Photo Courtesy of Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
“Right now, both data and social media influencers are sounding an alarm to say: misinformation is spreading across the various social media platforms and it’s keeping too many young people from getting the very effective and safe COVID vaccine,” Sen. Schumer said.
By Forum Staff
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Sunday called on federal officials to immediately hatch a broader plan to use trusted social media and technology influencers to help bust at least five COVID vaccine myths that are standing in the way of herd immunity and a larger and quicker pandemic recovery.
“Right now, both data and social media influencers are sounding an alarm to say: misinformation is spreading across the various social media platforms and it’s keeping too many young people from getting the very effective and safe COVID vaccine,” Schumer said. “We see these myths on postings, news feeds, and then it manifests to spur vaccine hesitation. That is why we are here to urge the feds to hatch a plan to use trusted social media and tech influencers, like those here today, to help bust the most vexing myths standing between young people and their vaccine.”
The five myths are:
1) The vaccine causes pregnancy and fertility problems (untrue).
2) The vaccine was developed too quickly and was not properly researched and tested (untrue)
3) Blood clots are very common and occurring in many people (untrue)
4) The vaccine has long term side effects that will most impact younger people later in life (untrue)
5) The vaccine will alter your DNA (untrue)
“Each of these myths requires an antidote to remedy, and that antidote is, in part, trusted influencers who are already well known by young people as health experts, tech gurus and content creators. We have to involve these sorts of folks more broadly in messaging and public health strategy,” Schumer said.
The senator also detailed a May Kaiser Family Foundation poll that showed only half of young adults (18-29) have gotten at least one dose of the vaccine. Schumer also said it was concerning that a quarter of this group wants to “wait and see” how the vaccine is working. Schumer said this troubling percentage, higher than any other peer group, demands the feds more ways to speak more directly to young people via the sandbox of social media. He said numbers for vaccinations in teens is also low, and that a larger scale federal effort to reach this critical demographic, who talks to school-age peers and parents is also required.
According to the poll, “about half of young adults ages 18-29 say they’ve already gotten at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine or will do so as soon as possible, but about a quarter say they still want to “wait and see” how the vaccine is working, higher than any other age group. Peer networks may play a role in encouraging vaccine uptake among young adults; those who say at least half of their close friends are vaccinated are much more enthusiastic about getting vaccinated themselves compared to those who say just a few or none of their friends have gotten a shot. In addition, “…three in ten parents of children ages 12-15 say they will get their child vaccinated as soon as a vaccine is available, one quarter say they will wait a while to see how the vaccine is working.”
