemnation from doctors, science journalists, opinion writers, and even entertainment commentators who oppose giving the anti-vaccine activist a high-profile platform to spread misinformation.
Unfortunately, however, the early coverage has generally failed to follow best practices for covering false or unsupported claims, giving greater reach to discredited claims that have potentially dangerous consequences for public health.
Read the whole thing for more.
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