New York Times Pressured Scientists To Lie About Masks, In Yet Another Example Of Media Manipulation

Working hard to protect themselves

The science is clear: masks don't work. It was clear five years ago, when the collective hive mind of experts, media and politicians told the public that masks don't work. Or in Anthony Fauci's case, that masks could make things worse by providing a false sense of security and protection.

By now, we know what changed their minds in early-2020; not new scientific evidence, data, or research. It was a column from Zeynep Tufecki at The New York Times.

Tufecki, who is a sociologist, somehow avoided the extreme credentialism that was to become a consistent feature of COVID discourse throughout the pandemic. Tufecki, who has little record of academic publishing in her own field, and only one misinformation-riddled paper on masks co-authored by a software engineer, had outsized influence on science. Because the Times remains highly influential in left-wing political circles. The same circles frequented by employees at the CDC, FDA, and other influential public health institutions.

But in 2023, the Cochrane Library published an updated review of the evidence on masks and found, just as they always have, that there's no scientific evidence demonstrating that masks are effective at preventing the transmission of respiratory viruses, including COVID.

New Gold Standard Evidence Review on Masking to Stop COVID Has Been Released

Tufecki, using the power of the Times, immediately set about trying to undermine it. Because it made her and her articles look bad.

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 27: (L-R) Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Chief Medical Advisor to the President, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky, arrive for a video call with U.S. President Joe Biden, the White House Covid-19 Response team and the National Governors Association in the South Court Auditorium at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on December 27, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

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