Article

How Science Journalists Worldwide Are Fighting White House Health Misinformation

Summary:

"Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump warned pregnant women to stop taking Tylenol – a brand name for paracetamol – or risk giving their children autism. ... Vaccines have been a common target, with Trump falsely correlating vaccines with autism and RFK Jr challenging the safety of both the COVID-19 vaccine and the DTP vaccine. With so many attacks on health and science, what are specialised reporters and editors doing to counter this barrage of disinformation from the most powerful man on Earth? Do these messages have an impact around the world? And what are the challenges posed to the journalists covering these beats? To answer these questions and more, I spoke with five editors of science and health publications in the United States, South Africa, Kenya and Peru."

Author:

Gretel Kahn

Published By:

Reuters Institute

Date:

November 4, 2025