[Senate Hearing 117-712]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 117-712
SHOT OF TRUTH: COMMUNICATING TRUSTED VACCINE INFORMATION
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS, MEDIA,
AND BROADBAND
of the
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE,
SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
APRIL 15, 2021
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available online: http://www.govinfo.gov
______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
53-086 PDF WASHINGTON : 2024
SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington, Chair
AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota ROGER WICKER, Mississippi, Ranking
RICHARD BLUMENTHAL, Connecticut JOHN THUNE, South Dakota
BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii ROY BLUNT, Missouri
EDWARD MARKEY, Massachusetts TED CRUZ, Texas
GARY PETERS, Michigan DEB FISCHER, Nebraska
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin JERRY MORAN, Kansas
TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Illinois DAN SULLIVAN, Alaska
JON TESTER, Montana MARSHA BLACKBURN, Tennessee
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona TODD YOUNG, Indiana
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada MIKE LEE, Utah
BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West
RAPHAEL WARNOCK, Georgia Virginia
RICK SCOTT, Florida
CYNTHIA LUMMIS, Wyoming
David Strickland, Staff Director
Melissa Porter, Deputy Staff Director
George Greenwell, Policy Coordinator and Security Manager
John Keast, Republican Staff Director
Crystal Tully, Republican Deputy Staff Director
Steven Wall, General Counsel
------
SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS, MEDIA, AND BROADBAND
Ben Ray Lujan, New Mexico, Chair JOHN THUNE, South Dakota, Ranking
AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota ROY BLUNT, Missouri
RICHARD BLUMENTHAL, Connecticut TED CRUZ, Texas
BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii DEB FISCHER, Nebraska
EDWARD MARKEY, Massachusetts JERRY MORAN, Kansas
GARY PETERS, Michigan DAN SULLIVAN, Alaska
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin MARSHA BLACKBURN, Tennessee
TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Illinois TODD YOUNG, Indiana
JON TESTER, Montana MIKE LEE, Utah
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West
JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado Virginia
RAPHAEL WARNOCK, Georgia RICK SCOTT, Florida
CYNTHIA LUMMIS, Wyoming
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Hearing held on April 15, 2021................................... 1
Statement of Senator Lujan....................................... 1
Statement of Senator Thune....................................... 3
Statement of Senator Klobuchar................................... 21
Statement of Senator Tester...................................... 27
Statement of Senator Peters...................................... 29
Statement of Senator Cantwell.................................... 31
Statement of Senator Warnock..................................... 33
Statement of Senator Rosen....................................... 34
Statement of Senator Blumenthal.................................. 36
Statement of Senator Sinema...................................... 38
Statement of Senator Cruz........................................ 42
Witnesses
Tracie Collins, M.D., M.P.H., Secretary, New Mexico Department of
Health; and Member, Association of State and Territorial Health
Officials...................................................... 5
Prepared statement........................................... 6
Hon. Gordon H. Smith, President and CEO, National Association of
Broadcasters................................................... 7
Prepared statement........................................... 9
Yonaira Rivera, Ph.D., M.P.H., Assistant Professor of
Communication, Rutgers University School of Communication and
Information.................................................... 13
Prepared statement........................................... 15
Appendix
Ad Council, prepared statement................................... 45
AHIP, prepared statement......................................... 57
Carmen Scurato, Senior Policy Counsel; Jessica J. Gonzalez, Co-
CEO, Free Press Action Fund, prepared statement................ 60
Media Matters for America, prepared statement.................... 63
Tara Kirk Sell, PhD, MA, Senior Scholar; Marc Trotochaud, MSPH,
Senior Analyst; Divya Hosangadi, MSPH, Senior Analyst; Ellie
Smith, MSPH, Graduate Research Assistant; Johns Hopkins Center
for Health Security, Johns Hopkins Bloomber, prepared statement 66
SHOT OF TRUTH: COMMUNICATING TRUSTED VACCINE INFORMATION
----------
THURSDAY, APRIL 15, 2021
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and
Broadband,
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:27 a.m., in
room SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Ben Ray
Lujan, Chairman of the Subcommittee, presiding.
Present: Senators Lujan [presiding], Cantwell, Klobuchar,
Blumenthal, Schatz, Peters, Tester, Sinema, Rosen, Warnock,
Thune, Cruz, Fischer, Blackburn, Young, and Scott.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BEN RAY LUJAN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW MEXICO
Senator Lujan. Come to order. Let me start by welcoming you
to today's hearing, Shot of Truth: Communicating Trusted
Vaccine Information.
I first want to thank Ranking Member Thune for working with
me to develop this hearing and reach a consensus panel. John
and I look forward to partnering with you this Congress to
deliver results for the American people and the State of New
Mexico. And thank you, Chair Cantwell, Ranking Member Wicker
for your leadership.
We have a distinguished group of witnesses today to help us
examine the ways in which the media is disseminating vaccine
safety and COVID health-related information. They are experts
in public health broadcast communication. Each brings a
critical piece of the puzzle for solving this crisis. I welcome
you and thank you for your expertise.
This subcommittee has an important responsibility to look
at our national communications strategy, to encourage all
Americans to get vaccinated. This morning, we will also explore
what more can be done to encourage media outlets, including
television, radio, and online platforms to promote reliable,
trustworthy, and evidence-based vaccine information.
For the last year, our Nation has faced a once in a
lifetime challenge. As President Biden has said, ``we remain on
a war footing.'' Dedicated researchers spent tireless months
developing safe and effective vaccines in a record time. Now,
with safe and effective vaccines increasingly available, the
Nation must work to get vaccination rates up to defeat this
pandemic. Communicating reliable, trustworthy, and evidence-
based vaccine information is the final step to getting our
lives back.
I am particularly proud of the efforts by Governor Lujan
Grisham of New Mexico, Secretary Collins at the New Mexico
Department of Health. New Mexico has been a national
frontrunner in efficient vaccine distribution, and I am deeply
grateful for their efforts and the lives they have saved.
Tuesday's decision, by the CDC and FDA, regarding the
Johnson & Johnson vaccine underscores the importance of
communicating trusted vaccine information. State and Federal
partners are working now to get anyone scheduled for a Johnson
& Johnson vaccine quickly rescheduled for a Pfizer or Moderna
vaccine. This recent announcement should not cause worry. But
make it clear that the FDA and the Federal Government is taking
every step necessary to ensure that the American people have
clear and transparent information about the safety and
effectiveness of these vaccines. That is what this hearing is
all about.
Unfortunately, in too many places, we are struggling to
provide trusted, evidence-based information, creating a void.
Misinformation and disinformation rushes to fill this gap. A
lie can travel halfway around the world, while the truth is
putting on its shoes. We have heard that before. Folks worry.
They hear confusing and conflicting messages on the internet,
the radio, cable television. Even today, a U.S. Census survey
found that over three million Americans were not sure if they
would receive the vaccine, due to fears of how much it would
cost. They are worried about the cost of a free vaccine. Let me
be clear. The vaccine is provided at no cost. It is free. We
must do better.
A clear and consistent message will save lives. Realizing
this, Congress appropriated $15 million to educate the public
about the COVID-19 vaccine in the December Consolidated
Appropriations Act. Since then, we have seen hesitancy rates
fall dramatically. But we knew it would not be enough. Reaching
every single American who can safely get a vaccine is critical
to defeating this virus. That is why the American Rescue Plan
increased funding for the program by $1 billion. This was a
historic investment in public health communication. It will
help us rebuild a framework for all future health crises. We
have also seen State health departments rise to the occasion,
through vaccine equity programs and trusted community partners.
Before we start, I want to make one thing crystal clear.
Most Americans want to get vaccinated, across all ages and
races, no matter where they live. But first, we must stop the
spread of this deadly virus. The only way to win this fight is
by getting every American the information they need, from
sources they trust, so they can make the right decision for
their health and the health of their community.
Vaccines save lives and I urge all Americans to continue
their plans to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Today, our
witnesses will help ensure the national vaccine rollout is
paired with an effective communication campaign. They will
share their insight on how to achieve an effective and
consistent message across all forms of media. I thank them all
for the vital role they will play in shaping this discussion.
And now, I will turn this over to Senator Thune for his
opening statement.
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN THUNE,
U.S. SENATOR FROM SOUTH DAKOTA
Senator Thune. Thank you, Chairman Lujan, and let me begin
by saying I am looking forward to working with you on this
subcommittee. And this subcommittee has a long history of
bipartisan cooperation when confronting a number of issues,
like rural broadband, spectrum availability, and illegal
robocalls. And I am optimistic that we will be able to continue
that bipartisan collaboration on matters within this
subcommittee's purview.
Today, we are here to discuss ensuring reliable information
relating to the coronavirus pandemic is reaching Americans.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the communications
landscape has played a critical role in disseminating health-
related information to the public. As more and more Americans
have access to the vaccine, it remains important that they have
the ability to easily access reliable information on the
vaccines and other COVID health-related information.
This is certainly true this week, as the Federal Government
encouraged a pause on the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
It is imperative the FDA, CDC, and J&J communicate next steps
to healthcare providers and the public, in an understandable
and transparent way, to assure them of the vaccine's safety, as
more information becomes available. With more trusted experts
examining vaccines, I am confident they will ensure vaccines
are safe and effective, so that we can maintain our momentum in
vaccine distribution.
Since COVID vaccines became available, I have encouraged
folks to get vaccinated. But more important than hearing from
me is hearing from healthcare providers and trusted community
leaders. Which is why, last Congress, I supported legislative
efforts to fund a science-driven, public advocacy campaign to
help build confidence in vaccines. Each family and individual
must take the time to talk to the experts, get the facts, and
make an informed decision for themselves and their families.
But while I am optimistic that we are nearing the end of the
pandemic, there is certainly more work to be done to get past
this pandemic.
But it is more important to know where we are today
compared to a year ago. Today, more than 37 percent of the
country has received at least one dose of the vaccine and
nearly a quarter of the population has been fully vaccinated.
And importantly, nearly 80 percent of those most at risk for
the coronavirus have received one dose of the vaccine, with
more than 60 percent being fully vaccinated.
I have also had the opportunity to visit multiple vaccine
sites across my home state of South Dakota the last few weeks.
And I am pleased with the work South Dakota and our healthcare
providers have done to inform the public and to get fully
vaccinated. I should say, and to get folks vaccinated. At this
time, more than 36 percent of South Dakotans are fully
vaccinated, and more than 50 percent of the population has
received their first shot. As of April 1st, South Dakota has
opened up vaccines for anyone who would like to receive it.
Those are pretty amazing statistics, when you consider that
more than a year ago, we did not even know about this virus.
And it is a tribute to the innovative power of the private
sector, the efforts of Congress, and the Trump Administration
to expedite vaccine development.
As vaccine availability has expanded in recent weeks, so
have efforts to raise public awareness about the vaccine.
Recently, the Biden-Harris Administration launched a new
campaign to promote vaccines by working with specific
community-based organizations. I hope the recent comments made
by the White House about reaching certain communities through
public service announcements on select programming, such as
deep-sea fishing, or country music outlets is not the only
piece of this equation.
Looking at what we can do--or I should say, looking at the
We Can Do This campaign's vaccine hesitancy data, rural or
western states are among some of the areas with the highest
projected hesitancy. This is where the trusted local
connections is going to be the key, and why I am interested
today, to hear from our witnesses about the steps that have
been taken to ensure rural areas are receiving information
about the pandemic, and through what means of communication.
Radio and television broadcasters have played a large role
in providing information to rural and communities of color. Out
of the bipartisan year end coronavirus relief package, the
Department of Health and Human Services was allocated funding
to support educational activities around vaccine distribution.
Several entities represented on today's panel, like radio and
television broadcasters, are eligible for that funding. It is
important that funding be distributed efficiently and
effectively.
I appreciate all the witnesses being with us here today.
And before I close, I would like to congratulate Senator Smith
on his recent announcement, stepping down as President and CEO
of the National Association of Broadcasters. And I want to
extend my thanks to him for his friendship through the years.
He was a valued and treasured colleague here, as United States
Senator. And although we hated to lose him in the Senate, his
role has been extraordinarily important as the head of National
Association of Broadcasters. He has been a loud, clear voice,
advocate for local broadcasters around this country and been an
extraordinary leader for that fine organization. And so,
Gordon, we will miss you, but we are grateful--grateful for
your friendship and your many contributions to making this
country stronger and better. So----
Mr. Chairman, I yield back my time. I guess I am out of
time.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Thune. And I certainly
agree with the sentiment with Senator Smith. Everyone that has
met him is a friend of his, as you know, John. And it is going
to be something to see him in whatever that new role is that he
plays.
But I appreciate what Senator Thune just laid out. As two
western state Senators--rural states, we share those same
concerns, making sure that our constituents are hearing, as
well.
So, with that being said, we are going to go to our first
witness, which is Tracie Collins. Dr. Tracie Collins, who is
the Secretary of the New Mexico Department of Health,
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, out of
Santa Fe, New Mexico. Dr. Collins, the floor is yours. You are
recognized for 5 minutes for your opening statement.
STATEMENT OF TRACIE COLLINS, M.D., M.P.H.,
SECRETARY, NEW MEXICO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH;
AND MEMBER, ASSOCIATION OF STATE
AND MEMBER, AND TERRITORIAL HEALTH OFFICIALS
Dr. Collins. Thank you, good morning. Chairman Lujan,
Ranking Member Thune, and distinguished members of the
Subcommittee, I am pleased to testify before you today to
discuss New Mexico's efforts to disseminate accurate, timely
information about vaccine safety to rural areas and communities
of color, and to encourage more Americans to get vaccinated.
In New Mexico currently, more than 55 percent of the
population has received at least one shot, and approximately 36
percent are fully vaccinated. Thanks to our state's vaccine
equity plan, this includes high proportions of minority and
socially vulnerable communities.
Since the pandemic began, the Governor and other State
leaders held weekly or biweekly press conferences about the
coronavirus, and now the vaccine. These are widely covered by
our State Press Corps and disseminated through Facebook Live.
We have also expanded our Department of Health communications
operation. Thanks to Federal funding, we have hired two
additional communications specialists, one focused specifically
on outreach to communities of color. In addition, we have
benefited from FEMA support in establishing a multi-agency
Incident Command Structure, including a Joint Information
Center, or JIC, comprising public information officers,
emergency management personnel, hotline staff, and other key
communicators. The JIC is subdivided into eight teams,
including an Outreach Team that keeps close tabs on rumors,
misinformation, and other vaccine communications challenges
from constituencies and communities across New Mexico, and a
Product Team that designs communications materials to meet
those challenges.
But many of our best communications efforts do not involve
State employees. Instead, they involve the voices of New
Mexicans from across the State. Our Trusted Voices campaign,
for example, is a series of YouTube videos featuring more than
50, and counting, New Mexicans from every walk of life, ethnic
and racial background, and professional affiliation. We
understand that persuasion is built on trust, and trust is
often founded on shared roots and experiences. These videos,
available in multiple languages, allow New Mexicans to address
one another about their experiences with the vaccine, to speak
their minds, and share from the heart. The videos have received
thousands of views and more volunteers each week.
Of course, trust requires more than one-way communication.
Often, dialogue is key. And dialogue tends to work best in
respectful, non-judgmental, open-ended settings. To that end,
we have leaned heavily on virtual town hall events. Our
communications director has co-led five of these events so far,
each with a co-host chosen for both their medical expertise and
their credibility within a geographic area or racial or ethnic
community. Future events will be aimed at younger cohorts,
Native American communities, agricultural and rural
communities, and the LGBTQ community, among others.
Our Office of Health Equity has also held culturally and
linguistically appropriate town halls with trusted messengers
from the Black and African-American communities, the mono-
lingual Spanish-speaking Latinx community, Spanish-speaking
health care providers in the border region, the Vietnamese
community, and the disability community. Each of these events
provides community members a chance to ask questions, voice
concerns, and hear from scientific experts about what we know,
what we do not know, and what we are still learning about
COVID-19 and the vaccines. These events have proven especially
valuable at building vaccine confidence. In fact, we regularly
see a spike in vaccine registrations following these town
halls, which is important to our ongoing health equity efforts.
I have mentioned language several times but allow me to
linger there a moment longer. Reaching people, especially in a
diverse state like New Mexico, means speaking to people in
their languages and at the appropriate level of health
literacy. We are extremely grateful to Congress for approving
the American Rescue Plan, which appropriated billions of
dollars to strengthen vaccine confidence and improve rates of
vaccination, goals we strive to reach every day.
Of course, all of this is just a summary. I have much more
to say, for example, about how our vaccine operations and
planning teams integrate racial, ethnic, and geographic
considerations into their work, as well as how we communicate
our policy plans and integrate feedback from New Mexicans. But
I will save some of these details for our conversation. Again,
I thank you for the invitation, and I look forward to your
questions.
[The prepared statement of Dr. Collins follows:]
Prepared Statement of Tracie Collins, MD, MPH,
New Mexico Department of Health
Chairman Lujan, Ranking Member Thune, and distinguished members of
the subcommittee, I am pleased to testify before you today to discuss
New Mexico's efforts to disseminate accurate, timely information about
vaccine safety to rural areas and communities of color, and to
encourage more Americans to get vaccinated.
In New Mexico currently, more than 55 percent of the population has
received at least one shot, and approximately 36 percent are fully
vaccinated. Thanks to our state's vaccine equity plan, this includes
high proportions of minority and socially vulnerable communities.
Since the pandemic began, the Governor and other state leaders held
weekly or biweekly press conferences about the coronavirus, and now the
vaccine. These are widely covered by our state press corps and
disseminated through Facebook Live.
We've also expanded our Department of Health communications
operation. Thanks to Federal funding, we've hired two additional
communications specialists, one focused specifically on outreach to
communities of color.
In addition, we've benefited from FEMA support in establishing a
multi-agency Incident Command Structure, including a Joint Information
Center (JIC) comprising public information officers, emergency
management personnel, hotline staff, and other key communicators. The
JIC is subdivided into eight teams, including an Outreach Team that
keeps close tabs on rumors, misinformation, and other vaccine
communications challenges from constituencies and communities across
New Mexico--and a Product Team that designs communications materials to
meet those challenges.
But many of our best communications efforts don't involve state
employees. Instead, they involve the voices of New Mexicans from across
the state. Our Trusted Voices campaign, for example, is a series of
YouTube videos featuring more than fifty--and counting--New Mexicans
from every walk of life, ethnic and racial background, and professional
affiliation.
We understand that persuasion is built on trust, and trust is often
founded on shared roots and experiences. These videos--available in
multiple languages--allow New Mexicans to address one another about
their experiences with the vaccine: to speak their minds and share from
the heart. The videos have received thousands of views--and more
volunteers each week.
Of course, trust requires more than one-way communication. Often,
dialogue is key--and dialogue tends to work best in respectful, non-
judgmental, open-ended settings.
To that end, we have leaned heavily on virtual town hall events.
Our communications director has co-led five of these events so far,
each with a co-host chosen for both their medical expertise and their
credibility within a geographic area or racial or ethnic community.
Future events will be aimed at younger cohorts, Native American
communities, agricultural and rural communities, and the LGBTQ
community, among others.
Our Office of Health Equity has also held--or is planning--
culturally and linguistically appropriate town halls with trusted
messengers from the Black and African-American communities, the mono-
lingual Spanish-speaking Latinx community, Spanish-speaking health care
providers in the border region, the Vietnamese community, and the
disability community.
Each of these events provides community members a chance to ask
questions, voice concerns, and hear from scientific experts about what
we know, what we don't know, and what we're still learning about COVID-
19 and the vaccines.
These events have proven especially valuable at building vaccine
confidence. In fact, we regularly see a spike in vaccine registrations
following these town halls--which is important to our ongoing health
equity efforts.
I've mentioned language several times, but allow me to linger there
a moment longer. Reaching people--especially in a diverse state like
New Mexico--doesn't mean just publishing an English-language press
release and hoping for the best. It means speaking to people in their
languages--and at the appropriate level of health literacy.
Our Office of Health Equity (OHE) translates all Covid-related
material into Spanish, Vietnamese, Dine/Navajo and Arabic to reach
border, frontier, colonias, immigrant, refugee and asylum-seeking
community members, and has worked hard to calibrate health literacy
levels appropriately across all communication materials. In addition to
digital messaging, we send multilingual paper and poster notifications
statewide for communities with low broadband connectivity. And DOH
staff regularly appear on radio and television in both English and
Spanish.
We are extremely grateful to Congress for approving the American
Rescue Plan, which appropriated billions of dollars to strengthen
vaccine confidence, improve rates of vaccination, and provide
information on EUA-approved vaccinations--goals we strive to reach
every day.
Of course, all of this is just a summary. I have much more to say,
for example, about how our vaccine operations and planning teams
integrate racial, ethnic, and geographic considerations into their
work--as well as how we communicate our policy plans and integrate
feedback from New Mexicans.
But I will save some of these details for our conversation. Again,
I thank you for the invitation, and I look forward to your questions.
Senator Lujan. Thank you so much, Dr. Collins. Next, we
will hear from the Honorable Gordon Smith, the former United
States Senator, President and CEO, the National Association of
Broadcasters. Senator Smith, the floor is yours.
STATEMENT OF HON. GORDON H. SMITH, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTERS
Mr. Smith. Good morning, Chairman Lujan, Senator Thune. May
I just go off script a minute and thank you both for your
courtesy to have me back in this room. It holds so many fond
memories, and memories of colleagues of yesterday and both of
you, friends every day. Thank you.
My name is Gordon Smith. I am the President and CEO of the
National Association of Broadcasters. On behalf of free and
local broadcast stations serving your hometowns, I appreciate
this opportunity to testify before you today, about the unique
and vital role that trusted, local broadcasters are playing to
effectively deliver vaccine information to their communities
and to your constituents.
In times of emergency, history is showing very clearly that
Americans turn first to their local broadcasters for the most
trusted information, reliable things that help keep them safe
and to keep them informed. Broadcasters' guiding principle is
to serve on the front lines of every crisis, staying on the air
to provide critical information even at times at the risk of
their own lives.
Just over a year ago, all of our lives were turned upside
down by the COVID-19 pandemic. While the country shut down and
many Americans worked from home, broadcasters began scrambling
to set up makeshift studios and to modify camera and microphone
equipment, so they could continue reporting breaking news and
sharing vital information. Now, as hope abounds and vaccines
roll out across the nation, broadcasters are again anxious to
serve as your critical partners to government agencies and the
public health and medical communities to make sure that people
are armed with timely, accurate information about vaccines.
Last fall, NAB partnered with the Reynolds Journalism
Institute on a nationwide research project to identify the most
effective vaccine messaging possible. Our research yielded very
encouraging news and found a public eager for the vaccine.
However, our research also, and that of other studies,
identified challenges to some demographics--African-Americans,
Hispanics, conservative-leaning whites, and women age 18-34.
Our research showed that everyone simply wants the facts.
News stories that make recommendations based on factual
reporting. Fortunately, that is what broadcasters do best and
endeavor to do always. To dig deep to provide accurate
information to their communities, not spin, not rumors, and
hopefully, never with political theater.
Our survey research also showed that local news to be the
very most reliable and trustworthy information source.
Interestingly, social media was ranked least reliable by the
American people. Our data demonstrates and makes clear that the
public values a trusted local source more than any other,
especially the voices of local doctors, local nurses, local
pharmacists. This research made it clear that a local and
regional approach, therefore, would be far more effective than
a one-size-fits-all national messaging campaign.
So, with the highest reach of all media platforms, into
more than 90 percent of the American households, and also a
service which we provide, which is ubiquitous and free to the
public, broadcast radio and TV stations are the best managed
carriers to reach vulnerable populations. Importantly, local
stations serve communities of color, multilingual ethnic
minorities, and rural areas of the country, where all of us
come from, to make sure, in those places where vaccine
hesitancy is highest, that they get the facts and can make
their choice.
Acknowledging this vast and unique unparalleled reach, we
appreciate the many senators, of this committee, also, who
worked this past year to support broadcasters, providing CARES
relief and urging the Administration, past and present, to
utilize local stations to educate Americans during the
pandemic. We are gratified that the Department of Health and
Human Services identified local broadcast stations as effective
advertising partners. Additionally, NAB is proud to be a
founding member of the Administration's recently announced
Community Corps, whose mission is to galvanize trusted
messengers in local communities to encourage people to get
vaccinated.
Since the early days of the pandemic, broadcasters have
donated unprecedented airtime to keeping the public informed
and to address mistrust and concern, in the hundreds of
millions of dollars of value. Local broadcasters have been a
constant companion, shining light, spreading hope, and
supporting communities, as Americans have experienced acute
isolation from their families, their neighbors, and their loved
ones.
As this pandemic has shown, once again, localism and
journalism are essential to broadcasting's franchise.
Therefore, we are eager to continue to work to assist you in
Congress, the Administration, and local leaders by using our
airwaves to carry the message America needs and the message
that America trusts, to get over the finish line with this
pandemic. Further, as Congress considers how best to direct
Federal advertising dollars, we are confident that all
broadcasters, especially those small and rural markets, like we
all come from, can drive these messages home better than any
other medium.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify today. I look
forward to your questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Smith follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Gordon H. Smith, President and CEO,
National Association of Broadcasters
Introduction
Good morning Chairman Lujan, Ranking Member Thune and members of
the subcommittee. My name is Gordon Smith and I am the president and
CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters. I am honored today to
testify on behalf of our 7,200 free, local television and radio station
members and the broadcast networks that bring the most trusted news and
information to our communities each and every day. This critical role
has been especially vital to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Survey after survey shows that in times of emergency, Americans
turn to their local broadcasters first for the most trusted and
reliable information to stay safe and informed. Unlike other
communications mediums, broadcasters' guiding principle is to serve on
the front lines of every crisis, staying on the air to provide critical
information even when their own lives are in danger. This service is
how we earn our broadcast licenses and fulfill a mission that no other
medium can, and that has been especially vital during the past year.
Just over a year ago, all our lives were turned upside down by the
COVID-19 pandemic. While the country shut down and many Americans
worked from home, broadcasters scrambled to set up makeshift studios
and modify camera and microphone equipment so they could continue
reporting breaking news and sharing vital information with their
communities while trying to stay safe.
Despite facing major economic and physical challenges created by
the pandemic, local broadcasters stepped up to provide their
communities with accurate and timely information on COVID-19 on every
platform--on air, online and through social media. Broadcasters led
educational efforts to help prevent the spread of the virus and
provided resources and help to those impacted, donating hundreds of
millions of dollars in free airtime to preventative education in the
first six months alone of the pandemic.
In addition to providing local news and updates vital to their
communities, broadcasters worked to raise awareness of mental health
resources, supported and promoted local businesses and frontline
workers and shared positive stories about people helping their
neighbors in need.
Now, as hope abounds and vaccines roll out across the nation,
broadcasters are once again leading the way in serving the public.
Stations are serving as critical partners to government agencies and
the public health and medical communities to arm listeners and viewers
with timely, accurate information about vaccines. We are helping
Americans protect themselves and others by getting inoculated, and
helping our Nation reopen and return to normalcy--something we all
desperately crave.
Identifying Effective Messaging and Messengers
Broadcasters' vaccine education efforts have been comprehensive and
fortified by in-depth research. In the fall of last year, NAB partnered
with the Reynolds Journalism Institute on a nationwide research project
\1\ to identify effective vaccine education messaging that would best
resonate with Americans. What we found helped guide our efforts to
prepare our Nation's journalists for the critical mission of helping
our country emerge from the pandemic.
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\1\ Research survey conducted by SmithGeiger of 3,046 adults aged
18-64, December 4-11, 2020
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Our research yielded encouraging news and found a public eager for
the vaccine. In fact, six in 10 respondents wanted a shot as soon as it
was available to them, with only 13 percent saying they would not get
vaccinated. I'm pleased to report that the number of Americans who want
to be vaccinated has continued to rise as more information has become
available.
However, our research findings also helped us identify challenges
to vaccine acceptance. Our data, in addition to research conducted by
numerous groups, indicates greater hesitancy among certain
demographics, such as African Americans, Hispanics, conservative-
leaning Whites, and women aged 18-34. Identifying this early helped us
to prepare our stations that reach these critical demographics and arm
them with information to help them deliver effective messages
specifically tailored to these audiences.
We found that the biggest motivating factor in getting a vaccine is
the desire to get back to normal, as well as to protect vulnerable
friends and family members. However, Americans want to know that the
vaccines are safe and effective. Our research shows that they simply
want the facts--news stories that make recommendations based on
detailed reporting, not a personal perspective. Fortunately, that is
what broadcasters do best--they dig deep to provide accurate
information to their communities--not spin, rumors or political
theater.
Our research also deemed local news the most reliable and
trustworthy information source by our survey respondents. Social media
was ranked least reliable by Americans. Our data demonstrates that the
public values a trusted local source over personalities, politicians
and pundits, and the most trusted voices are those of their local
doctor, nurse or pharmacist.
This research made it clear from the outset that a local and
regional approach would be more effective than a one-size-fits-all
national message.
These research findings became the basis of NAB's vaccine education
toolkit, nab.org/vaccine, that was produced as a comprehensive resource
for our member stations and other local journalists. This online
resource provides messaging guidance, access to local and national
healthcare experts and public service tools to help stations craft news
stories and campaigns that best resonate with their listeners and
viewers.
The vaccine education toolkit also includes resources and research
provided by many well-respected partners, such as the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services, the Kaiser Family Foundation, Asian
Americans Advancing Justice, the Hispanic Federation, National Urban
League, Trust for America's Health and countless others.
These partnerships are critical to our work in reaching vulnerable
populations with information that is accurate and impactful. Most
recently, we added the great work of the Ad Council to our toolkit and
encouraged our radio and television station members to utilize the
``It's Up to You'' campaign resources, which encourage the public to
get the latest vaccine information, understanding that personal
education is the first step in building vaccine confidence.
Partners in Public Education
Armed with the research and messaging to best educate the public,
and routinely cited by Americans as the most trusted news source,
broadcasters are uniquely positioned to effectively deliver vaccine
information to their communities.
With the highest reach of all media platforms into more than 90
percent of households, and a service that is ubiquitous and free to the
public, broadcast radio and TV stations are clearly the best message
carriers to reach vulnerable populations. Local stations serve
communities of color, multilingual ethnic minorities and rural areas of
the country where vaccine hesitancy is highest.
In fact, African American, Hispanic and Latino, Asian American,
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities rely on free and local
TV and radio broadcast stations more than the general U.S. population.
According to Nielsen, the number of broadcast-only households in the
United States continues to rise, increasing nearly 14 percent from 2019
to 2020. More than one-third of minority households in the country rely
on a television antenna to get free, over the air TV. At least 40
percent of African American households and 44 percent of Hispanic
households in the U.S. own a TV antenna.\2\
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\2\ Horowitz Research, ``State of OTA'', October 2020
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Acknowledging this vast, unique and unparalleled reach, we
appreciate the many senators and members of Congress that have worked
over the past year to support broadcasters, providing robust relief and
funding, and urging the administration to utilize local stations to
educate Americans during the pandemic. We are gratified that the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has identified local
broadcast stations as effective advertising partners and conduits to
share clear, reliable information with those demographics and regions
that need it the most through their vaccine education advertising
campaign. We look forward to continuing to work closely with HHS on
these efforts to reach those most at risk.
Additionally, NAB is proud to be a founding member of the
Administration's recently announced Community Corps, whose mission is
to galvanize trusted messengers in local communities to encourage
people to get vaccinated. The program, spearheaded by HHS and the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is working with
broadcasters to deliver messages to the public in the fight against
COVID-19 and share the importance of vaccinations in every community.
We also look forward to the role broadcasters can play in the
Administration's forthcoming ``You Can Do It,'' campaign to encourage
Americans--particularly those in rural communities, young adults,
African Americans and Hispanics, to get vaccinated. Broadcasters are
particularly well situated to boost vaccine confidence among these
populations and help them make the critical decision to be vaccinated.
Finally, NAB is active in several private sector campaigns to
supplement our work with the Federal government. We are supporting the
Greater Than COVID initiative called ``The Conversation: Between Us.
About Us.'' This campaign includes prominent Black doctors, nurses and
researchers dispelling misinformation and providing accessible facts
about COVID-19 vaccines for the Black community. NAB is also a member
of the COVID Collaborative, a national assembly of experts and
organizations working on unified action against the COVID-19 pandemic.
I am honored to serve on its National Advisory Council in their efforts
to ensure that we reach vulnerable communities to defeat the virus both
equitably and effectively.
Broadcasters in Action
Since the early days of the pandemic, broadcasters have donated
unprecedented airtime to keeping their listeners and viewers safe and
informed--from airing public service announcements to hosting
fundraisers for the community to giving free promotion to small
businesses. Stations continue to host townhall meetings with medical
experts and post easy-to-access information on their websites,
providing a platform for the public to get answers to their vaccine
questions. Not only are broadcasters working to educate the public,
they are focused on addressing the mistrust that exists and acknowledge
the concern among vulnerable communities.
For example, last month Gray Television's WSFA in Alabama hosted a
live townhall titled, ``Fear, Facts, Future: The COVID-19 Vaccine
Explained,'' to discuss concerns and misconceptions about the COVID-19
vaccine in the Black community. The station teamed up with health
experts and community leaders to answer questions and address
skepticism. The panel discussion took place in Tuskegee, the site of a
1932 medical study where the government examined the effect of syphilis
on Black men. This location was chosen specifically to acknowledge that
the community has a reason for mistrust, but also to allow medical
experts from the Black community to explain how those issues are being
addressed with solid, reliable information.
Univision Communications launched a national bilingual vaccine
hotline as part of its Unidos Por Los Nuestros (United For Each Other)
COVID-19 campaign, which the public can call to access accurate
information about the vaccine and receive personalized assistance on
how to sign up for the vaccine. They also provide an online vaccine
finder and are hosting a statewide forum in California featuring Sen.
Alex Padilla and Rep. Tony Cardenas to help address some of the issues
surrounding vaccine disparities.
In addition to covering COVID-related educational topics on 850
local radio stations with an array of health experts, government
leaders and nonprofit organizations, iHeartMedia recently launched the
``COVID-19 Immunity in Our Community'' podcast series, produced in
partnership with HHS to share timely and accurate information about
vaccines. Designed to separate fact from fiction, ``COVID-19 Immunity
in Our Community'' will arm listeners with the tools they need to make
educated decisions about getting vaccinated. The show is hosted by ABC
News' Robin Roberts and features experts such as Dr. Anthony Fauci and
other respected voices from the medical and scientific communities. The
new podcast will also draw perspectives from Americans across different
communities, who will share their unique and personal experience with
vaccination.
Tegna's WXIA Atlanta took an innovative approach to addressing
concerns and mistrust over COVID-19 vaccines by handing over the
microphone and camera to a skeptical area mom, allowing her to
interview the experts and get her questions answered. This novel and
transparent approach gave the audience a voice in a minority community
with high levels of hesitancy. The interviews aired during the morning
and evening newscasts, as well as during a special half-hour news
report.
Hearst Television's KOAT Action 7 news in Albuquerque is educating
viewers about how to sign up for vaccine appointments online or by
phone, informing them about who is eligible to receive a shot and
answering important questions and dispelling myths about vaccine
safety. They are also providing localized information about how many in
the state are already vaccinated and how that compares with the rest of
the country.
Celebrities such as Whoopi Goldberg on ABC's The View and trusted
local anchors such as Tom Wills, a veteran reporter for Graham Media's
WJXT in Jacksonville, Florida, are sharing their vaccination stories
with viewers and encouraging viewers to get inoculated.
Audacy's KCBS Radio in San Francisco recently tackled questions
about vaccine efficacy during its ``Ask an Expert'' segment, responding
to listener concerns about the differences between the types of
vaccines available.
Fox-owned Q13 News in Seattle is putting experts on the air,
including Dr. Scott Lindquist, Washington State's epidemiologist, to
talk about travel restrictions as vaccinations continue and Dr. John
Dunn of Kaiser Permanente to discuss new trials for a vaccine to combat
the South African COVID variant.
These are just a handful of examples of the work being done
throughout the country by thousands of radio and television stations as
the public turns to broadcasters to get trusted answers to their
vaccine questions.
Conclusion
It has been more than a year since the beginning of this
devastating pandemic, and the enduring value of local broadcasters to
our communities and your constituents has never been clearer. They have
helped keep the fabric of our communities--and the very fabric of our
democracy--connected during one of the most challenging years in our
Nation's history. In fact, local broadcasters have been a constant
companion shining light, spreading hope and supporting communities as
Americans have experienced acute isolation from their families,
neighbors and loved ones.
According to Nielsen, at home news consumption grew significantly
in the second quarter of last year and news was the most popular TV
genre viewed as Americans left their TV sets on throughout the day. The
most popular source was local television among 64 percent of
respondents, as viewers tuned into local stations to get the
information most relevant to their community and the content they
trust.\3\
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\3\ The Nielsen Total Audience Report: August 2020
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A separate Nielsen survey yielded compelling findings about radio
as ``comfort food'' during the pandemic, with 83 percent of Americans
reaffirming that they were listening to as much or more radio as they
were before the pandemic. ``As is the case with local TV viewership in
times of crisis, radio and on-air personalities present a connection to
the real world that listeners gravitate toward and trust,'' said
Nielsen.\4\
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\4\ Nielsen: Radio is Comfort Food as Media Consumption Rises Amid
Covid-19 Pandemic
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Providing a lifeline to communities--particularly in times of
crisis--is what broadcasters do best, and they do it better than all
other mediums combined.
As Americans' most-trusted source for news, local radio and
television stations understand their responsibility to deliver
reliable, fact-based journalism and have demonstrated their indelible
value. Broadcasters are delivering life-saving information and hope
during a time when fear, uncertainty and loss have bonded us.
Broadcasters stand ready and prepared to continue helping Americans
get the information they need to safeguard their health and return to
normalcy. We are eager to continue to assist Congress, the
Administration, Federal agencies and local leaders by using our free,
local airwaves to carry the message America needs--and trusts--to get
over the finish line with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thank you again for the opportunity to discuss this issue, which is
critical to America's broadcasters and the communities we serve. I look
forward to your questions.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Smith. Next, we are going
to hear from Yonaira Rivera. Dr. Rivera, an Assistant Professor
of Communications at Rutgers University School of
Communications and Information, from New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Dr. Rivera, you are recognized for five minutes.
STATEMENT OF YONAIRA RIVERA, Ph.D., M.P.H., ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
OF COMMUNICATION, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF COMMUNICATION
AND INFORMATION
Dr. Rivera. Thank you. Chairman Lujan, Ranking Member
Thune, distinguished members of the Senate Subcommittee thank
you very much for inviting me to speak to you today about how
we can reach Latinos and other communities of color with
effective communication strategies to encourage the uptake of
COVID-19 vaccinations. It is a great honor and privilege to be
here.
My name is Yonaira Rivera, and I am an Assistant Professor
at Rutgers University's School of Communication and
Information. My scholarship is centered around reducing Latino
health inequities through effective, health communication, with
a focus on social media and community engaged research. But I
have also served as a community health educator for Latinos in
Florida and Puerto Rico. And I have worked alongside community
leaders in Puerto Rico in long-term relief efforts after
Hurricane Maria. It is from these collective experiences that I
speak to you today to share insights on how to best reach
Latino and other communities of color.
I first want to address how misinformation undermines our
ability to reach these communities, particularly on social
media. As you can see in my written testimony, findings from my
research on cancer misinformation suggests that we should
address digital health literacy among adult populations to help
reduce the spread of health misinformation on social media
platforms. But interventions at the platform level are also
imperative. As individuals may not be sufficiently motivated or
skilled to verify the health information they encounter on
these platforms.
You may recall that platforms began self-regulating and
monitoring the dissemination of some health content in 2019,
after public and media concerns surrounding misinformation
about the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine. Yet, this
reactive response leaves many questions unanswered, including
what makes a public health problem important enough to
regulate, and in what ways this content should be regulated--
issues that we have only seen grow during the current pandemic.
These and other topics are at the core of a recent report
released by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. This
report calls for a national strategy to combat health
misinformation and disinformation and, among other things,
suggests that a national commission be established to provide
evidence-based guidelines and recommendations for neutral
oversight. Such a commission would include multiple
stakeholders to address these very difficult issues from
multiple angles.
I will now turn my attention to my second point of
discussion, how to reach communities of color with evidence-
based messages, to encourage vaccine uptake, while we embark on
efforts to minimize health misinformation. Again, drawing from
my work with the Latino community, some of these
recommendations include, first, utilizing community health
educators or other trustworthy figures to deliver evidence-
based messages on social media and beyond. Second, to
counteract misinformation by disseminating culturally tailored
narratives. And third, partnering with local organizations and
community leaders in bottom-up outreach efforts.
And I want to emphasize this last point. While it is
crucial to invest in communication using traditional media
outlets, it is just as essential to invest in bottom-up efforts
that leverage the work already conducted on the ground by
trusted community leaders and organizations. My experiences in
the field have taught me that listening to community leaders,
and working around their needs, is key for success. Local
leaders know what efforts are feasible and what will benefit
their community. So, listening to their concerns and assisting
them in finding solutions cements trust and fosters a sense of
ownership, which are instrumental to these and other public
health efforts.
It is also important to note that blanket messages will not
be successful with Latinos and other communities of color, as
we are not monolithic. Tailored messaging is required to
adequately promote vaccine uptake.
We must also remember that issues related to vaccine
hesitancy are not all due to misinformation. And issues related
to vaccine uptake are not all due to hesitancy. This is why
working with, and listening to, leaders of grassroots
organizations can facilitate communication efforts.
A final point I want to highlight is that we need more
research. Addressing vaccine hesitancy and health
misinformation is an extremely challenging endeavor. There are
still many questions we do not have answers to, making this a
very important opportunity to get it right and fund research
and communication initiatives that adequately meet the
challenge.
As I conclude, I want to re-emphasize the importance of
leveraging trusted sources when reaching Latinos and other
communities of color. This is instrumental, as building trust
takes time and cannot be done overnight. We need more people
who look like us delivering messages, more scientists who
understand our communities conducting the research, and more
funding directed toward our communities and organizations to
end the disparities that we face.
I look forward to our conversation. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Dr. Rivera follows:]
Prepared Statement of Yonaira M. Rivera, PhD, MPH, Assistant Professor,
Department of Communication, School of Communication & Information,
Rutgers--The State University of New Jersey
Chairman Lujan, Ranking Member Thune, and distinguished members of
the United States Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and
Broadband: thank you for inviting me to speak to you today about how we
can reach Hispanic/Latino (henceforth Latino) and other communities of
color (which I will refer to as BIPOC \1\ communities) with effective
communication strategies to encourage the uptake of COVID-19
vaccinations. It is a great honor and privilege to be here.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Brown, Indigenous and People of Color
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
My name is Yonaira Rivera, and I am an Assistant Professor at
Rutgers University's School of Communication and Information in New
Jersey. My testimony today is based on over a decade of research and
practice that impact BIPOC communities in this country.
My academic background includes a master's degree from Rollins
School of Public Health at Emory University and a Ph.D. from Johns
Hopkins School of Public Health. My scholarship is centered around
reducing Latino health inequities through effective, theory-driven
health communication, with a focus on social media and community
engaged research.
But my experiences extend beyond academic research. I have served
as a community health educator for the National Cancer Institute,
educating Latino communities in Florida and Puerto Rico. I have also
worked alongside community leaders in Puerto Rico in long-term relief
efforts after Hurricane Maria, building the trust necessary to conduct
fruitful community-based research and interventions.
It is from these collective experiences, and the published research
of many scientists in the fields of public health and health
communication, that I speak to you today to share insights on how to
best reach Latino and other BIPOC communities through health
communication initiatives that can assist in comprehensive COVID-19
vaccination efforts.
Vaccination efforts are instrumental as the Nation battles this
pandemic. The success of these efforts undoubtedly relies upon
accurate, effective health communication to ensure communities are
well-informed about vaccine safety and efficacy, as well as where and
how to access vaccinations. Despite this, there is still vaccine
hesitancy among members of BIPOC communities for a myriad of reasons.
These include medical and government mistrust, confusion about vaccines
and where to get them, language barriers, and misinformation related to
access, who is eligible, and fear of getting COVID-19 from the vaccine.
Misinformation undermines our ability to reach Latino and other BIPOC
communities
While issues related to vaccine hesitancy go beyond social media,
evidence suggests that these platforms contribute to the spread of
misinformation that can bolster these beliefs and misperceptions. The
rise of misinformation on social media has caused public health
scholars to express deep concerns over how health misinformation is
shared, how vulnerable populations respond to it, and how it may
negatively impact public health outcomes.
This concern is at the core of my empirical work, which focuses on
understanding how U.S. Latino adults engage with and act upon health
information and misinformation on social media. I have explored this
within the context of cancer communication, which is another health
equity issue that disproportionately impacts Latino communities.
Findings from my work, which focus on Latinos ages 40-75, highlight
that many individuals do not have the time, skills or motivation to
adequately verify content they encounter. Instead, they trust the
sources who share it--despite content having low scientific credibility
and being distributed by potentially unreliable sources.
In light of these findings, efforts that tackle digital health
literacy among adult populations may be necessary to address the spread
of misinformation on social media. Structural interventions (i.e.,
those at the platform level) are also imperative, as individuals may
not be sufficiently motivated or skilled to verify health information
they encounter on social media. And while social media platforms have
begun self-regulating and monitoring the dissemination of some health
misinformation since the public and media outcry surrounding measles,
mumps and rubella vaccine misinformation in 2019, this reactive
response leaves many questions unanswered, including what makes a
public health problem ``important enough'' to regulate, and in what
ways should this content be regulated--issues we have only seen grow
during the current pandemic.
These and other topics are at the core of a recent report released
by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, ``National Priorities
to Combat Misinformation and Disinformation for COVID-19 and Future
Public Health Threats: A Call for a National Strategy'' (led by Dr.
Tara Sell). The report proposes for four pillars to assist in
developing this strategy: (1) intervening against false/damaging
content and its sources; (2) promoting and disseminating abundant
factual information; (3) increasing public resilience to misinformation
and disinformation; and (4) responding via multi-sector and multi-
agency collaborations. It also recommends that a national commission be
established to provide evidence-based guidelines and recommendations
for nonpartisan oversight. Such a commission would include multiple
stakeholders to address these difficult issues from multiple angles.
How might we reach Latino and other BIPOC communities with messages to
effectively increase vaccine uptake?
In light of the current health misinformation landscape, I will now
turn to my second point of discussion: how to reach Latino and other
BIPOC communities with evidence-based messages to effectively increase
vaccine uptake.
Other findings from my work with the Latino community emphasize
that messages and their sources should be culturally relevant to boost
effectiveness. These findings add to existing cancer communication
literature and they are easily transferrable to the vaccine
communication efforts we are tackling today. Some recommendations
include:
Utilizing promotores or other trustworthy figures to deliver
evidence-based messages on social media. Trusted sources with
perceived topic expertise/authority and similar cultural
identity heavily contributed to engagement with information.
Sources appear to enhance engagement with (or be more important
than) culturally-relevant content. This suggests that receiving
reputable health information from trusted individuals may
assist in counteracting and dispelling myths. Initiatives can
embed trusted sources in the Latino community--like promotores
(community health workers) and other community leaders--into
their outreach efforts. These individuals could be trained to
engage with community members on social media through efforts
that leverage the dialogical education enabled by platforms
like Facebook, an approach that has been successful in tobacco-
cessation interventions (see Ramo et al., 2018).
Counteracting misinformation by disseminating culturally-
tailored narratives. Our findings present new considerations
for social media interventions to adequately deliver evidence-
based, culturally-tailored information to intended audiences.
Narratives may be one tool to effectively counteract
misinformation online, as the shared experiences of others had
a strong influence in credibility assessments among interviewed
participants. These findings align with other health
communication efforts that have successfully used persuasive
narratives containing Latino cultural values, language, and
country of origin as a way to promote cancer prevention and
screening (see Murphy et al., 2015).
Partnering with local organizations and community leaders in
bottom-up outreach efforts. While it is crucial to invest in
communication using traditional media outlets, it is just as
essential to invest in bottom-up efforts that leverage the work
already conducted on-the-ground by trusted community leaders
and organizations. My experiences as both a community health
educator and through my disaster relief work in Puerto Rico
taught me that listening to community leaders and working
around their needs is key for success. Local leaders know how
feasible projects are locally, as well as what will be of
benefit to the community. Taking their needs into account and
assisting them in finding solutions foments trust and fosters a
sense of ownership. This is instrumental in creating an
environment of mutual collaboration where everyone involved has
a seat at the table. For a detailed agenda on how to establish
this kind of outreach, I will refer you to this recent report
by the Working Group on Equity in COVID-19 Vaccination.
It is important to note that blanket messages will not be
successful within Latino and BIPOC communities, as these are not
monolithic. Tailored messaging is required to adequately promote
vaccine uptake, which is why working with leaders and grassroots
organizations can facilitate these and other communication efforts.
More research is needed
A final point I want to highlight is that we need more research.
This current public health crisis has emphasized the relevance of
research that assesses the impact of health misinformation on public
health outcomes. Yet, addressing vaccine hesitancy and health
misinformation among Latino audiences (and in general) is an extremely
challenging endeavor. There are still many questions we do not have
answers to, making this an important opportunity to get it right and
fund research and communication initiatives that adequately meet this
challenge.
That is why investing in future research is of paramount
importance, as is the establishment of interdisciplinary,
transnational, and multilingual collaborations. Transnational, multi-
lingual initiatives are necessary to be informed on health
misinformation trends happening in Latin America (and other countries)
that are shared through social media. This will require international
collaborations between researchers, journalists, government agencies,
and non-profit organizations to share resources and best practices (see
The ComProp Navigator for an example of similar efforts in political
misinformation and disinformation).
Before concluding, I want to re-emphasize the importance of
leveraging trusted sources when reaching Latinos and BIPOC communities.
This is instrumental, as building trust takes time and cannot be done
overnight. We need more people who look like us delivering messages,
more scientists who understand our communities conducting the research,
and more funding directed towards our communities and organizations to
be successful at these efforts. I look forward to our conversation.
Thank you.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Dr. Rivera for being available
today, as well. I am going to now recognize myself for five
minutes for questioning.
Secretary Collins, I want to first thank you for attending
this important hearing. As State House Secretary New Mexico,
you are leading a critical effort to get the spread of this
disease under control, and it is working. New Mexico is leading
the Nation in its vaccine rollout. For every new case of COVID-
19, 92 people are vaccinated. In our state, nearly 55 percent
of residents 16 and older have received their first shot, and
36 percent are fully vaccinated. This Ranking Member's state,
Mr. Thune, of South Dakota, is a close second at 27 percent
fully vaccinated. And we do not mind this competition. We are
going to keep going for first and second here.
What can the Nation learn from New Mexico, Dr. Collins? How
has your message strategy been so successful, especially
considering the diverse and highly rural communities across New
Mexico?
Dr. Collins. Thank you, Senator. You know, it takes a
really good team with strategy and organization. So, what we
have done, we set up an online portal, an app, where New
Mexicans can go and get registered. And also, we have a team,
what we call an instant command structure, which I mentioned in
my opening remarks, which keeps us organized. So, we have a way
of making sure we have communications set up, logistics,
operations to make sure that we are getting vaccine doses out
to vaccine providers throughout the state. And we are
constantly messaging through public services announcements,
through press conferences, we are engaging the communities. And
we are also working with community leaders to allow them to
serve as our trusted voices to engage New Mexicans to get
vaccinated.
Senator Lujan. Dr. Rivera, you have spent years studying
how to best address health misinformation spread through online
platforms, targeting Hispanic communities. However, companies
like Facebook, Twitter, and Google will repeatedly reassure us
that all of their content moderation efforts are effective in
English, as well as Spanish. Data suggests otherwise, with
research finding Facebook's algorithms less than half as
effective as labeling misleading content about the coronavirus
in Spanish than they are in English. Dr. Rivera, what are the
long-term consequences of this gap?
Dr. Rivera. Thank you for that question, Senator. I want
to--I want to remind everyone that the pandemic has only
amplified inequities and disparities that already exist, and
disproportionately affect communities like the Latino
community. This is not new to COVID, right? We have seen the
same thing happen in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, where
structural inequalities, that already existed, were
exacerbated, and they led to the unnecessary loss of thousands
of lives. We have also seen similar things happen in other
disasters in the U.S. and across the world.
So, with this in mind, it is critical that everyone has
access to the same kind of information and protective measures,
no matter the language. Otherwise, any of these gaps and
inequities are going to continue to grow. And that is really
why it is important that, when we are thinking about platforms
and what to do, to establish a neutral commission that really
has multiple sectors and agencies who can develop--help develop
guidelines and recommendations that can identify these and
other gaps that are really important for public health efforts.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Dr. Rivera. Senator Smith, in
order to understand and address the challenges of their
communities, we need networks owned and operated by people who
understand the communities they serve. And I think that is
reflected all across America, especially in small towns.
You have long advocated for increased diversity in network
ownership, and I agree, because, frankly, this is a problem
that is impossible to ignore. Women are over half the
population but only own 5.3 percent of full power commercial
television. Hispanic people only own 4.2 percent. African-
Americans own less than 1 percent. And I believe that we can
not have an effective local public health communication
strategy without a diverse media landscape.
In light of the testimony, we have heard on broadcasters'
role as trusted voices during the pandemic, do you believe
Congress and the FCC should be taking active steps to encourage
diverse media ownership?
Mr. Smith. Yes, of course, I do agree with that, Senator,
and there is two ways to do it. It can be mandated in statute,
but it also could be incentivized by statute. Before I came to
Congress, in 1995, there was something called the Minority Tax
Certificate Program. It worked very well, but admittedly, there
were abuses. So, in 1995, as part of a budget deal, with the
Clinton Administration, the Republican Congress ended it. They
should have mended it, not ended it.
And when I came to the Senate in 1996, starting in 1997, I
became aware of this problem you identify. As a member of the
Commerce Committee, and later the Finance Committee, I made it
my bill to restore the Minority Tax Certificate Program.
Because, yes, you can do it by a stick, but it is better with a
carrot. And I want to credit Senator Peters. He has picked up
that bill and I think it will work very well.
Diversity among broadcast management and ownership, there
is not a lack of will. It is a lack of capital, access to
capital. This helps fix that. And it can be done where purging
the abuses of yesteryear in a way that really help broadcasters
achieve what they already want to do, which is the diversity of
its ownership with management, with the diversity of our--the
American people.
Senator Lujan. Appreciate that, Senator Smith, and I look
forward to a second round of questions, if we get a chance. I
will now recognize the Ranking Member, Mr. Thune, for five
minutes.
Senator Thune. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And, Senator Smith,
again, a long-time alum of this room. And I am sure it feels
somewhat surreal, maybe, to be here again but in a different
role. But we are, as I said earlier, grateful for your many
contributions as a member of this body and since, and for the
very effective way you have represented the broadcasters across
this country who, as you point out, have, I would say, the most
credibility among news organizations these days.
And people ask me all the time, where do I go if I want to
get just news and journalism, and it is so hard anymore because
so many media outlets have become echo chambers. They reinforce
what people already believe and it is more opinion and
commentary. And so, I often recommend that they go and get it
from their local broadcasters, and that is probably the most
straight, down the middle news you are going to get.
As you know, Congress has allocated funds to support
vaccine public awareness campaigns. And since the beginning of
the pandemic, NAB and its members have been working to
disseminate health-related information to the public, including
educating the public and pointing them toward testing sites,
vaccine registration websites, and vaccine sites. What modes of
communication have your members serving more rural areas seen
to be the most effective way to reach individuals? And what
specific steps are broadcasters taking when partnering with
their Federal Government to reach rural communities?
Mr. Smith. Well, Senator, I know Chairman Lujan has the
same concern. And you know as well as I, that if you want to
send a message to Sioux Falls, it is going to be a different
message or a different method to reach Deadwood, or
Albuquerque, or Clovis. And for messaging to get out credibly,
through our medium, which is the most biggest and demonstrably
the most effective, takes a little more time, a little more
patience. You all represent agriculture states. If you want a
good crop, you have got to get the water to the end of the row.
That takes time. That takes a little more patience.
And that is what needs to happen as we roll out these
messages, to make sure that we get on Spanish radio, to make
sure that we get on rural radio. Farmers listen to the radio
almost constantly. So, use those stations. And of course,
include urban areas, as well.
So, I am just--I am here to say that that money can reach
90 percent plus of the American people with effective targeted
advertising, if you use all the tools available to you through
broadcasting. Television and radio, rural, urban, small, and
large, the American people will get the message because they
tune into broadcasting and they find it the most credible.
Senator Thune. And the airtime that they're offering up is
valuable to all of your members, no matter the scale of their
operations or audiences. Has the NAB been able to quantify this
public interest effort, in terms of the monetary value of
airtime donated by your members throughout the pandemic?
Mr. Smith. I know when COVID first hit, I directed my staff
to produce some advertising, which was run throughout the
country on saturation levels, at an approximate cost of
commercial value of $160 million. In addition to that, many
local broadcasters have done additional things in their
communities. In the Ad Council--we work with the Ad Council to
produce national rollout campaigns, as well, that are
informative and, I think, have been well received by the
American people.
I do not have a final number, but it would be in the
hundreds of millions of dollars of advertising time that has
been donated by broadcasting. And I am very proud of that.
Senator Thune. There are recent reports of vaccine demand
falling as the number of cases falls and the number of deaths
also fall. What is the role of local broadcasters and pushing
people to continue to get vaccinated, even as the pandemic
seems to have currently plateaued in some regions?
Mr. Smith. I think the main thing that our responsibility
is, is to make sure they have the facts. And obviously, there
are things that government can do to give them hope, that these
vaccines are incredibly effective, and that--but when there is
something like a Johnson & Johnson issue that comes up, our job
is to give the people the facts, and ultimately, that is
trusted, and the people seem to be responding to it. And
fortunately, these vaccines are so effective that the death
rate is dropping like a rock and that says we are getting the
job done. But there is more to do.
Senator Thune. Thanks. Dr. Collins, with respect to the
news about Johnson & Johnson, my question is are we going to
need to pivot when it comes to the PR strategy that was laid
out by the Administration a couple of weeks ago? And what is
the best strategy for quickly addressing this new and emerging
issue?
Dr. Collins. Thank you for the question. What we need to do
is certainly recognize that more data is needed to understand
J&J. There were six cases out of 6.8 million doses received.
So, that is less than one in a million. Keep in mind that one
in 10 Americans have gotten COVID, and one in 558 have died.
What we need to do now is pause on J&J until we get more
information, and then, certainly ramp up the amount of Pfizer
and Moderna that we are getting out to communities. And, as an
example, one of our FEMA Urban Mobile Units, we were planning
to use J&J and we quickly pivoted to Moderna, once we had to
pause the use of J&J.
Senator Thune. OK, thank you. Mr. Chair, my time has
expired, and I do have to run to ask a question at Finance on
another issue. But I did want to point out that, to your point
about the competition, that 37 percent of South Dakotans are
fully vaccinated.
Senator Lujan. I like that competition, Senator Thune. And
we are going to keep racing for first. That is good.
Senator Thune. All right.
Senator Lujan. Between South Dakota and New Mexico, let us
see who gets--stays in that slot. But with that being said, I
am now going to recognize my friend, Senator Klobuchar, for
five minutes for questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. AMY KLOBUCHAR,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MINNESOTA
Senator Klobuchar. Of course, I am now quickly checking my
Minnesota numbers, to see where we are. I did note a local news
story, though, that said that South Dakota, because it is in my
region, Mr. Chair----
Senator Lujan. Uh-huh.
Senator Klobuchar. Is actually doing a very good job. They
had a story on red states and blue states and what is happening
and how we get the information out. And they said that South
Dakota had, kind of, risen to the occasion and was getting
their vaccines out, and--which I have also found in rural
Minnesota, spending the last few weeks there, at the same time,
which is a great topic for this hearing. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
A lot of misinformation. One guy at a cafe told me his
mother-in-law--this is a month ago--was--got an appointment
time and she canceled it because she read on the Internet that
there would be a tracker planted in the vaccine in her arm. And
she read that on the internet. And that has been, by the way, a
common thing out there.
Getting to your work, Senator Smith, and I know you know
how much I respect you and how hard we have worked together
and----
Mr. Smith. That is very mutual, Senator.
Senator Klobuchar. Thank you. And I am wishing you good
fortune in everything you do going forward.
And one of the things that is frustrating for me is that
the local news has tended to report things as they are at home,
and then, people are reading this crazy stuff on the internet,
OK? That is what is happening. There is some good stuff on the
Internet and there is some really bad stuff on the internet.
And you, just to, kind of, go into this larger issue, you would
not be able to put stuff on your news stations that are total
lies, or ads that are total lies, for instance, without running
into regulatory problems.
Mr. Smith. Right.
Senator Klobuchar. OK. So, one of the things that I would
like to see, in a bigger picture, is to give broadcasters more
of a--more possibility and also, newspapers and all of our
content producers to be able to keep going with trying to put
the news out there. I think you know--I think you guys have
come on board with us on this bill to create an exemption from
the anti-trust laws----
Mr. Smith. We have, and we thank you for that, Senator.
Senator Klobuchar. Yes, but to allow news--So, this is a
bill I have with Senator Kennedy of Louisiana. It is bipartisan
in the House. Senator McConnell was on it last year. It is a
big deal.
Mr. Smith. Mm-hmm.
Senator Klobuchar. Can you just explain why it is--why this
feeds into misinformation? Because we have to allow our news
organizations to keep going. They have got to be able to
negotiate content rates, so they have the funds to be able to
keep being strong, so that we do not have everyone getting
their news from misinformation on the internet. Can you, kind
of, tie that together?
Mr. Smith. Senator, since the 17th century--16th--17th
century, when Edmund Burke looked up to the gallery in the
Parliament and said, ``there lies the fourth estate more
powerful than they all,'' he was recognizing the importance of
journalism in democracy--in the healthy democracy.
And it should be obvious to everyone and our surveys are
pointing this out that people really are struggling now, to
find out what the facts are. Where can truth be found? And
fortunately, for the people I represent, broadcasters, they are
number one on the list as most trusted, most reliable. I even--
I remember even Senator Schumer spoke to our broadcasters, not
too many years ago, and he said, you know, the only place I can
go anymore, just to get the facts and not be spun, so I can
communicate clearly with my constituents, is my local
broadcasters.
I am proud to represent them, but everybody needs to
understand, journalism is not free. It is free speech.
Senator Klobuchar. Mm-hmm.
Mr. Smith. But to get the facts, sometimes takes
journalistic digging. And what has always sustained
broadcasters is advertising. And when COVID came, and Wall
Street to Main Street advertising collapsed, it was a huge hit.
But predating that was the consequence of the unfettered growth
and domination of the Internet and social media that takes well
over half the advertising dollars today. So, there is a real
issue about how they take our content and they put it on their
platforms and then, sell ads against us.
Senator Klobuchar. Mm-hmm.
Mr. Smith. And ultimately, countries like Australia,
European Union, Canada even, I believe are taking up bills just
like the one you are talking about, to make sure, while
government is not funding journalism, and it should not, it is
actually making sure that those revenue streams exist. Because
government has--our government has an incentive to keep its
democracy healthy.
Senator Klobuchar. Yes. Thank you for putting that in that
context. And I am going to be pushing hard for this bill.
Clearly we have some issues in rural areas. Mine have been,
actually, doing pretty well of having just been up to about
eight rural towns, big and small, in the last week, and are
proud of their vaccination rate. But across the country, I
think your information getting out there on the airwaves, and I
know you have a major effort going on, would be really helpful.
And could you talk about what you think we need to do to get
the information out there rural, to get more people to get the
vaccine?
Mr. Smith. Well, again, I want, as I did in my testimony,
thank the Department of Health and Human Services and for the
Congress in allocating these dollars.
If you want to reach everyone--if you want to get the water
to the end of the row, you have got to--you have got to include
large and small, urban and rural, ethnic and otherwise, you
have got to do--use all the tools in the toolbox. And you have
got to be persistent at it, and if you are, the American people
will get the accurate information, as on no other medium,
through broadcasting, radio and television.
Senator Klobuchar. Mm-hmm, very good. Dr. Collins--this
will be my last question, Mr. Chair. Oh, I have time. OK, well
then, let me use that time to report that 48 percent of
Minnesotans over 16 have had at least one vaccine dose. But I
will continue on.
OK, so, Dr. Collins, a recent poll by the Blue Star
Families found that almost half of veterans' families surveyed
do not expect to receive a vaccine, with 75 percent of those
families citing some of these, what I believe, are false
information that they have heard and their concerns about
efficacy, safety. Last month, Senator Portman and I sent a
letter to the Department of Veteran's Affairs to ensure that
veterans have accurate information. Dr. Collins, can you speak
to the importance of ensuring that veterans and military
personnel--I know you have many in your state--receive accurate
and timely information about the vaccine?
Dr. Collins. Yes, thank you, Senator and congratulations on
the status of Minnesota for vaccines. Certainly, it is
important to make sure that our veterans are getting the
correct information and we have multiple avenues to achieve
that. We really want to look at the risk factor profile, also,
of veterans. Which means that they are more likely to have an
adverse event if they actually get COVID, which highlights the
value of getting the vaccine.
So, it is really a matter of working with the Department of
Veteran's Affairs, to ensure that they can get messaging out
and facts to these families and to their veterans, about the
value of the vaccine, and that we have enough vaccine doses
going out to our veterans.
Senator Klobuchar. Very good, thank you. Dr. Rivera, my
last question. One report last year found that social media
platforms failed to act on 95 percent on the COVID and vaccine
misinformation reported to them. I led a letter on this. I have
been doing a lot of work, it is no secret, on trying to hold
these companies accountable for various things. Following the
letter we did, Facebook announced new policies to expand
efforts to counter vaccine misinformation.
Can you speak to the importance of ensuring that the social
media platforms do their part? And again, I was actually on a
hearing yesterday, on the Joint Economic Committee, and one of
the witnesses there, a doctor, talked about how a recent study
showed that 73 percent of vaccine disinformation posts on
Facebook, and 17 percent on Twitter, originate from the same 12
sources. And I know you mentioned this report earlier in the
hearing. I am just picturing these 12 people out there pumping
out lies. In light of that report that you co-authored, can you
speak to the key measures that should be taken? Like, maybe
trying to take down 12 people's accounts?
Dr. Rivera. Thank you so much for that question. Just to
highlight a little bit more about the report, it really argues
four pillars. We need to be reducing the level of
misinformation, while we are increasing the accurate
information that is out there, while we are building resilience
within communities and audiences, so that they are able to
identify things when they see it. But then, also, and very
importantly, this is a multi-sectoral, multi-agency issue.
Helpless information has huge ramifications on quality of
life and livelihood. And it is important that we have multiple
people at the table who can identify appropriate
recommendations and guidelines to help curtail disinformation
on these platforms.
So, just having the platforms do it, presents some issues,
right? What makes something important enough to be pulled?
Where is that line--that very delicate balance between freedom
of speech and harmful content that can impact people's
livelihoods? And that is why a lot of--this is complex. It is
very multi-layered. We need to have a lot of people at the
table to be able to provide those guidelines on
recommendations.
Senator Klobuchar. OK, good. Well, I have with me here the
12 top sources of anti-vaccine disinformation online. I just
cannot help but think that the companies that are the biggest
companies the world have ever known cannot find some way to
deal with this. But I guess I will have to take it on myself. I
am not going to read their names in, although I would love to.
Mr. Chair, I will just simply put it on the record. Thank you.
[The information referred to follows:]
Twelve individuals who have played leading roles in spreading
digital disinformation about coronavirus vaccines \1\:
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\1\ Center for Countering Digital Hate. (March 24, 2021). The
Disinformation Dozen. https://252f2edd-1c8b-49f5-9bb2-
cb57bb47e4ba.filesusr.com/ugd/f4d9b9_b7cedc0553604720b7137f8663
366ee5.pdf
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1. Joseph Mercola
2. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
3. Ty and Charlene Bollinger
4. Sherri Tenpenny
5. Rizza Islam
6. Rashid Buttar
7. Erin Elizabeth
8. Sayer Ji
9. Kelly Brogan
10. Christiane Northrup
11. Ben Tapper
12. Kevin Jenkins
Senator Lujan. I appreciate that, Senator Klobuchar. And I
think you are going to have a lot of interest of members that
want to work with you on that, including me, in that effort, as
well. We need to stop the spread of misinformation out there,
as we have heard from every one of our witnesses today. It is
so important to share facts, accurate information with our
constituents, with people across the United States of America.
And that there needs to be an active effort to stop the lies,
to stop the spread of misinformation because it is costing
people their lives. And so, thank you so much for bringing that
forward, as well, Senator Klobuchar.
Secretary Collins, as testimony shows, effective
communication and outreach can change the course of a pandemic.
Most Americans want to get vaccinated, across all ages,
ethnicities, and races. No matter where they live, Americans
want to get back to their lives. Over the last 3 months, we
have seen vaccine hesitancy numbers drop dramatically. The
number of African-American, Hispanic adults who are not sure if
they will get the vaccine, have dropped in half. We are also
seeing incredible progress made in Native American communities,
as well. People see the vaccine working and they are excited to
return back to normal.
What would you say to folks who are still--are waiting to
get the vaccine?
Secretary Collins. Thank you for that question. What I
would say to those who are still waiting is that there is
tremendous value in getting this vaccine and preventing--
protecting yourself and your loved ones from COVID-19 and
protecting our union. We want to keep Americans safe. And so,
the vaccines have high efficacy. We know Moderna and Pfizer, we
have not seen any adverse events that are concerning with those
vaccines. So, I strongly encourage all of you, if you have not
been vaccinated and you receive the opportunity to be
vaccinated, go and get your vaccine.
Senator Lujan. Dr. Collins, providing clear and consistent
health information comes at all levels. And I appreciate what
you just shared with us. I also want you just to remind us of
the Johnson & Johnson numbers that you shared a little bit
earlier. Could you please share that information and talk about
that a little bit more?
Dr. Collins. Yes, so when you think about hearing about an
outcome, like a blood clot with J&J, there is the immediate
idea of, oh no, it is very concerning. But if you really stop
and think about the statistic here, we are talking about six
cases out of 6.8 million doses of the vaccine that were
received. And so, that is less than one in a million.
Now, when we think about the number of Americans who
actually had COVID, that is actually one in 10. And the number
who die from that, one in every 558 Americans. So, you are more
likely to be struck by lightning than to succumb to J&J.
However, we need to pause now and get more information to
ensure the safety of the public. But I do want to strongly
encourage people that, the vaccine--getting a vaccine is your
best option.
Senator Lujan. Thank you so much for that clarification.
Now, Dr. Rivera, as we have talked about the importance of
providing clear and consistent health information, more often
than not, it falls to friends, family, and community members.
And I think nearly all of us this year have had a friend or
family member share incorrect information, maybe they have come
across online. Based on your research, what are effective
approaches to correcting faulty vaccine information when it is
shared by friends and family?
Dr. Rivera. Thank you so much for that question, Senator. I
want to start by reminding everyone that correcting
misinformation is notoriously difficult. And we are still
trying to identify what the best ways are, what the most
effective ways are, which is why we need to continue this
research and fund these kinds of evaluations and initiatives.
But some recommendations that can help slow down these
things. It really links back to my comments about leveraging
the power of trusted sources. We know that sources influence
trust in information. And in my work, sources were just as
important, right--the person sharing information was just as
important, if not more, than the actual content in cancer
related information.
So, we can leverage those things when we are having
conversations with our friends and family. Of course, they are
hard conversations, right? These are the people that are
closest to us. And we know, as well, that misinformation tends
to come with sensationalist headlines or things that really
invoke an emotional response. Especially in the environment of
uncertainty, like the one we are living in today, where there
is so much information and people are trying to find where the
accurate information is.
So, I always recommend first to take a--take a second to
pause and let those emotions get calm, and share correct
information that is relatable, from a reputable source. If you
are able to find that in the form of narratives, even better,
because stories really stick. People like stories. They
understand them. So, there is power in narratives and we have
seen that with cervical cancer work among Mexican American
communities in the U.S. where narratives have been able to--
culturally tailored narratives have helped raise numbers of pap
smears and HPV vaccinations.
So, there are resources out there on different platforms,
like the World Health Organization, CDC, etc., local health
departments. Share them, but also it stops with you. You have
the ability to, when you get misinformation, when you get
something that is sensationalist or causes this emotional
response, stop and maybe do not share it.
Senator Lujan. Thank you so much, Dr. Rivera. Senator
Smith, Senator Thune asked a question along these lines, and I
appreciate your response. I really want to emphasize it. And
this is just a clear message to the Administration, to the team
that has been assigned by President Biden to make these
investments across America, in educating the American people
about facts, and stopping the spread of misinformation, with
the dollars that were included in the appropriation and the
American Rescue Plan, to work with broadcasters, as well. And I
certainly hope the buyers that, maybe, they are going to be
working with are listening loud and clear to what I have to
say.
It is easier to buy with the larger conglomerates. And they
touch a lot of people. They are able to find people where they
are. What is harder is to find those family owned Ma and Pop TV
and radio stations and newspapers across America. But that is
where we know the vaccine is needed and information is needed
most. What can you share with me, Senator Smith, about the
importance of what it will take to be able to connect with
those family owned, Ma and Pop----
Mr. Smith. Yes.
Senator Lujan.--radio stations and newspapers across
America? Those broadcast television stations owned by people of
color? And should there be a, you know, percentage of that buy
that, maybe, goes to those folks? But what are your thoughts
there?
Mr. Smith. It is such an excellent question and--now, I am
obviously not here to argue for one--some sort--group of my
members versus another. But I am here to say, all of the above.
Because again, if you want to get the water to the end of the
row, it takes more time. It takes more effort. It takes more
patience. But you have got to do it. And broadcasting is the
medium that can reach them all. It can get everything to the
end of the row. But it does take more effort on the part of
government.
And as I was listening to your excellent witnesses and the
points they were making, and it is also important who is
delivering the message. And to her point, I think is so
excellent, we need Hispanic broadcasters, as well, to be
speaking to Hispanic people. And I know that as I say that I
remember from my chair on the Senate floor, you see the
national motto, E Pluribus Unum, out of many one. What I am
saying is, sort of, intention--intention with that. But it is,
kind of like, being a dad. All your kids are a little bit
different. And if you want to treat them fairly, sometimes you
have to treat them differently and specially, in order to reach
them and bring them to the same place.
That is what we need to do. And it takes time, being a dad.
It takes time being a farmer getting the water to the end of
the row. And it takes time for government, using one of its
greatest tools, which is its airwaves, and FCC licensees to get
these messages out in a way that ultimately gets all the way to
the end and produces the result, which is a vaccinated and
healthy public.
Senator Lujan. Appreciate that Senator Smith. I know I will
be asking for a thorough oversight to make sure that some of
these small Ma and Pop, family owned stations and papers across
the country are being included in that. So, thank you for that.
Next, I want to recognize Senator Tester for five minutes
for questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. JON TESTER,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MONTANA
Senator Tester. Well, thank you, Chairman Lujan. That
sounds pretty good, Chairman Lujan. We need to have more of
these. I want to thank the witnesses for being here. A special
thank you to my friend, Gordon Smith. And I would be remiss if
I did not point out the fact that Gordon is retiring. I had
hoped you would wait a few years before you did that, Gordon,
but the broadcasters are going to miss you. And I just want you
to know that if you get bored and you have got nothing to do,
come on up and I will send you out with a pickup and you can
pick rocks on the farm in Montana.
Mr. Smith. I will look forward to that.
Senator Tester. No, you will not. You know that. But the
truth is that you have done a great job with the broadcasters.
I did--and I just want to say what a pleasure you have been to
work with in that role.
Mr. Smith. Thank you, my friend.
Senator Tester. You bet. And look, in Montana, as of the
1st of this month, vaccine eligibility was extended to
everybody over the age of 16. As the availability of the
vaccine has increased, and it is probably the same in your
States, the problem of vaccine hesitancy is turning into a
problem, because we have got the vaccine now, and now, we have
got people who are resisting to get it into their arms. It is
particularly a problem in the more rural areas, particularly in
the eastern part of our state.
Earlier this week, I spoke with a bunch of Montana
community health centers. They were talking about this
hesitancy. They had said the largest city, Billings, about 25
percent of their vaccine appointments were accounted for,
three-quarters were not.
Back in February, the Senate Veteran's Affairs Committee
hearing, which I chair, I asked the head of VHA about how the
VA is tracking refusal rates, because they are high, once again
more--higher in the rural areas than anywhere else. And I
remain concerned about how we are tracking it and how we are
understanding the half-apprehensions. And I would--I would just
say--if you have covered this already, I apologize. I have got
three committees going on at the same time.
But the question I have, and this is for you, Dr. Collins,
New Mexico--I heard the Chairman talk about how you guys are
doing a great job, and congratulations on that. But are you
able to track the vaccine refusal rates across your state?
Dr. Collins. Thank you, Senator Tester, I appreciate that
question. We are definitely using our dashboards to track, sort
of, reactions and how many people are getting registered. And
we are working closely with community leaders to understand
what is behind anyone who is refusing, or not interested in the
vaccine. So, we have set up what is called an Equity Task Force
to address this very issue that you are raising.
Senator Tester. And then, so--so, that Equity Task Force,
is that--is that--are they recommending adjustments when the--
or when the population that is refusing the vaccine is found?
Or--what are you doing? What kind of adjustments are you making
to try to make end roads there to the folks that say, you know,
I don't want to do--I don't want to do this?
Dr. Collins. Yes, the idea is that we want to understand
why. So, we have had surveys that have been distributed to
certain communities, like Latino, and we have also are working
with interfaith agencies. So, if we understand what is behind--
is it because you want to see someone who looks like you,
believes like you, evangelicals, who gets the vaccines, then we
need to find that role model to communicate with those various
sectors. And so, it is really about gathering various data and
acting on it. And so, we are using Trusted Voices.
Senator Tester. I just want to build on that, for a second,
with you, Gordon. And that is the broadcasters do play a
critically important role in getting the message out and you do
hit a lot of households. And--and have you guys sat down and
determined--and if you have covered this, I apologize--but
determined what are the important factors in a message that you
are sending to vaccine hesitant households?
Mr. Smith. Well, first of all, Senator, we are anxious to
report the facts as we get them. That is our job. And in the
end, I think the more clarity that the government can speak
with, the more hopeful it can be, in terms of its own messaging
that if you get the vaccine, not only are you virtually
eliminating your chances to die of this, but others around you
that you love. And life can return to normal. That kind of
messaging has strong incentive to it. If the government mixes
its message and says, well, but things may never change, then
now, you are discouraging people. I am saying that, not as a
broadcaster, but just as a citizen who is watching the news.
And, you know, the way you combat bad information is with
more information. And we are anxious to report the facts that
are accurate and get them out, to the end of the row, so that
people in rural communities can get the information, too. And
minority communities, that otherwise may not get to the truth
and get to the vaccine.
Senator Tester. Right on. Hey, Gordon, I appreciate that
point. I mean, the truth is is that, if people do not see--and
by the way, I have got the vaccine and I am sure you have, too.
Mr. Smith. I did, too.
Senator Tester. Probably everybody on this call has got it.
It would take a tremendous load off your shoulders, but if you
are still required to live the same lifestyle after you take
the vaccine, as you did before, that is a real negative for
people, getting it in people's arms.
Mr. Smith. It is just it cross-purposes, Senator. And that
is the important point I think you are making. Our message is
not just to be about the facts of the effectiveness of this but
encouraging hopefulness and to return to normalcy. I think the
country is so hungry for that. And broadcasters can certainly
help do that. But our job is to report the truth, the facts as
we are able to dig them out and distinguish them from the
falsehoods you find on the internet.
Senator Tester. Yep. Amen, brother. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Chairman Tester. Appreciate that.
Next, we are going to hear from Senator Peters. Mr. Chairman,
you are recognized for five minutes.
STATEMENT OF HON. GARY PETERS,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MICHIGAN
Senator Peters. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you
for this hearing and to the witnesses here today, it is great
to hear your testimony.
You know, as our Nation clearly continues to see a rise in
variants of the coronavirus, we know these variants are more
infectious than the original one. Michigan, right now, is
seeing a pretty dramatic surge in infections and certainly
variants are playing a role in that. And certainly, at least
the evidence that I have seen shows that the vaccines that are
out right now appear to be very highly effective against these
variants.
And so, my question to you, Dr. Collins is, you know, how
should we discuss the potential impact of these variants on
vaccine effectiveness with our constituents, particularly at a
time when we are dealing with vaccine hesitancy, to let people
know that getting this vaccine now is going to deal with the
vaccines? But what is the best way to approach that--that
issue?
Dr. Collins. And I appreciate your question, Senator.
Really it is working with broadcast to get the message out
that, just as you just stated, the vaccines, Pfizer and
Moderna, are efficacious against that B.1.1 variant that you
are seeing in Michigan.
So, the idea is that we initially really wanted everyone to
get the vaccine. We are seeing these variants. We are seeing an
uptick in cases. It is still important to get the vaccine
because it can stop the replication of COVID and, therefore,
stop the mutation, and reduce the chances for more mutations.
So, it is really making sure we work with the communities
to get that messaging out there, and we do it often and
consistently.
Senator Peters. Right, absolutely. You know, as Chairman of
the Senate Homeland Security Committee, I have been working
with FEMA to deal with all of the various aspects of this
emergency. And in light of their role as on the frontline of
combatting this pandemic, FEMA has established a rumor control
website, which is there to help the public distinguish between
the rumors and facts regarding the coronavirus response. The
website addresses common questions like vaccines, medical
supplies, personal protective equipment, financial assistance,
all the things--really key facts that people need to have.
My question to you, Dr. Collins, is how has your state been
able to leverage FEMA resources to combat mis- and
disinformation on the ground?
Dr. Collins. FEMA has been instrumental in helping us set
up our instant command structure, in which we have our Joint
Information Center. So, they have guided us as to how best to
set up our communications structure, such that our messaging in
New Mexico is really strong. And again, that we are reaching
throughout the entire state rural, urban areas, and to really
help people understand the value of the vaccine.
Senator Peters. Well, that is great to hear. And, Dr.
Rivera, Mr. Smith, a question for you. What are the ways that
an agency, like FEMA, can take the useful information, that
they have published online on that rumor control site that I
mentioned, and ensure that it is reaching the maximum amount of
people in our communities. Not everybody is necessarily going
to that site. How can we leverage it? Do you have any
suggestions?
Dr. Rivera. Yes, I can give some quick suggestions and let
the other witness attest to broadcast. We--first of all, it
needs to be available in as many languages as possible. There
are huge disparities and a lot of issues related to hesitancy,
that has to do with lack of information, like, access to
information in multiple languages, in addition to access to the
actual vaccine, because of many structural issues,
transportation, childcare, etc.
So, we need to make sure that this is available to these
communities multilingual and identify the places where these
individuals go for their information, whether it be broadcast,
also have a social media platform for it. I know that the
Latino community uses Facebook, in particular, and WhatsApp a
lot, to share information amongst each other. So, if there can
be ways to leverage those types of platforms, as well. But at
the end of the day, it gets to really understanding your
audience and where they are. And leveraging--and pointing them
into the direction, not on one platform, but in multiple
avenues.
Senator Peters. That's great advice. Mr. Smith?
Mr. Smith. Yes, Senator. Let me first note, if you did not
hear it. I was bragging about you earlier, thanking you for
your picking up what was an old bill of mine to reintroduce or
reestablish the Minority Tax Certificate Program. But look,
the--the way----
Senator Peters. Well, thank you for doing that. Let me
thank you for doing that. I appreciate it.
Mr. Smith. That is a great cause, and we fully support your
efforts in that. I think she--your witness before me has
answered it perfectly. You have got to beat that information
with more information. You have to be persistent in using all
the broadcasters to make sure they cover all the American
people because that is our ability uniquely to do. And you just
have to keep combatting falsehoods with hope and with facts.
Senator Peters. Well, I appreciate that and keep doing
that, each and every day. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Peters. I now recognize
the Chair of the Full Committee, Senator Cantwell, for five
minutes for questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. MARIA CANTWELL,
U.S. SENATOR FROM WASHINGTON
The Chair. Well, thank you, Senator Lujan. Thank you so
much for holding this important hearing and for the witnesses
being here today. Senator Smith, good to see you. Sorry to hear
about your retirement. Well, actually, not sorry for you
because, you know, I know you are returning to the beautiful
Northwest. And so, hard to--hard to beat where you and I come
from.
I did want to--I know we--I have heard a little bit of the
dialogue this morning. But obviously, the Paycheck Protection
Program extending to newspapers and to TVs, I believe is really
critical in continuing to tell the story. I mean, that is what
the premise was, to make sure that radio and TV broadcasters,
and others who have unique reach into particular communities,
whether that is African-American radio stations or, in the
Northwest, it could have been the Asian broadcasters, or what
have you. So, how important is it for us to continue to make
investments to keep these diverse sources? I do not think
people really understand how close we are to losing more and
more.
Mr. Smith. You know, I did say earlier, to other questions,
Senator. But I think before I reiterate some of those things, I
just want to express to you, personally, how much we appreciate
your extra mile efforts with the CARES Act to make sure more
and more broadcasters, who provide--uniquely provide localism
and journalism to your constituents and our communities. You
have been a superstar in our eyes, and we thank you for it.
The Chair. Thank you.
Mr. Smith. But as I said earlier, you know, ever since the
beginning of democratic institutions, a free press and serious
journalism have been really important to preserving the trust
in democracy, and we are losing that. We are losing it because
the revenue streams, which are advertising that move goods and
services and promote jobs and enterprise, that is drying up for
broadcasting and for newspapers. And we are suffering the
consequence of it in our democracy.
Now, you cannot put the genie back in the bottle, in terms
of social media. We all--I love my--my iPads and all, and
iPhones and we--it is a part of it. But freedom of speech, yes,
it is free, but when it comes to journalism, it comes at a
price. And there is a--it needs to be a way to pay for it, good
investigative journalism.
And so, we want to work with you for ways to accomplish
that. With Senator Klobuchar, earlier, who mentioned her
approach on that. We are interested in all of the above,
because, I think, if we are to preserve our republic, we have
to preserve the fourth estate which is freedom of the press. It
is in the First Amendment because it is first in importance.
That is the keystone of our democracy and we want to support
those things--those policies, in the future, which will leave
other platforms in business. That is fine. But not sacrifice
the ones that have helped us to have a trustworthy democracy.
The Chair. Well, the focus of this is COVID. So, do you
consider news critical infrastructure, as it relates to
delivering key public health information?
Mr. Smith. Completely. I mean, there is no platform quite
like broadcasting to reach nearly--you know, well above 90
percent of the American people and it is free, and it is local,
and it is live, and includes all ethnicities, all of the
diversity of America. And--and we have anchors of all the
diversity of America and management. We need to do even more,
in terms of ownership diversity. But there are great ways to
accomplish that and there are other ways, as well.
But I just think we have a really important interest in
getting the truth out there, and we have the desire to do it. I
know, in every newsroom and every broadcast station I have ever
visited, they want the facts, and they want to report it in the
way that is trustworthy.
The Chair. Well, I think that is the key thing that struck
me is that, when you have a pandemic like this, people want the
local news.
Mr. Smith. They do.
The Chair. They do not really--I mean, they are not as
interested in what's happening somewhere else, as like, what is
happening in our community. And they want it to come from a
trusted source. They want it to be from somebody that, they
believe, is in the community, is going to be straight with
them.
I thought, to me, when we were falling behind in Yakima,
because we were not doing enough--you know, so many in the
community--General Mattis, who lived down the road, basically
did his own thing to try to communicate to the community. Lot
of people--I kept thinking, well, if we did not have the Yakima
Herald, where would we be if we were not able to use that as a
vehicle, at a time when the pandemic was roaring in that
community? Where would we be if we did not have those vehicles
of broadcasters and newspapers to communicate to them?
So, I plan to, Mr. Chairman, push this issue as it relates
to this critical infrastructure investment we are making. I
think news--local news, particularly, a trusted source is
frayed beyond belief. And if we do not shore it up, at least
until the legal battles play out with the tech industry, then
we will be making a big mistake. So, I continue to appreciate
this hearing, because I think it was a good diagnosis of how
important local journalism was. And I think the critical
infrastructure needs to be preserved.
Mr. Smith. Thank you, Senator.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Chair Cantwell. Next I will
recognize Senator Raphael Warnock for five minutes for
questions. Senator?
STATEMENT OF HON. RAPHAEL WARNOCK,
U.S. SENATOR FROM GEORGIA
Senator Warnock. Thank you very--thank you very much. As I
talk to Georgians, especially from those in communities of
color, they are excited to get the vaccine, especially after
they have seen that their friends and neighbors are safe after
receiving the vaccine. And they are saying they want these
shots in their arms. The problem I hear over and over again is
not of vaccine hesitancy, but of vaccine access.
Could I have one of the panelists speak to the barriers--
what barriers do people of color face in getting vaccinated,
and what steps should Congress take to ensure these communities
can access vaccines equitably?
Dr. Collins. Senator I would be happy be to.
Senator Warnock. Thank you.
Dr. Collins. Yes, thank you for the question. I think the
barriers that are faced really relate to the vaccine providers
and neighborhoods of communities of color. So, we have to look
and see, do we have the Walgreen's or the CVS, federally
qualified healthcare centers? Do we have doses at the actual
offices--doctors' offices, for those communities?
So, it is really a matter of making sure, geographically,
that as a state gets doses of vaccine, that they distribute
those doses, and they reach areas of communities of color. And
one of the things that we are doing here in New Mexico is, we
are looking at our social vulnerability index. And where we
have a high social vulnerability, we are ensuring that we are
pushing doses to those areas, to reach those communities. Thank
you.
Dr. Rivera. Hi, Senator, I would like to add to what was
just stated by Dr. Collins. So, another thing is that it is
really important that we have clear communication about where
to get the vaccine, and specific rollout plans by state, by
local areas. So, audiences know exactly where things stand in
their--in their community. In addition to that, continuing to
address issues like, access to transportation, childcare--
really understanding what those structural barriers are
locally, and addressing those while also promoting a message
about the vaccine efficacy and safety.
Mr. Smith. And I would simply add, Senator, and I am sure
in your campaign you were in many broadcast stations, radio and
television, as I have been, and have been since. And in every--
before every broadcast, there is a huddle of editors, of
anchors, of reporters digging for the information that you are
asking for, to get it to your constituents. They are hungry to
have that information. They are anxious to report it. So, I do
not think it is a lack of will, it is just we need the
information from government. We will get it to the people.
Senator Warnock. So, what role do you think Trusted
Partners play in this? I mean, there is the issue of access.
You know, I come from, the faith community and I know that
churches, for example, have stepped up. My own church is--is a
site for vaccinations. Do you see this as a critical part of
our approach?
Mr. Smith. Senator, I have--in a pro bono sense, I served
in one of the Senior Councils of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-Day Saints. So, I am very appreciative of the fact that
the faith communities have a role to play here and can have
great influence encouraging people to get vaccinated. And so, I
know my own denomination is doing that. I believe yours is, as
well, and I think that is very commendable. And ministers can
help swat away these falsehoods that may be circulating on the
internet, because they are also very trusted public figures,
among our constituents.
Dr. Rivera. Absolutely. I would like to echo that, and I
would also like to say that having people on the ground that
already have trust within communities is instrumental, because
a lot of individuals are going to go to those people to access
information. I have seen that in my work within the Latino
community. I know that there are a lot of Latinos in Georgia. I
used to work in Florida, directly with Latinos in Tampa. And
community leaders were instrumental in getting the message out
about cancer screenings, about cancer services, about
education.
So, in this moment, where there is so much mistrust,
leveraging and establishing those contacts with faith-based
organizations, grassroots organizations, that are already
trusted, is going to be instrumental in vaccine rollout.
Dr. Collins. I just want to say that I agree with the
panelists and I do not want to restate what they have already
stated. But I do know it is critical to work with our faith-
based partners, our leaders, and we have a Trusted Voices
campaign, in New Mexico, in which we are engaging those who
have been vaccinated who represent communities of color, to be
examples of the value of this vaccine.
Senator Warnock. Right. Thank you all so much for your work
and for your insights.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Warnock. Next, I will
recognize Senator Rosen for five minutes of questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. JACKY ROSEN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEVADA
Senator Rosen. Well, thank you, Chair Lujan.
Congratulations on your first hearing as Chair. Good to see you
there, and of course, Ranking Member Thune for holding this
important hearing today. And I want to welcome Senator Smith
back to the Committee that, of course, he was once on and so,
welcome back.
Mr. Smith. Thank you. Thank you.
Senator Rosen. I want to build on what Senator Warnock was
talking about about trusted messengers. You know, it is
critical, but we have to make the vaccination process as
seamless, as transparent as possible, and that we meet people
where they are.
You have been talking about faith-based communities,
community partners. And that is why I am so pleased that a
number of Nevada's key hospitality and gaming partners--our
work force, our employers, they are including, and they are
hosting in-house COVID-19 vaccination clinics, many including
in our hotels on our Las Vegas strip. And so, it is especially
important for our state, where our hospitality workforce is
primarily Latino, and we know Latino communities, in both
Nevada and across the country, have been so disproportionately
affected by COVID-19.
So, Dr. Collins, can you talk about--can you talk about, in
addition to our faith-based community, in addition to our
community allies and partners, what about our workforce
partners? Employers, co-workers, what part do they play in
helping to communicate reliable vaccine information to their
employees and, of course, our communities as a whole? And how
these in-house clinics, at large employers--like I said, our
hotels on the Las Vegas strip--how it can alleviate the
employees needs to make that time sacrifice, either to take off
work or find the time to go to a remote clinic somewhere?
Dr. Collins. Thank you, Senator Rosen. It is a great
question. And it is imperative that we partner with employers,
so that--and either work with them to ensure that employees
have time off to go and get the vaccine, or that the employer--
that we set up a site near the employer, where the employee can
get vaccinated.
So, it is really key, because we have to keep in mind, the
people who, like you mentioned, who have been greatly impacted
by this--this virus, is really a population that is working.
And we cannot expect them to take time off from work and lose
wages to get the vaccine.
So, we need to make sure that we are working with these
employers, and we are doing so efficiently. And that the
employer has good messaging to give to their employees about
the value of the vaccine and how they can get access to it, and
that it is free.
Senator Rosen. Thank you. I would like to continue to build
on access, because in Nevada, we are, like New Mexico, lots of
remote, rural areas, hard to get to. And so, rural access,
mobile units are really, really important. Over--about 10
percent of Nevadans live in rural and frontier counties. They
are spread out across 87 percent of our state's geographic
area. They are hard to reach populations. They often lack
broadband. They often lack reliable cell phone service, other
kinds of communication methods that are readily available in
our urban areas. Nevada's nine counties, the third largest
county by size, but only has 45,000 residents. And so, the
Emergency Management Department, they have relied heavily upon
word of mouth and to communicate information about the mobile
vaccination sites.
So, Dr. Collins, I know in New Mexico you have some of the
same rural issues that we do. How is word of mouth been
leveraged in--to disseminate information, critical information
about these mobile units, so we are sure that everybody gets
their vaccine? Anyone who wants one, gets one.
Dr. Collins. Yes, and it is really word of mouth that has
come through our community health brokers, our promotores, have
gotten out into these rural areas to tell people about where
they can the vaccine, how efficacious it is. We also have
partnered with pharmacies to get out to residents who cannot
leave their home, to provide home vaccinations.
So, the word of mouth is key. The access is key. And it is
really about making sure we are reaching those folks who may
not have access to the internet.
Also, I want to thank our Governor because she is, you
know, working to--she just signed a bill to really expand
broadband access and Internet connectivity. So, we are really
moving in the right direction in New Mexico.
Senator Rosen. Do you have any other suggestions? Other
things besides expanding broadband access, of course, is going
to take some time. But how Congress--how we can maybe help
reach some of those remote areas, and do a better job,
particularly as we navigate through COVID and maybe there will
be boosters that are necessary, or what have you, going
forward.
Dr. Collins. I think that you have been very supportive of
the American Rescue Plan. That is really helpful. It is a great
start. But the idea is that, how can we get more of these
mobile units out to these rural areas? We set them up so they
can distribute vaccine. And how can we leverage existing
infrastructure, to actually increase messaging to the very
remote areas and the underserved?
Senator Rosen. Yes. Thank you. I appreciate it. I look
forward to working on all of this and I yield back, Mr. Chair.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Rosen. Next, I will
recognize Senator Blumenthal for five minutes for questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL,
U.S. SENATOR FROM CONNECTICUT
Senator Blumenthal. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Very good to
be calling you, Mr. Chairman, I think for the first time, not
for the last. And thank you for holding this hearing, which is
so important to our state. And welcome, I would like to say, a
former colleague, but I feel you are still here in spirit.
Thank you----
Mr. Smith. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Blumenthal. For being here this--this morning.
Mr. Smith. It is great to be here.
Senator Blumenthal. I want to just say, right at the
outset, how much I appreciate the role of broadcasters in my
state, Connecticut. I, very simply, do not have enough time or
words adequate to thank them for the public service they have
provided in their reporting, in showing us the hardship and
heartbreak, but also, the hope that we have in acts of kindness
and caring and generosity, on the part of the Connecticut
people.
Our TV and radio stations have been airing programs in
Spanish, as well as English, that show us a side of this
pandemic that otherwise would have been completely lacking. And
they have performed an enormous public service in informing the
public about the precautions that are necessary. The
commonsense steps that will save lives. They have spoken truths
to the people of Connecticut. They have spoken truth to power
and, we all know that that is particularly important in
encouraging people to listen to scientists, to get vaccinated,
to follow not only their cautious and caring instinct, but also
to follow the facts.
Most broadcasters and newspapers have done reporting during
this pandemic that has addressed the misinformation, and they
have helped to change lives. So, I really am very, very
grateful to the broadcasters, to the media, to our newspapers
that you represent, Senator Smith. And I know I have spoken
about the efforts to promote valid information.
What I would like to ask you is, how will local media ramp
up in the future, their efforts to promote trust in vaccines,
especially at this moment, when the inclination may be, after
the Johnson & Johnson pause to avoid it? States are opening up
appointments to all adults, and I wonder if you could reflect
on what more I can do, as a public official, and others can do
in our state of Connecticut, to support these local media
efforts?
Mr. Smith. A little, round the corner kind of answer,
Senator. I appreciate you recognizing Chairman Lujan. He sits
in the seat of my cousin, Tom Udall.
And one of the things I love about being a broadcaster, I
learned at the knee of my Udall mother. Now when you are weaned
from a Udall mother, you have an ethic of public service. And
what I find among broadcasting, and why I am so proud to
represent them, is there is this heart of a public servant,
still in this, the fourth estate of our democracy. And we are
hungry for the facts. And even when they are not what we hoped
for, like the J&J announcement, we want to disseminate what is
true and what people can count on.
And as a consequence, we have put out hundreds of millions
of dollars of advertising, and we are thankful for the efforts
of the government to assist in its own advertising. It helps
keep us alive and journalism and localism alive. And we are
certainly involved with the Biden Administration in the COVID
collaborative, which has just been organized. And we are a part
of the delivery system of that.
But I think, to your point earlier, you get people one at a
time. And so, everything is--Tip O'Neill said, ``All politics
is local''. It is really true with this. It is one person at a
time, giving them what is truthful and factual, and that they
can rely on, with--and also, induce some sense with true facts.
There is hope at the end of this tunnel. There is light.
And there are lots of advantages, far outweighing risks, to
getting the vaccine, for themselves, for their loved ones, for
their neighbors. It is part of how you keep the second great
Commandment to love your neighbor, is to do what you can to be
healthy yourself, and helping others to stay healthy, because
they have a relationship with you.
And so, every newsroom, that I represent, is anxious for
the facts, and to deliver them locally. Because that is where,
survey after survey shows, it is trusted.
Senator Blumenthal. Thank you. One last question. I know
there has been misinformation on social media--
Mr. Smith. Yes.
Senator Blumenthal.--which broadcasters have helped to
counter. Have you efforts, in terms of the Spanish speaking
viewers that broadcasters have, to counter that kind of
misinformation that may be on social media?
Mr. Smith. Yes, and as has been pointed out by some of the
other witnesses, there really does need to be, from
broadcasters--you know, Hispanic radio is very alive and
healthy in this country. And Hispanic television, and Hispanic
anchors, to make sure that we cover all the ethnicities, all
the diversity that is the pluribus, out of the one, Nation that
we have.
And so, we are anxious to fill in these gaps to help treat
everyone in a way they need to be treated, in order to be
treated equally. And so, it takes a real effort. And on the
part of government, it takes persistence to use, not just a few
of broadcasting's tools, but all of its stations, to make sure,
with a little more effort or a little more labor or a little
more patience, a little more time, we get the water to the end
of the row, and everybody included.
Senator Blumenthal. Thank you. Thank you, Senator Smith.
Thank you to all of our witnesses. And thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Blumenthal. Honored to
have you here today. Next, I will recognize Senator Sinema for
five minutes for questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. KYRSTEN SINEMA,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ARIZONA
Senator Sinema. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I want
to thank our witnesses for joining us today.
My top priority for the last year has been working with
local, state, and Federal partners to keep Arizonans healthy
and safe from the pandemic. Today's hearing addresses a crucial
issue: making sure that Arizonans have accurate, effective, and
evidence-based information about the vaccines and opportunities
to get vaccinated. I look forward to working with my colleagues
on this committee to develop bipartisan solutions, to address
this ongoing challenge, as we continue to help Arizonans get
vaccinated.
My first question is for Dr. Rivera. Your testimony
encourages partnering with local organizations and trusted
community leaders on public health messaging campaigns. In my
state, we have seen successful collaborations between the
University of Arizona, the Arizona Telemedicine Program, and
community health providers in leading free webinars. These are
open, virtual events where people can ask questions and receive
answers from public health experts from their own communities.
And these webinars focus on two medically underserved
populations, working with leaders in Latino and Tribal
communities.
We have also seen effective messaging from everyday
Arizonans, who shared their stories and reasons for getting
vaccinated. These stories are often deeply personal, and they
speak to shared experiences or fears. Can you speak more about
the kinds of training that community messengers, professional
and non-professional, may need to successfully deliver
effective, evidence-based vaccine messages?
Dr. Rivera. Thank you so much for that question, Senator
Sinema. In my experiences as a previous community health
educator, it is crucial that those of us that are promotores,
that are developing train the trainer programs to further
educate other lay workers about how to reach communities, that
that needs to continue to happen, to get funded, and to be
built within sustainable infrastructure. So that once the
program is done, or funding is done, those infrastructures are
still in place. So, that is incredibly important.
I also think that it is important to look at how we can
train these lay workers, or other community leaders that are
delivering information, on digital health literacy, on how to
share narratives, how to share other types of corrective
messages within the community where they are. Whether that be
in person, whether that be through different social media
platforms, those are things we are looking to do in research
now.
This is an issue that we are still trying to understand. We
still need to continue to find what the most effective ways are
and evaluate them for future--right, for future health and
health communication initiatives. But those are the things that
we need to do. We need to make sure that we are building
infrastructures, where we are training these individuals on the
things that they are going to be delivering in the community.
But I want to commend you for all of the things that you
have been doing within your state, because those are exactly
the things that we need to be doing to reach the people that
need it the most.
Senator Sinema. Well, thank you. My next question is for
both Dr. Collins and Dr. Rivera. There have been concerns from
public health leaders and community organizations in Arizona,
when vaccine information and registration websites were
launched in Arizona, without making the same information
available in other languages, or in accessible formats. What is
the impact and message we are sending to vulnerable
communities, people for whom English is not their first
language, or people with disabilities, when essential public
health information is not readily accessible for underserved
communities until many weeks later?
Dr. Collins. And so, thank you for that question. What I
will say is that, for our online portal, we provided that in
English and Spanish. And also, we setup a call center for folks
who do not have access to the Internet and that is available in
multiple languages. We have also partnered with our aging and
long-term services to make phone calls to seniors who may not
have access to the Internet or may not feel comfortable
accessing it.
So, it is huge that we do not send the message that you do
not matter. That, in fact, you do very much matter and that is
why we are not going to rely on one mode of communication.
Dr. Rivera. I will echo what Dr. Collins just said. It is
really important that we have, not only information that is in
multiple languages, but that it is at a literacy level that the
audiences can understand. That it is on devices and in formats
that are easy to navigate, right? Where they know exactly where
to click to find the information that they need at the moment.
And it just gets back to the importance of clear,
transparent, accurate, culturally tailored content that is
going to allow people to make informed decisions and know where
to get access to, in this case, vaccinations. But in the future
of public health--any kind of public health access.
Mr. Smith. I might add to their excellent answers, Senator
Sinema, that Univision, one of my excellent members, has
provided Spanish language materials, where before there were
none. They are staffing a hotline, helping people to sign up
for shots, and they are putting native Spanish speakers on TV
and radio to share accurate information in the Spanish
language.
Senator Sinema. Well, Mr. Chairman, I see my time has
expired and I yield back. Thank you.
Senator Lujan. Senator Sinema, thank you so very much. And
we are just waiting on one other Senator to come to the hearing
room to ask some questions. And while we are waiting for that
arrival, Dr. Collins, in New Mexico, our retailers and
businesses getting information to employees and providing time
to get vaccine has been a critical part of getting vaccinated.
The Retail Industry Leaders Association and its members have
been important partners in this effort. Secretary Collins, can
you expand upon working with businesses, big and small, in New
Mexico and why that is important across America?
Dr. Collins. Yes and thank you for the question. It is very
important that we work closely with the businesses. That they
understand, they have facts about the vaccine. They understand
the importance of messaging to their employees, and that they
are really supporting their employees to get vaccinated.
So, working with my fellow secretary, Mr. Kenney, we are
really trying to create a very seamless approach for DOH to get
vaccines to these employers, or to at least set up mobile
units, so that their employees can go out quickly, get
vaccinated, and then, just return to work without suffering a
loss of wages.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Dr. Collins. Dr. Rivera, Senator
Klobuchar shared a concern with, especially, 12 people who seem
to be the influencers of spreading a lot of that misinformation
on social media. We also know that it is not contained to
social media. That there is also spreading of misinformation
even on cable networks.
What has your research shown about the importance of
stopping the spread of misinformation? We have talked a lot
about the importance of getting facts out. I mean, that is the
goal. But there is also a responsibility to stop the spread of
misinformation. What does your research show there, Dr. Rivera?
Dr. Rivera. Yes, absolutely. Thank you for that question.
There was--there was an example from my research that I want to
share because it really hones in this point that this is not
just about COVID. It is not just about the pandemic.
I was interviewing a Latina in Florida and we were talking
about a post that she had engaged with. It was a video from a
Hispanic individual who was claiming that mammograms cause
cancer. And in response to the fear that that video created to
her, she called her doctor, and she canceled her mammogram. She
had it scheduled for a few weeks after and she called and she
canceled, just in case.
So, these--these platforms and the misinformation that is
there, has negative repercussions. And it is really important
that we are, particularly with health misinformation and
disinformation, but we are establishing ways where we have
multiple people, interdisciplinary work at the table.
Multilingual work at the table. To be able to address what it
is, and what qualifies as something that really needs to be
monitored, regulated, and taken down? Those are very complex
issues.
As I mentioned before, we are still looking to see what the
most effective ways are. But we need to have all of these
people at the table to have these very difficult conversations,
and have a neutral, non-partisan way of identifying
recommendations and guidelines that can be applied across the
board.
Senator Lujan. Dr. Rivera, I very much appreciate your
response to that. The profoundness of the example that you use,
which is a Latina that canceled her mammogram appointment, is
that this responsibility extends much further than with the
world we are living in now, and the attention around COVID and
vaccinations. This is about healthcare. And in every other
aspect, where there can be spreading of misinformation that can
make someone less healthy, cost someone their life, and even
prevent someone from getting a regular screening or a checkup
that is part of our daily health. And it only puts an
exclamation point on the work that we have left to do in this
particular area. Very much appreciate that, Dr. Rivera.
Senator Smith, in the work that you have done, not just in
your role as a public servant, but now with the Association of
Broadcasters, getting those diverse voices--I know, as I said
earlier, it has been a priority of yours. There was a meeting
that we recently had with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
about increasing diversity, whether it is on boards or, as you
said, with anchors or even managing stations across the
country. What are your thoughts there with those growing
efforts? And how that also helps to make sure that the American
people are seeing themselves, and hearing themselves, if you
will, on radio, and on television, and in print?
Mr. Smith. I do not know that we have any other higher
priority at NAB than to try to increase diversity. I do not
know whether you are fully apprised of some of the efforts we
have with our--our Education Foundation, or leadership training
programs, which specifically, use expert resources and bring in
women and minorities and--to a course that is very esteemed by
my members. And they hire out of that. And to the degree that
we have ownership of diversity in broadcasting and management
and anchors. It is coming out of that program.
But there is so much more that we can do and want to do.
And again, it is not a want of will. It is a want of access to
capital that some of these who would be broadcasters, simply do
not have. And that is why the Minority Tax Certificate Program
really should be put back in place. And that is the help that
we need because you will find a lot of helping hands reaching
out from broadcasters to people of color, of diversities,
ethnicities of all kinds.
We want to represent what America is, what America look
like. And out of many, one.
Senator Lujan. I appreciate that, Senator Smith. It is a
program that I have gotten a chance to learn more about and
appreciate the talented voices and the diverse voices that have
been part of that effort across the country, including some
fellow New Mexicans.
Mr. Smith. Yes.
Senator Lujan. And appreciate what I have learned from them
about the effectiveness of that particular program. So, thank
you for that and hope that that is something that we can grow
across America.
Mr. Smith. Absolutely.
Senator Lujan. With that being said, I now want to
recognize Senator Cruz for five minutes for questions.
STATEMENT OF HON. TED CRUZ,
U.S. SENATOR FROM TEXAS
Senator Cruz. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Welcome, good to see
you again.
Mr. Smith. Thank you, Senator Cruz.
Senator Cruz. More than 120 million Americans have received
at least on dose of a COVID vaccine. The fact that so many
Americans have been vaccinated against a highly transmissible
virus, less than 15 months since the pandemic began, is nothing
short of a medical marvel.
Mr. Smith. Yes.
Senator Cruz. Operation Warp Speed, founded on May 15,
2020, was an incredible success and I am grateful to the
scientists and the public health experts involved in the task
force, who contributed to the development and the distribution
planning of vaccines. One of the biggest hurdles to overcome is
inspiring confidence in individuals in certain communities to
get the vaccine. How effective do you believe public officials
are at inspiring confidence in individuals to get the vaccine?
Mr. Smith. Senator, I am not here to criticize anybody, but
I will tell you--and I--in this answer, I want to speak as just
an American citizen, not necessarily for broadcasters. But I
know Sharon and I were very anxious, because we are approaching
69 years of age, to get vaccinated. So, we worked really hard
at it, trying to get online, and it was not easy here in DC,
but we did. And the motivator was, we could return to normal.
We could be hopeful.
That hope was a big--I think, the great passion America has
right now that, to the degree that public officials can be
consistent in their messaging, that this gets you and your
loved ones out of danger of death, at a minimum, and a real
chance at return to normalcy, I just think that that sells. And
so, to the degree that hesitancy is developing outside of false
information on social media, if it is developing because you
take away the incentive to go get a shot, then I think--I think
we make a mistake, as government, by sending mixed messages.
Senator Cruz. Well, I--I agree with you. And I have been
vaccinated. My wife, Heidi, has been vaccinated. My parents
have been vaccinated. I certainly encourage people to get
vaccinated.
But I also think, over the past year, the conduct of many
Democrats, and the conduct of much of the media, has been very
counterproductive. That we have seen Democrats in the media
playing politics with this pandemic. We saw, then Senator,
Kamala Harris saying, ``She would not trust Donald Trump if a
vaccine were developed before the election''. We saw New York
Governor Andrew Cuomo saying ``he did not trust President Trump
or the FDA, saying he did not have confidence in them to
develop a vaccine.'' Candidate Joe Biden said, ``I trust
vaccines. I trust scientists. But I do not trust Donald Trump,
and, at this moment, the American people cannot either.'' That
was misinformation. It was deliberate misinformation.
And unfortunately, the media was more than happy to suit up
in this partisan battle to also mislead the American people.
For example, in October, President Trump said that every
American would be able to get a vaccine by April. We are in
April right now. CNN, home of self-declared purveyors of truth
like Brian Seltzer and Chris Cuomo, declared, that is not
likely. Well, CNN was full of crap. They were misleading the
American people and they were doing it because it was October
of an election year, and they did not want people to think they
were going to get a vaccine.
Or take the case of Amber Athey, the Editor at the
Spectator who said, ``Trump was universally panned by the media
for saying a vaccine would be coming by the end of the year''.
When in fact, a vaccine came by the end of the year. Or take
the case of the Miami Herald, which quoted, ``scientific
experts'', as saying, regarding a COVID vaccine being approved
in the late Fall of 2020 that, ``There is no way that is
happening, at least not with a vaccine that has proven safe and
effective''. I wonder if the Miami Herald has apologized to its
readers, who they misled and misinformed.
Tens of millions of Americans have now received a vaccine
that the media and Democrats told the American people, over and
over again, would not be available. That misinformation was
harmful. What effect, in your judgment, does this kind of
political rhetoric, undermining confidence in a vaccine, that
came through media outlets across the country--what effect do
you think that has in the American people's confidence in being
able to take a vaccine that will work?
Mr. Smith. Well, as I hear you articulate the question,
Senator, I am reminded of the rough and tumble of my own
campaigns and a lot of things are said that you would not want
to say in a non-campaign environment. But I am as gratified
that the sources you were criticizing were not specifically
broadcasters. In fact, they were newspapers and cable.
And what I have been trying to focus on here today is--and
I think I can honestly say I have heard from Chuck Schumer to
broadcasters, and even Mitch McConnell in different broadcast
settings, say something to this effect. I know when I want just
to talk to my constituents. When I do not want to be spun, or
whatever, I just want a clarity of an opportunity to talk, I
can go to my local radio and TV broadcasters and they get it
through.
So, what I have been saying this morning, in relationship
to COVID vaccinations, is that we are anxious and hungry for
the facts. I am talking about, you know, your newsroom in San
Antonio. They are not going to spin you. They do not want--they
just want to serve their community and your constituents.
So, I think, rather than focusing on criticizing or making
any enemies here this morning--because that is not why I am
here. I am here to spread hope and make clear the incredible
platform that broadcasting--local broadcasting, radio and TV,
have to get the facts out that you need them to have, and so
that your constituents can be safe.
Senator Cruz. Thank you.
Senator Lujan. Thank you, Senator Cruz. I want to thank all
of our colleagues who participated in today's hearing, to all
of our panelists, as well. And as I conclude today, look, we
have heard from witnesses about the massive national effort to
fight the COVID-19 pandemic. So much hard work and funding has
gone into making sure everyone has access to reliable, timely
information from sources they trust. But it only takes a single
thoughtless moment for someone on social media, television, or
radio to undermine that trust. Decades of work put in jeopardy,
in only a few seconds.
By now, we know that vaccines work. Over 120 million
Americans have been vaccinated and the end is in sight. Yet,
many major stations are still airing content that undermines
our effort to get back to normal. And I want to continue where
my colleague left off. Just this last Tuesday--Tuesday evening,
Tucker Carlson said, on a national cable television that,
``Maybe the vaccine does not work, and they are simply not
telling you''.
I pose the following question to the panel, as we close the
hearing today. Does airing a statement like that bring us
closer to defeating this virus and getting back to our lives?
Secretary Collins, yes or no?
Dr. Collins. It does not. I mean, we really--the vaccines
are efficacious and so, we need to make sure the public
realizes that. That we can prevent hospitalizations and deaths
by getting those vaccines.
Senator Lujan. Dr. Rivera?
Dr. Rivera. I agree, and it is important that we are
delivering clear, transparent, and accurate information, so
everyone is able to make an informed decision about vaccine
safety.
Senator Lujan. Senator Smith?
Mr. Smith. Broadcasters want to put out over the airwaves
what is true.
Senator Lujan. I appreciate that. And look, I hope Tucker
Carlson just cuts it out. Enough with this nonsense. And anyone
else that is out there spreading this misinformation, stop. You
are hurting people. You are costing people their lives. And
just as much as we want to see investment in getting accurate
information out, we also want to see the stop of spreading of
misinformation.
So, Senator Smith, thank you for being here today and your
testimony to say trust your local sources. Everyone simply
wants the facts, accurate information, not spin. And that is
what I appreciate from those efforts and those commitments
across the country. Make sure they have the facts, the
importance of what we did today.
I want to urge everyone out there that has a
responsibility, to take a look at those organizations and just
stop this stuff. You know, you all huddled before these shows
start. Stop them.
Now, as I close here, I just want to thank the witnesses
for this productive discussion. And the hearing record will
remain open for two weeks, until April 29, 2021. Any Senators
that would like to submit questions for the record, for the
witnesses, should do so by that date. We ask that your
responses be returned to the Committee by May 31, 2021.
That concludes today's hearing. Thank you again to
everyone.
[Whereupon, at 12:03 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
Prepared Statement by the Ad Council
INTRODUCTION:
Thank you to both Chairman Lujan and Ranking Member Thune for the
opportunity to submit written testimony that outlines the Ad Council's
efforts to educate and inform the American public about the COVID-19
vaccines. COVID-19 has killed more than half a million of our fellow
Americans. To prevent the loss of hundreds of thousands more lives, our
Nation needs extensively researched, customized and data-driven
communication efforts to boost vaccine confidence and help address the
misinformation and confusion that are driving vaccine hesitancy. The Ad
Council is doing just that.
The Ad Council was founded as a national nonprofit in 1942 on the
promise and potential of the communication industry's capacity to do
good. We have a long history of working across the public and private
sectors to spur behavioral change. We are behind well-known PSA
campaigns such as ``Smokey Bear,'' ``Love Has No Labels'' and ``Friends
Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk.''
In times of crisis, the Ad Council has led similar programs before.
In the 1950s, the U.S. Public Health Service and the American Medical
Association recruited the Ad Council and the industry's creative and
media talent to assist in the drive to convince Americans to take the
polio vaccine. Today, thanks to widespread vaccinations, the disease is
virtually nonexistent.
We've also recently demonstrated the incredible power to mobilize
the industry against COVID-19. Over the past year, we've launched an
unprecedented, multi-pronged COVID effort, working with multiple
creative agencies to disseminate lifesaving information to the public.
In addition to essential social distancing messages targeting at-risk,
general market, young adults, parents, and Black Americans, we've also
distributed campaigns on bias, plasma donation and mental health/
coping. Collectively, these efforts have resulted in $462.4 million in
donated media, 66.2 million engagements and 33.6 million visits to
coronavirus.gov (as of 4/20/21).
We recognize the arrival of the vaccines mark the onset of another
momentous public health messaging challenge. We are meeting this moment
with the most ambitious effort in our nearly 80-year history: More than
500 major brands, media companies, community-based organizations, faith
leaders/organizations, medical experts and other trusted messengers are
supporting the campaigns designed to reach distinct audiences.
THE CHALLENGE:
Last fall, with the promise and prospect of the COVID-19 vaccines,
we knew we faced a huge communications challenge to address
misinformation, questions and hesitancy.
Various surveys and research revealed that many Americans reported
they would not get the vaccine, revealing alarming gaps that would
prevent the country from achieving the roughly 70 percent coverage rate
needed to get the Nation back on track.
We identified four formidable communications challenges that would
need to be addressed:
We needed a massive and unified communications effort to the
public. A national vaccination program involves three
components: 1) vaccine development and FDA authorization or
approval; 2) manufacturing and distribution; 3) vaccine uptake
by the public. While substantial funding, innovation and
planning had been invested in the first two components, the Ad
Council identified the need for unprecedented public-private
sector efforts to address the third component.
We needed to overcome multiple and complex attitudes and
behaviors. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and resistance is highly
complex, with many factors coming into play, including fear,
distrust, confusion, misinformation and complacency.
We needed tailored messages to multiple audiences: There is no
single ``vaccine hesitant'' mindset. It's clear that a ``one
size fits all'' campaign, with a ``we're all in this together''
message, is unlikely to gain significant traction.
We still needed messaging as part of a comprehensive approach
to defeat COVID-19, such as masks: We knew that mask wearing
would remain critical for many months to come. Depending on the
efficacy rate of vaccines, a significant proportion of those
vaccinated will remain vulnerable to infection. Therefore, we
knew we would need an unprecedented public commitment to
getting vaccinated and wearing a mask.
We kicked off this unparalleled effort by joining forces with the
COVID Collaborative to activate their bipartisan network of leaders in
public health, education, the business community and more. Our goal was
to quickly tap into the cutting-edge expertise and talent across all
sectors. The Ad Council would leverage its deep relationship with the
media, creative agencies, insight and analytic firms, corporate brands,
social platforms and influencers. The COVID Collaborative would
leverage the leading experts and institutions across health, education
and the economy.
The intent was to build a unified, coordinated communications
campaign in partnership with every sector (healthcare, insurance,
pharmacies, education, corporations, state/local public health
departments, academic institutions, faith-based communities,
communities of color, community organizations, media, tech, etc.),
which would allow us to have exponentially more impact than a patchwork
response.
Together, we are coalescing the public and private sectors to
deploy the campaign: state and local health departments, governors and
mayors, K-12 schools and universities, faith-based communities, medical
associations and hospitals, healthcare industries, insurers,
pharmacies, corporations, nonprofit networks and community
organizations.
Throughout our efforts, we have consulted closely with our
longstanding partners at HHS and CDC, who provided insights and
scientific review of all aspects of our efforts.
OUR RESEARCH EFFORTS & FINDINGS:
Back in the fall, we conducted extensive research and in-market
testing to develop audience profiles and multiple creative briefs as
fast as possible. We knew we didn't need more generic hesitancy
research--we needed to pinpoint messaging that would best resonate with
vaccine hesitant individuals so we could be in-market as fast as
possible. This initial formative research phase helped us uncover:
What is the state of knowledge and attitudes about COVID
vaccination among key audiences?
What are the most persuasive messages with key audiences?
Which audience segments need to hear which message? How
granular can we be?
Who are the trusted messengers who can help deliver those
messages?
How do people respond differently across demographics,
psychographics, and geographies?
What language choices could benefit the entire movement
(i.e., ``Immunization'' vs. ``Vaccine'')?
By relying on real-time testing and analytics, we could then
develop relevant and engaging content and optimize results through an
iterative test/learn/scale approach. Our research, in addition to
guiding our initial message testing, would also serve as the core
analytic resource for the entire effort so that we could create our
multi-prong campaigns via ongoing, real-time testing and optimization.
The Ad Council and COVID Collaborative felt strongly that we should
share any of our insights with others working on vaccine education in
an ``open-source'' approach. That is, we synthesized our research and
created six online toolkits for grassroots, local, state and national
partners. These toolkits were created for the public health community,
Black community, Hispanic community, Black faith community, Hispanic
faith community and the corporate sector. They include customized
resources such as core insights, creative briefs, messaging tips and
customizable creative and digital assets for each audience. Links to
these toolkits can be found here.
Our research and data-driven approach was guided by these
principles:
Research that's additive: The Ad Council deeply reviewed and
synthesized the vast array of research that had been conducted
on vaccine hesitancy among different audiences. We did not
pursue or conduct additional research in this area. Rather, we
sought to rapidly identify messaging frames and creative that
will overcome hesitancy, dispel misinformation and inspire
individuals to get the vaccine.
Unified communications strategy: To effectively educate and
motivate the public to get the COVID vaccine over the next
year, we wanted to build a united front: one with cohesive,
multipronged communications that is built on rapid consumer
insights and agile testing to ensure impact.
Phased approach: Our campaign would be timed to be in sync
with the supply of vaccines and focus on priority audiences in
a phased approach.
Building trust: The campaign would focus on diminishing
hesitancy and building confidence and trust, driving key
audiences to get more information from a science-based resource
as the call-to-action.
Rely on trusted messengers: Our entire communications effort
would rely on research-based messaging with trusted messengers
(e.g., healthcare providers, faith leaders, etc.) who have
credibility in local communities with our target audiences. We
would not rely on one single message or campaign. The campaign
goes well beyond pre-produced PSAs to include tools, messages
and content for influencers to use in their communications and
channels.
Science and data will drive everything: The COVID
Collaborative brought the expertise of its scientific advisors
to advise on all aspects of this effort, including insights/
research, target audiences, deployment and evaluation.
Rapid response: We would utilize a rapid response ``war
room'' strategy to combat misinformation in real-time and
leverage micro-influencers, especially in communities of color
(partnering with already existing groups that have
sophisticated technology and practices to monitor and combat
vaccine misinformation in real-time.)
Specifically, we worked with a number of best-in-class partners to
build what we called our ``Communications Insights Engine'' which can
be found in Appendix A.
MESSAGING INSIGHTS:
Broadly, our research indicated that Americans' hesitancy across
all demographics is driven by three primary areas where information
deficits and misinformation exist:
Concerns about safety and side effects from COVID-19
vaccination, driven by the speed of the clinical development
process and the vaccines' novelty.
Lack of knowledge.
Distrust in the political and economic motives of the
government and corporations.
Knowing these barriers, we then synthesized our research into the
following messaging guidelines:
Lead with empathy. Respect people's hesitancy and
acknowledge that it's okay to have questions. Avoid
condescension, lecturing, negativity and guilt mongering.
Facts about safety are important. Don't just say, ``The
science is solid.'' Explain why vaccines are safe, despite the
fast timeline of development. Information needs to be clear,
honest and presented in plain language.
Emotional triggers are important. Highlight how vaccinations
are a pathway to helping us get back to the moments of human
connection that we are all yearning for.
The messenger is just as important as the message. Most
people who are hesitant to get vaccinated are open to listening
to a wide variety of messengers whom they trust, but they want
to receive information about COVID-19 vaccines from
credentialed health experts. They are also open to hearing
personal testimonials.
Recommended messaging tone:
Should be welcoming, personal and authentic.
Provide a safe space that's focused on dialogue, not
debate.
Leverage emotional touchpoints to remind people about
those moments of human connection once we get past COVID-
19.
Specific insights regarding Black Americans:
Understandable distrust is especially salient because
of medical and government mistreatment (e.g., Tuskegee
experiments) that has contributed to cultural trauma.
Many often feel excluded from other health-related
discussions, so Black Americans tend to question just how
open, diverse and transparent vaccine conversations will
be.
We also felt it was important that our communications
acknowledge longstanding health equity disparities and
vaccine supply issues and therefore messaging should not be
framed this way nor imply that vaccination uptake rests
entirely on Black Americans' shoulders.
Specific insights regarding Hispanic community:
Messages should lead with empathy and acknowledge that
a desire to learn more and ask questions is okay. People
want to know the vaccines are safe and that the benefits
outweigh the risk.
Questions and concerns around vaccine accessibility
were a theme.
Compared to the other groups, Hispanics were more
receptive to messages from voices within their inner circle
such as neighbors, their mayor and posts by people they
follow on social media.
Institutions like the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention carry credibility, but for Hispanics, it may be
best to focus on trusted experts rather than institutions.
We also found that faith in government and the
pharmaceutical industry was lower among this demographic.
You can view our full audience profile snapshots and messaging
recommendations (for General Audiences, Black Americans and Hispanic
Americans) on our six different toolkits.
In addition, we recognize the need to reach the Asian American,
Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders communities as well as Native
American communities. Specifically, we are working with the CDC and HHS
and other organizations that are leading efforts in this space to help
amplify their work, including collaborating with Urban Indian Health
Institute (on toolkit materials), the Asian and Pacific Islander
National American Forum and the COVID Collaborative (on consumer
research and toolkit materials). Finally, we are working with the
Asian-American Advertising Federation (3AF), to inform best practices,
cultural resonance and create media partnerships targeting the AAPI
vaccine hesitant community.
THE CAMPAIGN'S ``IT'S UP TO YOU'' CREATIVE PLATFORM:
Knowing the high rates of hesitancy and need to boost vaccine
confidence, our campaign is designed to target the undecided segment of
the population who are taking a ``wait and see'' approach.
Specifically, we define this ``movable middle'' as those who range from
``skeptical'' to ``open but uncertain.'' That is, we are not targeting
those who are firmly pro or anti-vaccine, but rather those individuals
who have questions and reservations. These are people who are seeking
tangible evidence from trusted sources that the benefits outweigh the
perceived risks of vaccination.
The Ad Council's model is unique in that for all of our campaigns
we tap the pro bono talents of the Nation's leading agencies to create
our campaigns. For this effort we initially tapped Pereira O'Dell to
help create our umbrella campaign, knowing that it needed to not only
unify all of our creative efforts but also offer the flexibility for
multiple creative agencies, influencers, media platforms, and brands to
run with it and make it their own. In addition, Pereira O'Dell
collaborated with Alma DDB and JOY Collective to ensure that the
platform was culturally relevant and could be customized for key
audiences, particularly Black (Joy Collective) and Hispanic (Alma and
Pereira O'Dell) audiences most impacted by COVID 19.
This unifying platform, ``It's up to You'' (or ``De Ti Depende'' in
Spanish) aims to reduce vaccine hesitancy by empowering people to get
the answers they need, overcome misinformation and make an informed
decision to protect themselves and their loved ones. It serves as the
roadmap for all of the campaign's creative, based on these six
mandatories:
1. Appeal to people's desire to protect their loved ones.
2. Respect people's independence and urge them to make an informed
decision.
3. Lead with empathy and respect that people have real questions or
concerns.
4. Gain trust by being honest and transparent.
5. Remind people of the desire to get back to life and missed
moments like visiting family and friends.
6. Welcome people's questions, and point them to trusted sources and
messengers.
We tested this creative platform and found that it succeeded in
motivating vaccine hesitant individuals with its positive, yet
realistic tone and it's pairing of the rational information with the
emotional side of the moments we all miss.
To bring this idea to life, we worked the campaign's three creative
agencies (Pereira O'Dell, JOY Collective and Alma DDB) who have
extensive multicultural expertise: That's because we knew there was not
a single ``vaccine mindset'' and were mindful of the outsized impact of
COVID on communities of color, so we launched distinct creative for the
general public as well as tailored efforts to Black and Hispanic
communities. Our work for the Black and Hispanic communities was vetted
by a diverse group of experts and organizations including the NAACP,
Black Coalition Against COVID-19, Color of Change, National Urban
League, UnidosUS, Salud America!, National Hispanic Medical Association
and faith leaders in the Black and Hispanic community.
We also created a comprehensive website, driving audiences to
GetVaccine
Answers.org (DeTiDepende.org in Spanish), a site which poses and
answers some of the top questions from vaccine hesitant individuals.
Vetted by experts at the CDC, HHS, FDA and COVID Collaborative, content
on the website is available in seven languages (English, Spanish,
Simplified Chinese, Korean, Russian, Haitian Creole and Vietnamese) and
is continually updated as new information and data become available.
Since the launch of our campaign (late February, 2021) with
advertising in all media formats (English and Spanish assets), the Ad
Council campaigns rely primarily on a donated media model to drive
impact. This initiative--due to the enormity of the challenge and the
short time window for success--is also tapping on paid programmatic
supplemented by donated, owned, and earned media across thousands of
media platforms and properties. To do that, we secured the pro bono
resources of Dentsu Aegis (multinational media and digital marketing
communications company) to develop a communications architecture and
media strategy.
This strategy is driving our media outreach for the assets the Ad
Council is directly producing as well as for our partners who are
producing their own platform-specific assets. Leading brands, media
companies and social platforms are developing custom content and
donating media to extend the ``It's Up to You'' message, connecting
their audiences with crucial and vetted information about the COVID-19
vaccines.
We've formed partnerships with varied brands and organizations
including, but not limited to:
Adobe
American's Health Insurance Plans
American Heart Association
American Medical Association
Amazon
Apple
Bank of America
BIN: Black Information Network
BNY Mellon
Budweiser
Business Roundtable
Cisco
Citi
Complex
CVS Health
Enthusiast Gaming
Facebook
Ford Motor Company
FOX
General Motors
Google/YouTube
Holler
Honeywell
Humana Foundation
iHeartMedia
JPMorgan Chase
LinkedIn
Match Media Group
Meredith Corporation
NBCUniversal/Comcast and Telemundo
New York Life Foundation
OWN
Pandora/SiriusXM/SoundCloud
PatientPoint Health Technologies
Pinterest
Reckitt
Reddit
Salesforce
Sesame Workshop
Snapchat
Spotify
Stanley Black & Decker
Synchrony
Target
TikTok
Twitter
Twitch
Unilever
Univision
ViacomCBS, including BET
Verizon
Walgreens
Walmart
Walt Disney Television
WarnerMedia
Wells Fargo
What If Media
In addition, our industry's major trade associations have joined
forces to drive an industry movement around the Ad Council-COVID
Collaborative's campaign. Each association is developing innovative
ways to promote the campaign in ways that resonate with its industry in
support of the ``It's Up to You'' message. They include: The
Association of National Advertisers, Alliance for Inclusive and
Multicultural Marketing, American Advertising Federation, American
Association of Advertising Agencies, Interactive Advertising Bureau,
Internet & Television Association, Licensing International, Mobile
Marketing Association, National Association of Broadcasters, News Media
Association, Out of Home Advertising Association of America, Radio
Advertising Bureau and the Television Bureau of Advertising.
Finally, we are funding this massive effort by tapping the
generosity of the private sector. Leading contributors to date include
Amazon, Apple, Bank of America, Cisco, CVS Health, Facebook, General
Motors, Google and YouTube, Humana Foundation, NBCUniversal/Comcast,
Reckitt, Salesforce, Verizon, Walgreens and Walmart. Significant
contributions have also been provided by Adobe, America's Health
Insurance Plans (AHIP), American Heart Association, American Medical
Association, BNY Mellon, Budweiser/Anheuser-Busch Foundation, Business
Roundtable, Citi, Ford Motor Company, Honeywell, JPMorgan Chase, New
York Life Foundation, Stanley Black & Decker, Synchrony, Target,
Unilever, Wells Fargo and ViacomCBS.
OUR ``GROUND GAME'':
Recognizing that the ``who'' behind our communications is just as
important, if not more, than the content of the messages themselves, we
kicked off our ``ground game'' strategy.
This is an intensive ground game of partners and trusted community-
based organizations who are critical to ensuring our messages reach
local communities and build trust and transparency given the high
degree of misinformation and rapidly changing updates about the
vaccines that will be distributed.
We are building this ground game in three ways:
1. We have launched separate coalition-building programs targeting
different audiences: Black communities, Hispanic communities,
faith communities, conservative/rural communities, the
corporate sector and more recently, young adults and parents.
Our goal has been to provide various platforms to facilitate
culturally relevant conversations within each of these
communities on COVID-19 vaccines, leveraging trusted messengers
from each of their communities. These efforts include virtual
townhall and online events, customized media and content
partnerships and tailored efforts for each community. We're
partnering with JOY Collective for the Black community and
Latinovations and Republica Havas to develop and execute these
programs. Examples include:
A series of virtual townhall events including:
NAACP UNMASKED: A COVID-19 Virtual Town Hall Series in
partnership with the Black Coalition Against COVID-19
(which garnered 96,680 views)
MusiCares: Facts, Fears & Honest Dialogue: COVID-19
Vaccines and the Black Music Community (24,569 views)
Special edition of Hispanicize featuring Dr. Anthony
Fauci, Beto Perez, John Leguizamo, Karen Martinez, Luis
Guzman and others (15,000 online attendees)
BET NAACP Image Awards Content Integration (3,000,000
views)
The Faith Community on COVID-19 Vaccines: What You
Need to Know (230,000 reach; 165,000 Views)
UnidosUS & Telemundo National Town Hall Vaccine
Education Event (80,000 views)
Two national Town Halls with the Sororities and
Fraternities, in partnership with the Black Coalition
Against COVID-19 and BlackDoctor.org *Please note that the
video views increase daily, given the content remains in
social media (Facebook, YouTube, etc.) for the various
audiences to consume.
Partnership with Values Partnership (social impact agency
founded by Joshua DuBois who led the White House Office of
Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships in President Obama's
first term) to target Black, Hispanic and evangelical
community, as well as faith communities broadly. Our faith
strategy includes conducting research, providing resources for
the faith community through trusted messengers and tailored
forums and outlets. We are also creating content intended to
empower clergy nationally to have these conversations in their
own local contexts. For example, we launched a National Faith
Steering Committee to reach Black and Hispanic congregants to
help educate and strengthen vaccine confidence. The Committee
consists includes 21 highly influential faith leaders from
around the country who are leading the charge in getting
accurate information to the communities that need it most. For
example, members include the National Association of
Evangelicals, National Latino Evangelical Coalition, Bishop T.
D. Jakes, Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, Rev. Dr. Gabriel & Rev.
Jeanette Salguero, Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III, Rev. Enid Almanzar,
Rev. John K. Jenkins, Rev. Traci Blackmon, Father Manuel
Dorantes and Rev. Dr. Walter Kim. We're partnering with them to
help inform our work, participate in national events, host
their own local events, and distribute educational materials.
We also launched a special series entitled ``Faith & Facts Family
Conversations,'' which leverages icons in the gospel community,
their family/friends, and a medical expert to have more
intimate conversations on COVID-19 vaccines to help educate the
community. We kicked off this program by partnering with David
and Tamela Mann, award-winning gospel artists, actors and
authors, on a special installment of the ``Mann Family Dinner''
series, which has 342K followers on YouTube, focused on COVID-
19 vaccines. The video completed for this program has already
received over 113,000 views.
We're also partnering with Choose Healthy Life, a program
focused on improving the health and wellness of the faith
community. We will have collateral in their focused markets to
help educate the community on COVID-19 vaccines--markets
include New York, Newark, Atlanta, Detroit, and Washington, DC.
A series of PSAs featuring former U.S. Presidents and First
Ladies (Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton,
Jimmy Carter and former First Ladies Michelle Obama, Laura
Bush, Hillary Clinton and Rosalynn Carter). The videos are
designed to encourage all Americans to get answers to the top
questions about the COVID-19 vaccines at GetVaccineAnswers.org
and to get a vaccination when it's available to them.
PSA partnership with 13 major sports leagues and
organizations (American Horse Council, Athletes Unlimited,
Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, National
Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), National
Basketball Association, National Football League, National
Hockey League, National Women's Soccer League, PGA TOUR, U.S.
Open Tennis Championships, Women's National Basketball
Association and WWE. Highlighting iconic moments in sport and a
brand-new recording of ``I'll Be Seeing You'' performed by
Grammy Award-winning musician, Willie Nelson; the videos
encourage fans to visit GetVaccineAnswers.org for the latest
information about the COVID-19 vaccines.
An always-on PR strategy leveraging medical experts, faith
leaders, and influential voices for ongoing TV/radio interviews
in key markets in English and Spanish, pegged to new campaign
announcements and vaccine rollout news.
2. We are tapping and expanding the COVID Collaborative's incredible
network of health and community partners who have local
channels within their organizations. These include:
317 Vaccine Coalition
American Academy of Family Physicians
American College of Physicians
American Heart Association
American Lung Association
American Nurses Association
American Public Health Association
Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
Association of Immunization Managers
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
NAACP
National Academy of Medicine
National Association of Community Health Centers
National Association of County and City Health
Officials
National Black Nurses Association
National Hispanic Medical Association
National Indian Health Board
National Medical Association
National Urban League
Trust for America's Health
UNCF
UnidosUS
Vaccinate Your Family
3. We have created a Dissemination Working Group in partnership with
the COVID Collaborative. This group is lending their
perspective on how best the Ad Council can share and distribute
its campaign messaging and assets with grassroots, local, state
and national partners. Members include:
American Heart Association
American Medical Association
American Public Health Association
Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
Association of Immunization Managers
ASTHO
Big Cities Health Coalition
Black Coalition Against COVID-19
COVID-19 Prevention Network
Health Leads
Infectious Disease Society of America
NAACP
National Association of County & City Health Officials
National Coalition of 100 Black Women
National Congress of American Indians
National Council on Aging
National Rural Health Association
National Urban League
NIH's National Institute on Minority Health & Health
Disparities
NYU School of Global Public Health
Rockefeller Foundation
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
UnidosUS
Vaccinate Your Family
4. We launched a business coalition (the Health Action Alliance), a
joint effort between the Ad Council, Business Roundtable, CDC
Foundation, de Beaumont Foundation and Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation to empower the business community and address health
inequities in the fight against COVID-19.
RELYING ON TRUSTED MESSENGERS:
Our research revealed that credible, local messengers are critical
to engaging vaccine hesitant individuals, including local doctors and
pharmacists and others at the community level.
We therefore launched a plan for engaging trusted messengers and
influencers:
We know that with this campaign the messengers are just as
important as the message. We have identified eight influencer
categories that cover broad perspectives and roles, with the
medical community and government being the fact creators.
We created a communications framework that is providing
structure and consistency across all types of influencer
engagements. We are using this framework for content partners,
agencies and influencer groups.
We kicked off this program by partnering with medically
credentialled experts to provide approachable yet compelling
fact based content that are distributed to their digital and
social platforms.
We are also working with relevant trusted messengers that
are helping to amplify the facts with relevance and
credibility. These critical amplifiers will help further
disseminate the factual information by sharing, reposting or
curating the content.
Finally we plan to activate both the fact creators and the
fact amplifiers to share the personal vaccination experiences
on their social channels--this could include their own
vaccination or that of a love one the accompanied. This is
critical to build up a volume of experiences that will help
normalize the vaccination process and reduce hesitancy.
Examples of these efforts include:
Produced COVID Vaccine Sports Roundtable Q&A discussion with
Dr. Tom Frieden, former head of the CDC, and multiple
professional athletes: Sean Johnson (MLS), Preston Wilson
(MLB), Chester Pitts (NFL), Drew McIntyre (WWE) and
RockyNoHands (eSports). The athletes were able to get all of
their vaccine-related questions answered by a prominent medical
professional.
Produced a Conversation Between Legends: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Talks COVID-19 Vaccines with Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett that
discusses vaccine development and safety and the importance of
vaccine education for the Black community specifically.
Produced a Fireside Chat between Former Governor Chris
Christie and President of the AMA, Dr. Susan Bailey to discuss
top questions about the vaccine raised by U.S. conservative
audiences
Tapping trusted faith leaders and influencers, including
Curtis Chang and NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins, who is
outspoken about how his Christian faith informs his work as a
scientist. Our partnership with theologian and Duke Divinity
School professor Curtis Chang and ChristiansAndTheVaccine.com
is providing brief, informative videos that specifically and
explicitly addresses potential concerns from the evangelical
community about the vaccines, and shares ideas about how
Christians might think about the choice to get vaccinated. In
addition, in partnership with Values Partnerships and
ChristiansAndThe
Vaccine.com, we are facilitating events and messages that
feature prominent evangelicals, speaking from their own, faith-
informed perspective, about the vaccines, including: Dr. Walter
Kim, who leads the National Association of Evangelicals; the
evangelical writer and advocate, David French; local Christian
pastors like Joel Rainey of Shepherdstown, West Virginia; and
Christian medical practitioners.
Engaged Eric Church, Ashley McBryde and Darius Rucker to
create a PSA that aired in the Country Music Awards on 4/18/21
(details in this Rolling Stone article)
Role in the upcoming Global Citizen concert VAX LIVE: The
Concert to Reunite the World and the incorporation of our
medical expert ambassadors in the www.vaxbecause.org website
Partnered with prominent celebs to share their personal
vaccine experiences using the #IGotTheShot hashtag; including:
Wanda Sykes, Nile Rogers, Sterling Sharpe, etc.
Created repository of face-based video content created by
our network of medical experts that can be share by
influencers, brands and partners at www.adfactlibrary.org
COMBATTING MISINFORMATION:
To combat misinformation in real-time and leverage micro-
influencers, especially in communities of color, we are partnering with
Bully Pulpit Interactive and the Public Good Projects (PGP), which has
sophisticated unparalleled technology and practices to monitor and
combat vaccine misinformation.
Bully Pulpit Interactive pairs traditional research with advanced
social listening to understand not only the volume of misinformation
being spread, but the relative impact and harm of various
disinformation messages. This allows the Ad Council to track not only
what is said online, but more importantly, what a vaccine-hesitant
audience actually hears and understands, and the narrative conclusions
they draw. Our framework helps prioritize different narratives--from
what is high awareness and high risk that we absolutely must address--
to what is low awareness and low risk, which we simply must keep an eye
on. This allows us to work against disinformation, address the
underlying doubt, and thus take away its power among key audiences.
Alongside this work, PGP's tools use machine learning,
epidemiology, and investigative journalism to identify mis/
disinformation in real-time and then disseminate counter-messages that
draw on deep expertise and strategies to combat vaccine hesitancy
through a network of several hundred influencers as well as several
hundred community organizations. PGP's systems are used by the U.S. and
Canadian governments, and are the engine behind UNICEF's global efforts
to combat vaccine misinformation. PGP has built out a custom alert and
reporting system solely for The Ad Council.
The Ad Council is drawing on Bully Pulpit and PGP's learnings about
what messages best resonate and is extending these counter-messages by
tapping our own network of influencers, alongside additional
communications to hesitant audiences through both paid and earned
media.
EVALUATION & INITIAL RESULTS:
As with all Ad Council efforts, we are applying a rigorous, data-
driven approach to measuring performance and impact. Our goal is to
continually understand the effectiveness of our vaccine work by
increasing confidence in COVID-19 vaccinations through education and
how that translates into action.
Specifically, we have defined KPIs and measurement strategies via
established and new partnerships with industry leaders in data and
insights, as well as solutions unique to the Ad Council. These include:
Comprehensive tracking of support across all earned and
donated media channels
Shifts in attitudes and behaviors via a monthly, national
survey
Engagement on our website and all social platforms
Significant ground game efforts (e-mail outreach, events,
influencer programs).
All results ladder up to the ultimate outcome of vaccination uptake
as measured through survey-based shifts in behaviors, CDC data on
number of vaccinations and how exposure to our work influences both.
We are using customized platforms/tools to view real-time results
(data visualizations, scorecards, modeling), which will be continually
optimized throughout the ``It's Up to You'' initiative. Some key
highlights on our work to date:
Since launch (February 25), media support and related
publicity is currently valued at $65M, which is twice as much
as an average campaign receives annually.
Our TV and digital partnerships have a 26 percent reach so
far across all audiences.
11.4M engagements with our social and search ads.
330K views of targeted events within the Black, Faith and
Hispanic communities,
Collectively, our efforts have driven over 2M sessions to
GetVaccineAnswers.org with nearly 2 out of 3 users who were
surveyed reporting feeling more confident about getting
vaccinated.
As people learn more, we're seeing attitudes across the country
shift. National polls by the Ad Council/Ipsos, NORC Center for Public
Affairs Research, Kaiser Family Foundation, and others have registered
significant improvements in Americans' intent to get vaccinated,
including among Black Americans, over the past two months. As we
collect more data, we will be conducting analyses to help determine the
role of the Ad Council-COVID Collaborative campaign in ongoing
improvements in Americans' vaccination intent and vaccination rates.
Thank you for the opportunity to lend the Ad Council's voice to
this important hearing. We appreciate this subcommittee's attention to
what will surely be the largest, most consequential national education
effort of our time. By working together to educate and inform the
American public, we will soon be on the path to recovery and renewal.
______
APPENDIX A
Ad Council-COVID Collaborative's COVID-19 Vaccine Education campaign:
Research & Media Planning partners
Been There Done That:
Who are they: Creative agency that draws on expertise from community of
leading Chief Strategy and Chief Creative Officers.
What they did: Provided message frames for testing (Note: These frames
were informed by the Ad Council's deep dive on existing research on
vaccine hesitancy from academia, CDC, NGOs, and pharma companies).
Output: Creation of 9 messaging territories rooted in existing insights
to put into testing.
Dentsu Health:
Who are they: A leading global agency in health communications and
media strategy.
What they did: Provided audience insights and media insights to help
drive campaign strategy and media outreach.
Output: Audience insights and media planning recommendations.
IBM Watson Advertising Accelerator:
Who are they: Uses advanced AI technology to ``learn'' the optimal mix
of creative/messaging approaches which resonate with key target
audiences.
What they did: Conducted targeted in-market testing of messaging and
creative (digital ads), leveraging their AI-powered platform to
optimize results based on key call-to-actions by each audience.
Output: Data-driven insights on the most effective language and message
framings for specific audiences.
Ipsos:
Who are they: Global leader in public opinion and market research.
What they did: In December 2020, fielded large quantitative survey
(general population with Black and Latinx oversamples) to understand
COVID vaccine mindsets, testing messaging territories and conducting
in-depth audience segmentation/profiling. Continuing to field ongoing,
quantitative survey to measure attitudes and behaviors around the COVID
vaccines, as well as recognition of campaign creative
Output: Deep understanding of the ``vaccine hesitant'' adults in terms
of demographics, psychographics, and areas of opportunity, with
specific message framings. Continual tracking of issue attitudes,
behaviors, and vaccine hesitancy over time
The Public Good Projects:
Who are they: Public health nonprofit composed of experts in public
health, media, and marketing.
What they did: Social listening and access to their sophisticated
monitoring and combatting of online vaccine misinformation.
Output: Real-time insights on vaccine misinformation as well as trusted
online messengers to help inform testing and creative development.
Ahzul:
Who are they: BIPOC-owned market research and strategic agency.
What they did: Conducted qualitative interviews with Black, Latinx,
young adult and general public (skew rural) vaccine hesitant Americans
to understand knowledge, motivators, barriers, and mindsets (and to
expose a variety of messaging territories for feedback).
Output: Culturally-nuanced insights on how message territories are
received by these communities, which has informed/will inform creative
development and outreach.
Feedback Loop:
Who are they: Agile research platform to glean audience insights and
test messaging ideas.
What they did: Multiple survey-based messaging tests of various target
audiences.
Output: Quick-turnaround surveys throughout the planning phase.
Facebook:
Who are they: The world's largest social media platform.
What they did: In-market messaging research of Ad Council/Facebook
advertising, including test/control `lift' studies, to help optimize
early campaign messaging.
Output: Data-driven learning on promising messaging framing and copy.
IBM Watson Advertising Accelerator:
Who are they: Uses advanced AI technology to ``learn'' the optimal mix
of creative/messaging approaches which resonate with key target
audiences.
What they did: Conducted targeted in-market testing of messaging and
creative (digital ads), leveraging their AI-powered platform to
optimize results based on key call-to-actions by each audience.
Output: Data-driven insights on the most effective language and message
framings for specific audiences.
Finally, our testing phase was informed by a diverse group of
leading experts from members of the COVID Collaborative's Vaccine
Scientific Advisory Committee:
Lenora Johnson, DrPH, MPH, Director, Science policy,
Engagement, Education and Communications, National Heart, Lung,
and Blood Institute (NHLBI) at NIH
Regina Davis-Moss, PhD, MPH, MCHES, Associate Executive
Director, Health Policy and Practice, American Public Health
Association
Erica DeWald, Director of Advocacy, Vaccinate Your Family
Katie Greene, MPP, Visiting Policy Associate, Duke-Margolis
Center for Health Policy
Tene Hamilton Franklyn, Vice President, Health Equity &
Stakeholder Engagement, Health Leads
Joyce Liu, Senior Policy Associate, Veng Group (on behalf of
Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum)
Jen Morales, MPA, Director of Public Relations and
Marketing, Infectious Disease Society of America
Rick Wade, Senior Vice President, Strategic Alliances &
Outreach, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Alexandre White, PhD, Assistant Professor Johns Hopkins
University, Department of Sociology and Department of the
History of Medicine
______
Prepared Statement of AHIP
AHIP thanks the Subcommittee for holding this hearing to examine
the ways public and private institutions can partner to promote vaccine
safety and COVID-19 health-related information to encourage Americans
in underserved areas to get vaccinated. We share your commitment to
ensuring that Americans get vaccinated as quickly and equitably as
possible.
AHIP is the national association whose members provide coverage for
health care and related services to hundreds of millions of Americans
every day. Through these offerings, we improve and protect the health
and financial security of consumers, families, businesses, communities
and the Nation. We are committed to market-based solutions and public-
private partnerships that improve affordability, value, access, and
well-being for consumers.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused extraordinary suffering and
economic upheaval across the country and around the world. AHIP members
have seen first-hand the complications and consequences of the COVID-19
public health crisis and are working hard to ensure that all Americans,
regardless of the type of health insurance they have, get the care they
need to fight the pandemic and to stay well through these challenging
times. The industry, in collaboration with providers, policymakers at
the state and Federal levels, and other stakeholders, has taken
decisive actions to respond to the crisis. Health insurance providers
have waived cost-sharing for COVID-19 testing and treatment to ensure
patients can access needed care and that cost is not a barrier and made
significant investments in telehealth and community-based services to
assure that social barriers such as lack of transportation don't create
insurmountable barriers to care.
Health insurance providers are a trusted source of information for
the people they serve. As COVID-19 vaccinations ramp up and supplies
expand, overcoming vaccine hesitancy and ensuring equitable
distribution is going to be critical. To that end, health insurance
providers are working with national, state, and local leaders to help
every American access vaccines. This includes efforts to raise public
awareness, particularly within communities of color and vulnerable
populations, about the safety and effectiveness of COVID vaccines and
working with policymakers, providers and other stakeholders in local
communities to improve equity in distribution and vaccine uptake.
Insurance providers work to ensure the availability of culturally and
linguistically appropriate content that is tailored to resonate with
underserved communities and meet people where they are regarding
vaccine information.
Vaccine Community Connectors: Commitment to Helping Underserved
Communities
In March 2021, health insurance providers, led by AHIP and Blue
Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA), committed to supporting a new
effort to promote health equity by removing barriers to vaccinations
for 2 million Americans most at risk of COVID-19 as quickly as
possible.
The Vaccine Community Connectors pilot initiative aims to enable
the vaccination of 2 million seniors age 65+ in America's most at-risk,
vulnerable, and underserved communities--such as communities whose
residents are primarily African American or Hispanic. Insurance
providers are focusing on their members and the communities they serve.
They are working to reach this important goal quickly, depending upon
the increasing availability of vaccine supply. Since our March
announcement, this initiative has already expanded to focus on the
needs of other vulnerable populations such as Medicaid enrollees.
Improving health equity means setting important goals, removing
barriers to better care, and meeting people where they are. As vaccine
supplies expand and registrations become available, insurance providers
are using combined expertise, data, and insights to:
Identify seniors 65+ who are vulnerable to COVID-19 and who
live in areas where vaccination rates are most inequitable.
Work with partners in the community to educate seniors on
the safety, efficacy, and value of COVID-19 vaccines.
Contact those seniors who are eligible to get a vaccine
through multiple channels to facilitate vaccine registration
and appointment scheduling; answer questions about vaccines;
help them understand when, where, and how they can receive
vaccines and remind them about any required second doses;
coordinate services to help overcome barriers that may stand
between a person and getting vaccinated, including
transportation.
Work with federal, state, and local leaders to deliver
vaccines to underserved communities and closely collaborate
with other vaccination partners, such as pharmacies.
Track progress to ensure that those who need vaccinations
most are receiving them.
Health insurance providers are using their data and analytics
capabilities combining what they know about the people and communities
they serve with government sources such as the Social Vulnerability
Index--to help identify the 25 percent most vulnerable communities and
to improve the accuracy and efficiency in the effort. By tailoring the
outreach approach to each community, health insurance providers are
better able to best meet unique community needs. For example, some
communities may best be served by mobile clinics, language assistance,
or a combination of interventions while others will benefit from health
insurance providers who partner directly with ride share services to
provide transportation to vaccine appointments at no cost to the
member.
But barriers to effectively improving vaccine rates in
disadvantaged communities remain. The biggest drivers of inequitable
vaccination rates in these communities include: lack of health
infrastructure/access to vaccine; lack of data access to determine who
has and has not been vaccinated to date; and burdensome scheduling.
Health plans are actively partnering with provider organization and
state and local leaders to break down these barriers. For example,
Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health along
with the health plans operating Illinois and supported by AHIP, BCBSA,
Illinois Association of Medicaid Health Plans, and Illinois Life and
Health Insurance Council, recently announced that Illinois will launch
a Vaccine Community Connectors Program in the state to reduce COVID-19
vaccination disparities.\1\ Participating health plans will execute on
all of the commitments of the Vaccine Community Connectors program
described above and the State of Illinois has:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ https://www2.illinois.gov/Pages/news-item.aspx?ReleaseID=23036
Reserved weekly appointment slots at mass vaccination sites
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
for the plans to schedule vulnerable seniors;
Provided health plans with links to the state's mass
vaccination site scheduling system to schedule members;
Provided weekly access to data/analytics to support plan
outreach and identify target ZIP codes where seniors have not
been vaccinated; and
As available, respond to requests for state mobile teams.
This Illinois pilot demonstrates the critical importance of strong
partnerships between the public sector and private market to address
the needs of the people we both serve. Across the country, health
insurance providers will rely on existing relationships with government
and provider partners, their ability to build strong networks within
communities and among community leaders, and make connections across
the health care system to provide access for America's most vulnerable
seniors.
Health Insurance Providers in Action
Health insurance providers have increasingly focused their COVID-19
actions to improve vaccine acceptance and access. Below are several
examples of how AHIP member organizations are promoting quick, safe,
and equitable vaccinations:
Blue Shield of California launched ``Get it,'' an
advertising campaign to encourage all Californians to get
vaccinated--and protected--from COVID-19. Blue Shield of
California produced television and radio commercials in English
and Spanish, which aired in media markets across the state,
especially in communities most impacted by COVID-19.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ https://news.blueshieldca.com/2021/02/22/blue-shield-of-
california-encourages-californians-to-get-vaccinated-for-covid-19
Centene Corporation and several members of the Pro Football
Hall of Fame family are partnering to increase education and
awareness of COVID-19 vaccines through a series of new public
service announcements (PSA), to air nationally on television
networks and digital platforms. The PSAs will focus on
communities of color.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ https://centene.gcs-web.com/news-releases/news-release-details/
centene-and-pro-football-hall-fame-team-tackle-concerns-over
Health Net is sharing content on its social media tool kit
across channels to promote the Vaccinate All 58 social media
campaign in California. Health Net is using the opportunity to
let its members know that the vaccine is safe and effective.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ https://www.facebook.com/HealthNetInc/photos/a.197141806989580/
3555098077860586/?type=3&theater
SCAN Health Plan is offering members access to SCAN
TeleTalks, a series of large-scale conference calls addressing
the COVID-19 vaccine.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ https://www.scanhealthplan.com/members/coronavirus-vaccine
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support for the Ad Council's National COVID-19 Vaccine Education Effort
To further encourage equitable uptake, insurance providers leverage
their role as trusted messengers of health information for their
members. To help build trust across the country, AHIP contributed to
the work of the Ad Council on a national communications effort to
increase confidence in vaccination against COVID-19. Developed in
partnership with the COVID Collaborative, the initiative will reach key
audiences across the country through research-driven creative
campaigns, strategic media placements, community outreach and trusted
messenger engagement--representing one of the largest public education
efforts in history.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/leading-corporations-
and-foundations-come-together-to-support-national-covid-19-vaccine-
education-effort-from-the-ad-council-and-covid-collaborative-
301206697.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
A critical part of the strategy includes developing coalitions and
partnerships with leading non-profit, public health, civil rights,
faith-based and community organizations. In light of systemic
inequities that contribute to mistrust of vaccines among communities of
color, special attention will be given to developing content tailored
to reach and resonate with the Black and Hispanic communities, in
alignment with the Vaccine Community Connector program.
The campaign has been created in close partnership with the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. AHIP joins dozens of other partners in the
work, including Bank of America, Facebook, General Motors, Google and
YouTube, World Wrestling Entertainment, the American Heart Association,
and JPMorgan Chase.
Barriers to Promoting Information About the COVID-19 Vaccine
While great strides have been made in increasing the supply of the
COVID-19 vaccines, as described above, challenges still remain to the
effective execution of these efforts to assure Americans are
vaccinated.
The biggest challenge health insurance providers face is knowing
who has already been vaccinated. Because many people are being
vaccinated in public health settings that do not submit invoices to
health insurers, health insurance providers do not have complete
records of the vaccinations of the people they serve. Despite the fact
that health insurance providers are subject to HIPAA and routinely
possess and protect health care information, they rarely are provided
access Immunization Information Systems (IIS), which are independently
run by states and jurisdictions. This incomplete information can result
in fragmented care with the potential for confusion down the road (for
instance, should individuals need booster shots to match the original
dose or experience an adverse reaction).
Universal access to state and local IIS's would help health
insurance providers to more effectively reach the most vulnerable
people who have not yet been vaccinated and provide them with important
information about follow up care and treatment. Specifically, better
information would allow health plans to identify which of their members
in higher-risk groups and in the most vulnerable communities still need
access to vaccines. Health plans can use the data to better target
efforts to provide education and awareness, social media campaigns, and
outbound calls to alert their members of when vaccines are available,
how to schedule appointments, and when to get a second shot if it is
needed.
Vaccine misinformation and disinformation also remains a challenge.
Health insurance providers are working to educate people who may be
skeptical or fearful about the vaccines, inform them about the benefits
of immunization and the potential dangers associated with COVID-19, and
answer their questions.
Although inconsistent state distribution and patient eligibility
information have caused confusion, we are hopefully making our way past
this issue. With increasing supply of vaccines, health plans stand
ready to work across the health care system and with the public sector
to get Americans vaccinated so that we can reach community immunity and
get back to the moments we miss.
Conclusion
Everyone deserves a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as
possible, especially as the Nation grapples with the COVID-19 crisis.
We thank the members of the Subcommittee for your dedication to improve
health equity through promoting reliable COVID-19 vaccine information.
We look forward to working with Congress and the Administration to
promote equity and improve health outcomes for all Americans.
______
Prepared Statement of Carmen Scurato, Senior Policy Counsel;
Jessica J. Gonzalez, Co-CEO, Free Press Action Fund
Chairman Lujan, Ranking Member Thune, and esteemed members of the
subcommittee, thank you for accepting our written testimony for the
record.
Last week's hearing explored how we can try to ensure that people
have accurate information about the coronavirus vaccine as we race to
end the pandemic. Ensuring access to quality news and information about
vaccine safety and COVID-19 related health information is urgent. Yet
pandemic disinformation continues to flourish over social media and
broadcast media too. Much has been made about Big Tech platforms' role
in fueling the spread of vaccine disinformation, but sadly, they're not
alone. Broadcasters also have spread false, unverified and misleading
information about the vaccine and the pandemic. In addition to queries
into Big Tech's role in spreading disinformation, we encourage the
subcommittee to explore whether broadcasters have consistently served
the public interest with accurate, timely, local news and information
about the pandemic and the vaccine, and whether any broadcasters have
violated the FCC's broadcast hoax rule by amplifying inaccurate claims
about this public health emergency.
What pivots are needed to ensure that everyone receives their
``shot of truth'' on vaccine safety? What will accountability look like
for media entities that exacerbate the public health crisis by
spreading false information about it? As the subcommittee considers
these questions, we suggest that it address three key challenges: (1)
disinformation targeting and/or disproportionately impacting people of
color; (2) disinformation flowing over Big Tech; and (3) disinformation
over traditional media.
(1) Mitigating disinformation is critical to advancing public health
and safety for all and especially for communities of color.
As researchers at Harvard's Shorenstein Center have explained,
disinformation disrupts our access to timely, relevant, and accurate
information.\1\ Indeed, the World Health Organization (``WHO'') itself
has recognized that what it calls the ``infodemic'' presents a major
barrier to combatting the pandemic. In a joint statement with the
United Nations and international aid organizations, the WHO explained:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ See Letter from Joan Donavan et al., Technology and Social
Change Team, Harvard Kennedy School, Shorenstein Center on Media,
Politics and Public Policy, to Irene Khan, Special Rapporteur on the
promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and
expression, United Nations (Feb. 15, 2021), https://
mediamanipulation.org/sites/default/files/2021-02/
Donovan%20et%20al%20TaSC%20Comment%20-%20FINAL.pdf.
The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is the first pandemic in
history in which technology and social media are being used on
a massive scale to keep people safe, informed, productive and
connected. At the same time, the technology we rely on to keep
connected and informed is enabling and amplifying an infodemic
that continues to undermine the global response and jeopardizes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
measures to control the pandemic.
An infodemic is an overabundance of information, both online
and offline. It includes deliberate attempts to disseminate
wrong information to undermine the public health response and
advance alternative agendas of groups or individuals. Mis-and
disinformation can be harmful to people's physical and mental
health; increase stigmatization; threaten precious health
gains; and lead to poor observance of public health measures,
thus reducing their effectiveness and endangering countries'
ability to stop the pandemic.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ See Joint Statement by WHO, UN, UNICEF, UNDP, UNESCO, UNAIDS,
ITU, UN Global Pulse, and IFRC, Managing the COVID-19 infodemic:
Promoting healthy behaviours and mitigating the harm from
misinformation and disinformation (Sept. 2020), https://www.who.int/
news/item/23-09-2020-managing-the-covid-19-infodemic-promoting-healthy-
behaviours-and-mitigating-the-harm-from-misinformation-and-
disinformation.
Many of the countless COVID-19 disinformation campaigns woven with
conspiracy theories, half-truths, and lies are surgically designed to
target Black, Latinx, AAPI, Indigenous, and other communities of color.
More generally the flood of disinformation has spurred the
politicization of various community safety regulations, like mask-
wearing and social distancing. This has weakened our communal response
to the pandemic, where we continue to observe massive infection and
death rates, disproportionately affecting communities of color.
Both online platforms and broadcasters have shirked responsibility
and accountability for their roles in spreading dangerous
disinformation. Policymakers must examine how this entire corporate
media ecosystem works in concert to distort facts and spread deadly
lies. Understanding how disinformation is disseminated across the media
landscape is critical to achieving the goals outlined for the hearing,
of providing truthful and accurate information about the pandemic and
encouraging people to get vaccinated.
(2) Big Tech has failed to adequately rein in pandemic disinformation,
especially in non-English languages.
Big Tech's hate-and-lie-for-profit business model has built
algorithmic systems that prop up lies and recommend groups for people,
amplifying and recommending content that often steers people toward
conspiracy theories and false information about COVID, vaccines, and a
wide range of other important topics like the election. Predominant
vaccine disinformation remains up on several platforms, with phony
claims that vaccines cause dire side effects (including but not limited
to cancer and infertility) and that they include a microchip tracker.
Online platforms have every incentive to maximize profit by keeping
people engaged, and have chosen time after time to leave up hateful and
deceitful content that spurs enragement and keeps people glued to their
screens instead of promptly taking down such wild disinformation. For
instance, even in the face of massive public pressure campaigns--such
as the Stop Hate For Profit campaign that Free Press helped organize
last year, and which resulted in more than 1,100 advertisers pausing
advertising on Facebook in July in protest of rampant hate and
disinformation on the site--hate and disinformation continue to
flourish on Facebook.
Although most online platforms have updated their policies to
address COVID-19 related mis-and disinformation, their enforcement
efforts have been lackluster across the board, and especially in
languages other than English.\3\ Recent studies have revealed how a
small group of accounts are responsible for the majority of Covid-
related disinformation spread across social media platforms.\4\ And in
the absence of a more comprehensive approach to remove disinformation
instead of amplifying it, COVID vaccine conspiracies have continued to
spread far and wide on their sites. People of color, women, religious
minorities and others have repeatedly and outspokenly called for better
content moderation to tamp down hate and lies. That is why Change the
Terms--a coalition of more than 60 leading racial justice, civil
rights, human rights and digital rights groups, co-led by Free Press--
has been calling on platforms to adopt comprehensive model policies to
disrupt hate and disinformation on their sites.\5\ To date, not one
social media company has adopted those policies in full.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ There are daily instances of Spanish-language COVID-19
misinformation traveling across online platforms and closed messaging
apps over the last several months. For example, one such post listing
false vaccine side effects such as infertility and cancer was shared on
Telegram and in several Facebook groups, such as ``Cree en Cristo'' and
``LOS ULTIMOS DIAS Y SENALES DEL FIN.'' Another article from a site
called Abre Los Ojos claimed that 200 German scientists came out in
opposition to the COVID-19 vaccine was also shared on both Telegram and
Facebook. And a video from a prominent physician claimed that
``mandatory vaccinations'' are deemed ``genetic experiments.''
\4\ See ``The Disinformation Dozen: Why Platforms Must Act on
Twelve Leading Online Anti-Vaxxers,'' Center for Countering Digital
Hate (Mar. 2021), https://www.counterhate.com/disinformationdozen;
David Klepper, Farnoush Amiri & Beatrice Dupuy, ``The superspreaders
behind top COVID conspiracy theories,'' AP News (Feb. 15, 2021),
https://apnews.com/article/conspiracy-theories-iran-only-on-ap-media-
misinformation-bfca6d5b236a29d61c4dd38702495ffe.
\5\ See generally ``Recommended Internet Company Corporate Policies
And Terms of Service To Reduce Hateful Activities,'' Change the Terms,
https://assets.website-files.com/5bba6f4828dfc
3686095bf6b/
5bd0e36186e28d35874f0909_Recommended%20Internet%20Company%20Corporate
%20Policies%20%20Terms%20of%20Service_final-10-24.pdf (last visited
Apr. 14, 2021).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Facebook, as the largest online platform on earth, merits special
attention. A recent poll from Voto Latino and Media Matters found that
misinformation around COVID-19 plays a critical role in vaccine
hesitancy among the Latinx community, where 51 percent of Latinx
respondents said they would not get vaccinated, with the number rising
to 67 percent in Spanish-speaking households.\6\ Additionally, based on
the sample of respondents, the poll found that ``[t]he main source of
this information is Facebook: 49 percent say this is where they saw the
material. The second most common source of this information is local
news (39 percent).'' \7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ See ``LADL: Nationwide Poll on COVID Vaccine,'' Voto Latino &
Media Matters for America (Apr. 21, 2021), https://votolatino.org/
media/press-releases/polloncovid/.
\7\ See id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Free Press has worked with the National Hispanic Media Coalition
and the Center for American Progress to confront Facebook about rampant
Spanish-language disinformation across the many platforms it owns.
Together, our groups surfaced dozens of examples of Spanish-language
content that should have triggered immediate removal from Facebook--in
some instances we saw that the English version of the comment was
removed, while almost identical content remained up in Spanish.\8\ In
mid-March of this year, after Facebook's repeated failure to solve this
problem, we launched #YaBastaFacebook,\9\ a campaign to combat Spanish-
language disinformation. We demanded that Facebook:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ See generally Jessica Cobian, Carmen Scurato & Brenda Castillo,
Opinion, ``Facebook and the Disinformation Targeting Latinx
Communities,'' Colorlines (Mar. 19, 2021), https://www.colorlines.com/
articles/op-ed-facebook-and-disinformation-targeting-latinx-
communities.
\9\ See Spanish Language Disinformation Action Plan--
#YaBastaFacebook, Real Facebook Oversight Board (Mar. 16, 2021),
https://rfob.medium.com/spanish-language-disinformation-action-plan-
yabastafacebook-29e905c885eb.
1. Hire an executive in the United States to oversee Spanish-
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
language content moderation
2. Share how many Spanish-language content moderators it employs,
and what training they receive; and
3. Clarify why its translation algorithms consistently fail to
capture the nuance in Spanish-language, literally losing
dangerous and explicit vaccine lies in translation.
To date, Facebook has failed to respond to these requests.
Social media platforms have demonstrated, both through insufficient
action and outright inaction in many instances, that self-regulation
alone will not be enough to curtail dangerous disinformation online. We
are encouraged that Congress is gathering information about the spread
of disinformation and considering steps to regulate or ban abusive data
practices and discriminatory targeting.
(3) Some traditional media outlets, including broadcasters, have also
played a significant role in spreading disinformation about the
COVID-19 vaccine.
Mega-media conglomerates like Fox News\10\ and Sinclair Broadcast
Group,\11\ as well as cable channels like One America News Network,\12\
are also regular purveyors of COVID-19 disinformation. In the past year
they have all spread dangerous conspiracies about the pandemic and
vaccines. And as the Voto Latino/Media Matters poll seems to indicate,
vaccine disinformation is prominent over broadcast media and results in
vaccine hesitancy.\13\
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\10\ See Media Matters for America, Fox News, https://
www.mediamatters.org/search?search=
Fox+News (last visited Apr. 22, 2021).
\11\ See Media Matters for America, Sinclair Broadcast Group,
https://www.mediamatters.org/search?search=Sinclair+Broadcast+Group
(last visited Apr. 22, 2021).
\12\ See Media Matters for America, One America News Network,
https://www.media
matters.org/search?search=OAN (last visited Apr. 22, 2021).
\13\ ``LADL: Nationwide Poll on COVID Vaccine,'' Voto Latino &
Media Matters for America (Apr. 21, 2021), https://votolatino.org/
media/press-releases/polloncovid/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
We urge this subcommittee to grapple with the serious challenges
presented by mainstream media outlets propping up pandemic lies too.
For instance, what responsibility do broadcasters have to serve the
public interest by providing accurate information during an emergency
situation, like this pandemic? What can broadcasters do to ensure that
they provide the public with reliable and truthful information about
vaccines and other measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19? As we
move forward, should the FCC issue guidance to broadcasters on their
role to stop broadcasting hoaxes about the pandemic during this time of
national emergency? Should cable subscribers have a choice about
whether to subsidize Fox News' pandemic lies?
Free Press raised some of these questions over a year ago in an
Emergency Petition for Inquiry\14\ to the FCC, requesting that the
agency launch an investigation into the broadcast of false information
about COVID-19, disinformation about public health measures and
untested ``cures'' and home remedies.\15\ We observed that myriad radio
and television broadcasters were airing false and misleading
information about COVID-19, and that such content was being aired
without the necessary context or disclaimers\16\ contemplated by the
FCC's broadcast hoax rule.\17\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\14\ See Free Press Emergency Petition for Inquiry Into Broadcast
of False Information on COVID-19 (filed Mar. 26, 2020), https://
www.freepress.net/sites/default/files/2020-03/
free_press_petition_for_inquiry_to_fcc_re_broadcast_misinformation.pdf.
\15\ See Theresa Waldrop, Dave Alsup & Eliott C. McLaughlin,
``Fearing coronavirus, Arizona man dies after taking a form of
chloroquine used to treat aquariums,'' CNN (Mar. 25, 2019), https://
www.cnn.com/2020/03/23/health/arizona-coronavirus-chloroquine-death/
index.html.
\16\ At the time of our Emergency Petition for Inquiry, television
and radio stations across the country were airing context-less coverage
of former President Donald Trump's press conferences where he propped
up fake cures and falsely claimed that ``like a miracle'' the virus
would ``just disappear.'' See, e.g., Parker Molloy, ``Why can't
mainstream media stop echoing Trump's coronavirus misinformation?'',
Media Matters for America (Mar. 15, 2020), https://www.
mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/why-cant-mainstream-media-stop-
echoing-trumps-corona
virus-misinformation; David Leonhardt, ``Complete List of Trump's
Attempts to Play Down Coronavirus,'' N.Y. Times (Mar. 15, 2020),
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/15/opinion/trump-coronavirus.html;
Daniel Dale and Tara Subramaniam, ``Trump made 33 false claims about
the coronavirus crisis in the first two weeks of March,'' CNN (Mar. 22,
2020), https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/22/politics/fact-check-trump-
coronavirus-false-claims-march/index.
html.
\17\ When the Commission adopted in 1992 its rule against broadcast
hoaxes, it weighed the public interest obligations of its licensees
against their First Amendment rights and concluded that ``the
government has a compelling interest in preventing substantial public
harm, such as the substantial diversion of police and emergency
resources from their duties,'' further noting that ``the First
Amendment does not preclude civil liability for broadcasts that create
a foreseeable risk of personal injury.'' Amendment of Part 73 Regarding
Broadcast Hoaxes, MM Docket No. 91-314, Report and Order, 7 FCC Rcd
4106, 10-11 (1992), https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-92-
208A1.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The FCC's broadcast hoax rule requires that broadcasters not air
``false information concerning a crime or catastrophe if: (a) The
licensee knows this information is false; (b) It is foreseeable that
broadcast of the information will cause substantial harm, and; (c)
Broadcast of the information does in fact directly cause substantial
public harm.'' \18\ Nonetheless, in the throes of the pandemic, the
Trump-era FCC denied our emergency petition and declined to issue
guidance on how broadcast disinformation may run afoul of the broadcast
hoax rule.\19\ Unsurprisingly then, pandemic disinformation endures in
broadcast radio and television. For example, Sinclair Broadcast Group
recently aired a segment attacking lockdowns and downplaying the
lethality of COVID-19,\20\ while radio hosts state they are hesitant to
take the vaccine and promote anti-vaccine misinformation.\21\ Just as
they have when it comes to social media, we encourage members of this
subcommittee to interrogate: the role that broadcasters played and
continue to play in airing information about COVID-19, whether their
actions are adhering to their mandate to serve the public interest, and
what the FCC can do to stop the spread of deadly disinformation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\18\ 47 C.F.R. Sec. 73.1217.
\19\ See ``FCC Defends 1st Amendment and Denies Petition filed by
Free Press,'' (Apr. 6, 2020), https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-defends-
1st-amendment-and-denies-petition-filed-free-press.
\20\ See Zachary Pleat, ``Sinclair's Full Measure attacks lockdowns
while downplaying the lethality of COVID-19 and promoting a strategy of
widespread infection,'' Media Matters for America (Feb. 9, 2021),
https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/sinclairs-full-
measure-attacks-lockdowns-while-downplaying-lethality-covid-19. The
segment aired on a show called ``Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson''
which according to the show's website broadcast to 43 million
households in 79 markets on 162 Sinclair Broadcast Group stations.
\21\ See Alex Walker, ``Some states are confronting vaccine
hesitancy. These local radio hosts aren't helping,'' Media Matters for
America (Mar. 23, 2021), https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-
covid-19/some-states-are-confronting-vaccine-hesitancy-these-local-
radio-hosts-arent.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Conclusion
Free Press Action looks forward to working with this subcommittee
to evaluate whether and how traditional and social media platforms are
disseminating accurate vaccine safety and COVID-health-related
information, and to recommend any appropriate interventions to ensure
that all Americans have trustworthy vaccine information. Thank you.
______
Prepared Statement of Media Matters for America
Dear Chairman Ben Ray Lujan and Ranking Member John Thune, and
Members of the Committee,
Media Matters for America is a 501(c3) media watchdog and research
information center. We work daily to document how misinformation and
disinformation spread within the U.S. media and online.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been catastrophic for American citizens,
killing upward of half a million people. The COVID-19 vaccines, which
have been called the key to achieving herd immunity, have become
targets of bad actors who aim to spread dangerous and misleading
misinformation to devalue and undermine their effectiveness.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ University of Missouri Health Care, ``COVID-19 Vaccine Key to
Reaching `Herd Immunity,'' September 21, 2020, https://
www.muhealth.org/our-stories/covid-19-vaccine-key-reaching-herd-
immunity
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The right-wing media have been a pivotal force in pushing the lie
that COVID-19 vaccines do not work or are dangerous. The leading
misinformer has been Fox News, which spent 2020 recklessly minimizing
the pandemic as it took the lives of hundreds of thousands of
Americans.\2\ The network spent months putting the health of millions
of Americans at risk thanks to the symbiotic relationship between Fox
and the Trump White House.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ Matt Gertz, Media Matters for America, ``Misinformer of the
Year: Fox News,'' December 30, 2020, https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-
news/misinformer-year-fox-news
\3\ Ibid.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fox News promoted coronavirus misinformation an estimated 13,551
times on its weekday programs from February to December 2020.\4\ The
network's hosts and guests also promoted unproven treatments like
hydroxychloroquine nearly 300 times during a two-week span and ran at
least 1,001 segments that undermined coronavirus health measures over a
three-month period in 2020.\5\ \6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Ibid.
\5\ Lis Power and Rob Savillo, Media Matters for America, ``Fox
News has promoted hydroxychloroquine nearly 300 times in a two-week
period,'' April 7, 2020, https://www.media
matters.org/fox-news/fox-news-has-promoted-hydroxychloroquine-nearly-
300-times-two-week-period
\6\ Matt Gertz, Media Matters for America, ``Misinformer of the
Year: Fox News,'' December 30, 2020, https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-
news/misinformer-year-fox-news
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The key purveyors of this misinformation include Fox News prime-
time hosts Laura Ingraham and Tucker Carlson, who have repeatedly
questioned vaccine effectiveness throughout their development and
rollout, in addition to hosting guests with reputations for being
stringent vaccination opponents. Carlson and the guests on his
programs, Tucker Carlson Tonight and Tucker Carlson Today, have
repeatedly cast doubt on vaccine efficacy--to the point that Dr.
Anthony Fauci, President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser, has said
Carlson's comments amount to a ``crazy conspiracy theory.'' \7\ As
recently as April 13, Carlson claimed that the COVID vaccine ``doesn't
work and they're simply not telling you that.'' \8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ Media Matters Staff, Media Matters for America, ``Dr. Fauci on
Tucker Carlson's vaccine comments: `That's just a typical crazy
conspiracy theory,' '' April 14, 2021, https://www.media
matters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/dr-fauci-tucker-carlsons-vaccine-
comments-thats-just-typical-crazy-conspiracy
\8\ Media Matters Staff, Media Matters for America, ``Tucker
Carlson speculates the COVID vaccine `doesn't work and they're simply
not telling you that,' '' April 13, 2021, https://www.mediamatters.org/
fox-news/tucker-carlson-speculates-covid-vaccine-doesnt-work-and-
theyre-simply-not-telling-you
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carlson, as well as frequent Fox guest Alex Berenson--whom The
Atlantic dubbed ``The Pandemic's Wrongest Man'' and various other
right-wing figures across platforms also jumped on the temporary pause
in distribution in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after six recipients
experienced rare blot clots.\9\ \10\ The pause was initiated partly to
make sure health care providers were prepared to treat this
condition.\11\ But Carlson took it as an opportunity to claim that the
vaccine was more dangerous than previously thought and possibly even
ineffective.\12\ Berenson suggested other vaccination campaigns (Pfizer
and Moderna) also be halted.\13\
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\9\ Derek Thompson, The Atlantic, ``The Pandemic's Wrongest Man,''
April 1, 2021, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/04/
pandemics-wrongest-man/618475/
\10\ Alex Walker, Media Matters for America, ``Johnson & Johnson
vaccine pause fuels anti-vax rhetoric from right-wing media,'' April
14, 2021, https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/johnson-
johnson-vaccine-pause-fuels-anti-vax-rhetoric-right-wing-media
\11\ Carolyn Y. Johnson, Laurie McGinley, Lena H. Sun, and
Christopher Rowland, The Washington Post, ``FDA, CDC call for pause in
use of Johnson & Johnson vaccine after `extremely rare' cases of blood
clots,'' April 13, 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/04/
13/johnson-and-johnson-vaccine-blood-clots/
\12\ Alex Walker, Media Matters for America, ``Johnson & Johnson
vaccine pause fuels anti-vax rhetoric from right-wing media,'' April
14, 2021, https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/johnson-
johnson-vaccine-pause-fuels-anti-vax-rhetoric-right-wing-media
\13\ Alex Berenson, Twitter, April 13, 2021, https://twitter.com/
AlexBerenson/status/138193
2310426189829?s=20
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Fox News is not the only force spreading COVID-19 misinformation.
This misinformation often originates and is spread throughout social
media via right-wing political pundits and activists, including right-
wing ministry Daystar Television, MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, and former
Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon.\14\ \15\ \16\ \17\ Despite
continuing insistence from the social media platforms that they have
COVID-19 misinformation under control, misinformation is found on
almost every platform, including but not limited to TikTok, Instagram,
Facebook, and Twitter.\18\ \19\ \20\ \21\
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\14\ Timothy Johnson, Media Matters for America, ``Anti-vaccine
ministry uses Facebook to promote dangerous COVID-19 and vaccine
falsehoods to millions followers,'' March 18, 2021, https://
www.mediamatters.org/facebook/anti-vaccine-ministry-uses-facebook-
promote-dangerous
-covid-19-and-vaccine-falsehoods
\15\ Media Matters Staff, Media Matters for America, ``My Pillow
CEO Mike Lindell refers to the COVID-19 vaccine as the `mark of the
beast,' '' March 11, 2021, https://www.media
matters.org/steve-bannon/my-pillow-ceo-mike-lindell-refers-covid-19-
vaccine-mark-beast
\16\ Rhea Bhatnagar, Media Matters for America, ``Right-wing
media's focus on abortion may stop people from getting vaccines,''
March 9, 2021, https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/right-
wing-medias-focus-abortion-may-stop-people-getting-vaccines
\17\ Media Matters Staff, Media Matters for America, ``Steve Bannon
says coronavirus vaccines are `not technically vaccines' but
`experimental gene therapies,' '' March 15, 2021, https://
www.mediamatters.org/steve-bannon/steve-bannon-says-coronavirus-
vaccines-are-not-technically-vaccines-experimental-gene
\18\ Olivia Little and Chloe Simon, Media Matters for America,
``TikTok's massive COVID-19 and vaccine misinformation failure,'' March
12, 2021, https://www.mediamatters.org/tiktok/tiktoks-massive-covid-19-
and-vaccine-misinformation-failure
\19\ Spencer Silva, Media Matters for America, ``Vaccine
misinformation still runs wild on Instagram,'' March 23, 2021, https://
www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/vaccine-misinformation-still-
runs-wild-instagram
\20\ Timothy Johnson, Media Matters for America, ``Right-wing
ministry continues to use Facebook to dispense deadly COVID-19 and
vaccine misinformation to millions of followers,'' March 29, 2021,
https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/right-wing-ministry-
continues-use-facebook-dispense-deadly-covid-19-and
\21\ Kayla Gogarty, Media Matters for America, ``Fake `vaccination
exemption' cards are being promoted on Twitter, despite its policy
against COVID-19 vaccine misinformation,'' March 8, 2021, https://
www.mediamatters.org/twitter/fake-vaccination-exemption-cards-are-
being-promoted-twitter-despite-its-policy-against
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In particular, video streaming site YouTube has been a breeding
ground for COVID-19 and vaccine conspiracy theories throughout the
pandemic. In February, a video from a conspiracy theory-filled series
titled Planet Lockdown gained over 20 million views between Facebook
and YouTube. The video features Catherine Austin Fitts, a former
assistant secretary of housing and urban development under President
George H.W. Bush and an anti-vaxxer, who makes the false accusation
that the COVID vaccine will modify a recipient's DNA and make them
infertile.\22\ \23\
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\22\ Alex Kaplan, Media Matters for America, ``YouTube and Facebook
allowed another COVID-19 conspiracy theory video to go viral,''
February 8, 2021, https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/
youtube-and-facebook-allowed-another-covid-19-conspiracy-theory-video-
go-viral
\23\ Beatrice Dupuy, Associated Press, ``No evidence that COVID-19
vaccine results in sterilization,'' December 8, 2020, https://
apnews.com/article/fact-checking-afs:Content:9856420671
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Facebook is also notorious for profiting from and enabling the
spread of dangerous COVID misinformation--as well as fomenting anti-
lockdown, anti-vaccine forces. Right-leaning Facebook pages have
contributed to the spread of COVID-19 misinformation. Media Matters
found at least 7,300 Facebook posts from right-leaning pages with
keywords related to COVID-19 and vaccine misinformation between June 1,
2020, and February 28, 2021. As COVID-19 vaccines were granted
emergency use authorization between December 1, 2020, and February 28,
2021, there were at least 1,900 Facebook posts from right-leaning pages
with keywords related to COVID-19 and vaccine misinformation.
In April 2020, Facebook announced that ``events that defy
government's guidance on social distancing'' wouldn't be allowed on
Facebook. Facebook's actions came after the creation of more than 100
state-specific Facebook groups to protest stay-at-home orders across
the country.\24\ These groups and affiliated Facebook pages organized
at least 49 different events.\25\ Through the course of the pandemic,
Facebook has repeatedly allowed its users to organize in opposition of
public health measures aimed at curbing the spread of the virus.
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\24\ Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News, ``Facebook removes some events
calling for protests of stay-at-home orders,'' April 20, 2020, https://
www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/facebook-removes-some-events-calling-
protests-stay-home-orders-n1187811
\25\ Kayla Gogarty, Media Matters for America, ``Facebook says it
removed events violating stay-at-home orders. But, it hasn't removed
them,'' April 22, 2020, https://www.media
matters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/facebook-says-it-removed-events-
violating-stay-home-orders-it-hasnt-removed
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In addition, Facebook has been slow to curb the spread of dangerous
medical misinformation targeting COVID-19 vaccines. For instance, Media
Matters also discovered an anti-vaccine Facebook group and a network of
17 state-specific groups spreading harmful coronavirus conspiracy
theories and misinformation.\26\ This misinformation included false
claims that COVID-19 is no different from the flu and that wearing
masks increases the chances of getting the virus.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\26\ Kayla Gogarty, Media Matters for America, ``A network of anti-
vaccine Facebook groups is a hotbed for coronavirus conspiracy theories
and medical misinformation,'' May 11, 2020, https://
www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/network-anti-vaccine-
facebook-groups-hotbed-coronavirus-conspiracy-theories
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These misinformation narratives also often circulate on fringe or
far-right extremist platforms including Telegram, 4chan, Gab, and
Patriots.win. These platforms have less stringent moderation than their
mainstream counterparts, allowing misinformation regarding vaccines to
spread unchallenged. This makes the Internet dangerous territory for
anyone in search of factual information pertaining to the pandemic and
the corresponding vaccines.
Sincerely,
Media Matters for America.
______
Prepared Statement of Tara Kirk Sell, PhD, MA, Senior Scholar;
Marc Trotochaud, MSPH, Senior Analyst; Divya Hosangadi, MSPH,
Senior Analyst; Ellie Smith, MSPH, Graduate Research Assistant;
Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Chairman Lujan, Ranking Member Thune, and members of the committee:
Thank you for inviting us to provide written testimony to the
committee on the problem of communicating trusted vaccine information.
This is a critical component of ending the COVID-19 pandemic and
returning to normalcy. Our testimony will focus on ways to improve
communication around COVID-19 vaccines and ways to combat health-
related misinformation and disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic
and future public health emergencies. The topic of this hearing is
critical, and we commend the subcommittee for taking this on. The
timing is also important. As we now attempt to reach every eligible
American 16 years or older with a vaccine, we know that even the most
effective vaccine cannot work if people, misled by rumor and
falsehoods, are too afraid to take it.
Our group is made up of researchers experienced in risk
communication and analysis of misinformation and disinformation. The
opinions expressed herein are our own and do not necessarily reflect
the views of the Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Tara Kirk Sell is an
Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Health and
Engineering at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and
is a Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
Marc Trotochaud and Divya Hosangadi are Research Associates in the
Department of Environmental Health and Engineering at the Johns Hopkins
Bloomberg School of Public Health and Senior Analysts at the Johns
Hopkins Center for Health Security. Ellie Smith is a Graduate Research
Assistant at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. The Center
for Health Security's mission is to protect people's health from major
epidemics and disasters and build resilience. We study the
organizations, systems, and tools needed to prepare and respond to
these events.
Our testimony is founded on expertise gained through extensive
research on pandemic preparedness and public health risk communication.
We believe the problem of health-related misinformation and
disinformation and the need for clear, consistent communication that
encourages COVID-19 vaccination have been provided by hearing
witnesses. Therefore, in this testimony we focus on practical solutions
that may help to improve communication about vaccination and reduce
health-related misinformation and disinformation. Additional research
into these topics is important. There is still a great amount to be
learned about COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and misinformation that will
help our country to improve the response to both COVID-19 and future
threats.
Risk communication needs
The communication landscape around the COVID-19 pandemic and
multiple COVID-19 vaccines is dynamic and the information needs of
communities across the country are broad and multifaceted. Messaging
around vaccines and vaccination must appeal to a range of populations
with different needs, concerns, and barriers to getting a vaccine.
Recent polling from Pew Research Center and the Kaiser Family
Foundation suggests that COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy may stem from a
lack of confidence and trust around the vaccine and the development
process.i,ii Though the COVID-19
vaccination campaign has received high levels of support from large
portions of the country, with many valuing the demonstrated benefits of
vaccination, it is likely that this initial response will dwindle,
requiring active communication to encourage further vaccination of the
U.S. population. Parts of the country are already facing a decline in
interest in and rates of vaccination, leading to challenges in meeting
adequate population coverage and increasing the risk of wasted
vaccines.iii
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\i\ Cary Funk and Alec Tyson, ``Growing Share of Americans Say They
Plan To Get a COVID-19 Vaccine--or Already Have,'' Pew Research Center
Science & Society. April 6, 202. Available at: https://
www.pewresearch.org/science/2021/03/05/growing-share-of-americans-say-
they-plan
-to-get-a-covid-19-vaccine-or-already-have/.
\ii\ Lunna Lopes Liz Hamel, ``KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor: March
2021,'' KFF, March 30, 2021. Available at: https://www.kff.org/
coronavirus-covid-19/poll-finding/kff-covid-19-vaccine-monitor-march-
2021/.
\iii\ Bracey Harris and Nigel Chiwaya, ``States See Rise in Unused
Vaccines as Demand Flattens, Shifting Focus to Hesitancy,'' NBCNews.com
(NBCUniversal News Group, April 17, 2021), https://www.nbcnews.com/
news/us-news/states-see-rise-unused-vaccines-demand-flattens-shifting-
focus-hesitancy-n1264346.
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Effective risk communication about COVID-19 vaccines should be a
tailored and iterative process. The first step in addressing vaccine
hesitancy is to identify the groups of people within the country who
are experiencing vaccine hesitancy. Recent polling suggests that the
gap between White Americans and Black Americans is closing but that
there is still room for improvement, along with focused attention to
Hispanic populations, rural populations, White Evangelicals, and
Republicans.i,ii Crafting communication messages for those
who are already enthusiastic about getting the vaccine or those who
adamantly object to the COVID-19 vaccine is not an efficient pathway
toward reaching desired levels of vaccination coverage. Instead,
focusing on those who may be open to vaccination but are undecided or
face barriers to accessing a vaccine is critical. Additional
information on the unique barriers and hesitations of different
communities can be better understood through activities like polling
and reporting from on-the-ground stakeholders and working with local
communities. Local groups within communities can interface most
effectively to identify those who may be vaccine hesitant. Prioritizing
work to tap into, and support, these ongoing efforts will provide
frameworks for future communication and avoid duplicative efforts.
Existing broad communication campaigns have sought to provide
information on common vaccine misconceptions. These campaigns have
included trusted messengers, increasing the chances of overcoming
uncertainty around COVID-19 vaccines. Additionally, multiple efforts
from the Federal government and partners have designed public service
announcements, using celebrities or well-known public figures to raise
awareness of the
vaccine.iv,v,vi
While there is value in large-scale communication campaigns, it is
important to continue to support other, more local or community-
specific organizations to do this outreach and communication work.
Community organizations are better equipped to work with local
populations due to time already invested in the community, longstanding
relationships that increase trust, and their commitment to providing
lasting support within the community. The American Rescue Plan has
taken several substantive steps to provide funding for public health
communication. The bill supports the CDC's communication effort around
the COVID-19 vaccine and outreach activities through community health
organizations. Additional funding has been allocated for local health
departments, which could be used to support vaccine communication
efforts.
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\iv\ ``COVID-19 Vaccination Communication Toolkit for Health
Systems and Clinics,'' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, December 21, 2020),
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/health-systems-communication-
toolkit.html.
\v\ ``COVID-19 Vaccine Education Initiative,'' Ad Council Org,
accessed April 19, 2021, https://www.adcouncil.org/covid-vaccine.
\vi\ Paul LeBlanc, ``Biden and Obama Urge Americans to Get
Vaccinated in Star-Studded Television Special,'' CNN (Cable News
Network, April 19, 2021), https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/18/politics/
biden-obama-covid-vaccine-roll-up-your-sleeves/index.html.
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An ongoing effort led by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health
Security and Texas State University's Department of Anthropology is one
example of a research collaborative working on a national plan to
address these COVID-19 vaccination concerns in local populations across
the country. The CommuniVax coalition\1\ (https://www.communivax.org/)
has brought together a multidisciplinary team of researchers and a
network of local partners conducting rapid ethnographic research to
inform policy on an equitable and effective COVID-19 vaccination
campaign. The project's first action plan compiled evidence-based
advice on how local and state jurisdictions could ensure that their
vaccination effort does not leave parts of the population behind. The
group is scheduled to produce two additional reports, one sharing
insights from community research of seven local teams working across
the United States and the other on longitudinal pathways for a more
equitable public health system. This, and similar efforts across the
country, provide guidance for a Federal communication strategy around
COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Although more resource and time-intensive
than large-scale communication campaigns, tailored communication
efforts and working with communities will provide significant benefits
through better vaccine uptake in the populations that need it the most.
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\1\ Disclosure: The CommuniVax Coalition is funded by the Chan
Zuckerberg Initiative, which was cofounded by the founder and CEO of
Facebook. Author MT currently works on and DH previously worked on this
research project. This testimony is independent work of the authors.
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Below, are several approaches to consider when working to address
vaccine hesitancy:
Elevate the voices of trusted partners
Support and fund collaborative approaches to vaccine
communication through cooperation with faith-based and
community-based organizations. Work with local organizations to
amplify vaccine information through trusted sources and key
messengers.
Establish connections between public health organizations
and news media members serving local communities to highlight
the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination. These trusted voices may
be the main source of news in local communities.
Establish systems to gather information from communities
Support systems that allow feedback from community members
and trusted community partners to influence vaccination
processes. Communication is a two-way process; community voices
and concerns should have a meaningful impact on vaccine
delivery.
Consider concerns and hesitations as valuable feedback on
communication needs in the community. Although some concerns
may be unsupported by science, these reflect areas where
additional information and/or efforts to communicate through
shared values and beliefs are critical. Communication should be
inclusive of people at different stages of their decision-
making process.
Eliminate barriers to vaccination
Ensure vaccination sites and timing of vaccination
appointments are easily accessible and feasible for the local
community. In many instances, lack of accessibility may be more
of a barrier than hesitancy.
Streamline pathways for registration and preparation for
COVID-19 vaccination. The vaccination scheduling system has
been viewed as hard to manage and arduous for some. Support
systems that allow everyone to access the vaccine.
Support local public health
Ensure that local health departments have the support and
funding to translate educational materials into all prevalent
languages used in their jurisdiction.
Establish and fund action plans that include long-term
improvements to the delivery of public health services for a
community. When other essential health services are lacking in
a community, vaccination is less of a priority.
Above all, communication planners, as well as the public, should
communicate and understand that changes to recommendations and
approaches are likely as the COVID-19 vaccination campaign continues in
the U.S. Unforeseen challenges with vaccine administration,
particularly current emerging questions around rare adverse events,
have complicated the communication landscape around certain vaccine
products. Additionally, COVID-19 vaccine development and use may shift
or evolve amid changing epidemic situations. Preparing and testing
messages ahead of time will allow for a timely response at particularly
critical moments.
Solutions for health-related misinformation and disinformation
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that health-related misinformation
and disinformation can dangerously undermine the response to a public
health crisis. In terms of vaccine hesitancy, research has shown that
misinformation can lead to measurable declines in intent to receive a
COVID-19 vaccine.vii Polling shows that approximately 20
percent--30 percent of U.S. adults do not plan to receive the COVID-19
vaccine.i,ii While it is the right of every individual to
choose whether to receive a vaccine, every effort must be made to
address concerns and barriers that limit vaccine uptake--particularly
those caused by rumors or false information.
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\vii\ Sahil Loomba et al., ``Measuring the Impact of COVID-19
Vaccine Misinformation on Vaccination Intent in the UK and USA,''
Nature Human Behavior (Nature Publishing Group, February 5, 2021),
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-021-01056-1.
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Unfortunately, there are no easy solutions to the problem of
health-related misinformation and disinformation. No U.S. agency is
tasked with leading a unified response, constitutional concerns with
restricting free speech limit some potential interventions, and
solutions require cooperation across a range of stakeholders. Great
attention has been paid to the need for social media companies to act
in responsible ways. Technological solutions are indeed necessary, but
not sufficient, in the battle against health-related misinformation.
It is time for the United States to address the problem of health-
related misinformation and disinformation through a national strategy.
Such a strategy will facilitate a more unified and effective response
to misleading information during the COVID-19 pandemic and future
public health emergencies. The National Security Council should be
responsible for developing and overseeing a U.S. strategy for
preventing and responding to health-related misinformation and
disinformation in public health emergencies, drawing on existing
Federal agency efforts, expertise, and implementation capabilities.
Additionally, effective management of health-related misinformation
and disinformation would benefit from the establishment of a neutral,
nonpartisan, and expert authority in the health communication landscape
that would take the form of a standing nonpartisan cross-disciplinary
expert commission--including social media companies, communication
specialists, public health experts, and bioethicists--to propose
standards. A detailed explanation of such a proposed strategy are
included here: https://www.centerforhealthsecurity.org/our-work/
publications/national-priorities-to-combat-misinformation-and-
disinformation-for-covid-19. We provide a summary below.
The priorities that should guide the development of a national
strategy are:
1) Intervene against false and damaging content as well as the
sources propagating it
Establish a multiagency national security response
effort that prioritizes management of public health
disinformation, from both domestic and international
sources, as a national security issue in order to prevent
disinformation campaigns and educate the public on their
use.
Establish a national nonpartisan commission that
provides neutral evidence-based guidance and
recommendations in order to improve the health
communication landscape in ways that limit misleading
information and ensure accountability for and
identification of sources of misleading information.
Encourage active, transparent, nonpartisan
intervention from social media and news media companies to
identify and remove, control the spread of, and curtail
generators of false information.
2) Promote and ensure the abundant presence and dissemination of
factual information
Prioritize public health risk communication at the
federal, state, and local levels in public health
departments and academic research communities by including
training and resources on specific messaging and by
increasing staffing, funding, and research support.
Increase coordination between public health experts
and sources of public information, including social media
platforms and news media to increase the dissemination of
accurate information through multiple channels.
3) Increase the public's resilience to misinformation and
disinformation
Safeguard and promote health and digital literacy
through multiple sources including schools, community
organizations, social media, news media, and others to help
information consumers choose responsible sources of
information and increase their awareness of disinformation
tactics and approaches.
Improve resources for public verification of
questionable content through the development of a robust
fact-checking infrastructure with support, training, and
guiding principles for fact-checking organizations.
4) Ensure a whole-of-nation response through multisector and
multiagency collaboration
Ensure multisector collaboration in the development of
a national strategy to combat public health misinformation
through collective planning with social media, news media,
government, national security officials, public health
officials, scientists, the public, and others.
Increase coordination across the range of government
stakeholders and conduct a cross-governmental analysis of
efforts and responsibilities for managing health-related
misinformation and disinformation in order to streamline
and organize efforts. Key U.S. agencies include the
Department of Defense, Department of Health and Human
Services, and Department of Homeland Security as well as
intelligence agencies such as the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, the National Security Agency, and the
Central Intelligence Agency.
Conclusion
This hearing recognizes a critical component in increasing
vaccination rates across the U.S.--effective communication. We have
highlighted several key priorities to increase the capacity of public
health and other communicators to provide effective risk communication
to local communities. At the same time, the problem of health-related
misinformation and disinformation must be dealt with through a more
unified national strategy. We share great optimism that the problem of
vaccine hesitancy is a tractable and approachable problem and thank the
committee for its commitment to engaging in solutions-based approaches
to make meaningful change.
[all]