Ars Technica: Fall COVID shot uptake is an “abysmal” 7%; wastewater testing impaired

Ars Technica: Fall COVID shot uptake is an “abysmal” 7%; wastewater testing impaired. “More than a month since US health officials recommended updated COVID-19 vaccines for all Americans, only 7.1 percent of US adults have rolled up their sleeves for the shot and just 2.1 percent of children have been immunized. The uptake is sluggish at best, and the current rates were dubbed ‘abysmal’ Thursday by one immunization adviser for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

George Washington University: Social Media May Be Used to Combat COVID Vaccine Hesitancy in Nigeria

George Washington University: Social Media May Be Used to Combat COVID Vaccine Hesitancy in Nigeria. “A social media campaign launched in 2022 helped encourage some Nigerians to roll up their sleeves for a COVID vaccine, according to a study published today in PLOS ONE. ‘Our research suggests that a social media campaign can reduce vaccine hesitancy and increase the vaccination rates in Nigeria and possibly other low-income countries,’ said Doug Evans, the lead author of the paper and a professor of prevention and community health at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health.”

Study: YouTube did not actively direct users toward anti-vaccine content during COVID-19 (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign: Study: YouTube did not actively direct users toward anti-vaccine content during COVID-19. “New research led by data science experts at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and United Nations Global Pulse found that there is no strong evidence that YouTube promoted anti-vaccine sentiment during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Maryland Department of Health: Maryland Department of Health launches new website listing vaccination clinics at local health departments statewide

Maryland Department of Health: Maryland Department of Health launches new website listing vaccination clinics at local health departments statewide. “The Maryland Department of Health has launched health.maryland.gov/vaccines, which lists vaccination clinics offered by local health departments statewide, including children’s back-to-school and COVID-19 clinics. The new site will also list flu vaccination clinics when available.”

Daily Beast: Twitter Removes Fact-Check on Musk’s Bronny James Vax Post

Daily Beast: Twitter Removes Fact-Check on Musk’s Bronny James Vax Post. “A fact-check through the platform’s Community Notes feature soon appeared alongside Musk’s tweet noting that the risk of myocarditis, a rare condition characterized by inflammation of heart muscle, is much higher for patients after a COVID infection rather than after a COVID vaccine. Without explanation, the fact-checking post was deleted from Musk’s tweet, which as of Wednesday still remains on his newly rebranded X platform without any kind of qualification.”

Survey: Half of Americans uncertain about ability to identify false political claims (Northwestern Now)

Northwestern Now: Survey: Half of Americans uncertain about ability to identify false political claims. “Only 8% of nearly 25,000 Americans correctly identified all false political claims presented to them as part of a recent national survey. The survey also found that those who believed false vaccine statements were more than twice as likely to believe inaccurate claims about politics when compared with those who could correctly identify false vaccine claims.”

Kraken, Elon Musk and dead Canadian doctors: Disinformation surges 3 years into the pandemic (Global News)

Global News (Canada): Kraken, Elon Musk and dead Canadian doctors: Disinformation surges 3 years into the pandemic. “The bogus theory – promoted by a small group of Canadian doctors who have spent the pandemic falsely claiming or suggesting that the vaccine kills or harms people – insists, without proof, that the vaccine may have played a role in the death of an ever-growing number of physicians. Global News has spent months investigating the list of doctors and speaking to their families and has found no link of the COVID vaccine to any of their deaths.”

Poynter: Misinformation is swirling online about COVID-19 vaccines and Damar Hamlin’s collapse

Poynter: Misinformation is swirling online about COVID-19 vaccines and Damar Hamlin’s collapse. “Hamlin tackled Cincinnati Bengals receiver Tee Higgins during a Jan. 2 game at Paycor Stadium. As millions watched, Hamlin stood up after the hit and moments later fell to the ground. Social media users seized on the incident and used it to suggest that COVID-19 vaccines contributed to Hamlin’s cardiac arrest.”

NewsWise: Study indicates COVID-19 boosters among vaccinated individuals significantly reduce hospitalization rates, add protection

NewsWise: Study indicates COVID-19 boosters among vaccinated individuals significantly reduce hospitalization rates, add protection. “Researchers found that boosters add about 70% extra protection, which lasts for 4-5 months, and concluded that booster vaccination is associated with significantly decreased odds of hospitalization for COVID-19 among fully vaccinated individuals. Odds of decreased hospitalization varied based on time since booster administration.”

BBC: Anti-vax groups use carrot emojis to hide Facebook posts

BBC: Anti-vax groups use carrot emojis to hide Facebook posts. “Facebook groups are using the carrot emoji to hide anti-vax content from automated moderation tools. The BBC has seen several groups, one with hundreds of thousands of members, in which the emoji appears in place of the word ‘vaccine’. Facebook’s algorithms tend to focus on words rather than images. The groups are being used to share unverified claims of people being either injured or killed by vaccines.”

New York Times: Fall Vaccination Campaign Will Bring New Shots, Worse Access

New York Times: Fall Vaccination Campaign Will Bring New Shots, Worse Access. “At the very moment a better coronavirus vaccine is expected to finally become available, America’s vaccination program is feeling the effects of a long period of retreat. Local programs to bring shots to the places where Americans gather and the institutions they trust have folded, a consequence in some cases of congressional resistance to more pandemic response spending.”

CNBC: Google employees frustrated after office Covid outbreaks, some call to modify vaccine policy

CNBC: Google employees frustrated after office Covid outbreaks, some call to modify vaccine policy. “Google employees are receiving regular notifications from management of Covid-19 infections, causing some to question the company’s return-to-office mandates. The employees, who spoke with CNBC on the condition of anonymity, said since they have been asked to return to offices, infections notifications pop up in their email inboxes regularly. Employees are reacting with frustration and memes.”