Distrust in Vaccines Grows Among US Adults, Survey Shows
U.S. Americans’ trust in vaccines — especially COVID-19 vaccines — has dropped, according to a survey conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.
The survey results detail the most recent wave of responses — collected in July — from a nationally representative sample of 1,496 adults, most of whom have been routinely surveyed in the project since April 2021. Roughly 100 of the adults were added after 2021 due to attrition of the survey’s initial participants.
In addition to showing an overall decline in willingness to vaccinate, the results showed what an Annenberg Public Policy Center press release called a “greater acceptance of Covid vaccine misinformation.”
The survey results follow on the heels of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval last week of updated COVID-19 boosters for ages 6 months and up.
Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Ph.D., who directs the Annenberg Public Policy Center and leads its survey efforts, said in the press release, “With the CDC reporting that COVID-19 infection remains an ongoing threat and an updated vaccine available, now is the time to ramp up awareness both of the value of vaccinating against COVID-19 and of the risks of contracting the disease.”
The survey report did not define “misinformation” but described it in passing as a “science-inconsistent response.”
The Annenberg Public Policy Center did not immediately respond when The Defender asked for a clearer definition.
‘Incorrect’ to believe COVID vaccines caused thousands of deaths
The survey findings reveal that, as of July, more than a quarter of U.S. adults (28%) — up from 22% in June 2021 — “incorrectly” believe that the COVID-19 vaccines have been responsible for thousands of deaths, according to the report’s authors.
“The percentage who know this is false,” they added, “declined to 55% from 66%.”
The number of U.S. adults who believe the “false idea” that it’s safer to get a COVID-19 infection than to get the vaccine more than doubled (now 22%) since April 2021 (10%).
The percentage of U.S. adults who “incorrectly” think the COVID-19 vaccine changes people’s DNA rose from 8% in April 2021 to 15% in July 2024.
Jamieson said, “Belief in these three misconceptions is associated with increased reluctance to vaccinate.”
The Defender asked Jamieson for her thoughts on how to foster an effective dialogue between those, such as herself, who are concerned about vaccine “misinformation” and those who have suffered a vaccine injury or whose loved ones were vaccine-injured.
She did not respond by our publication deadline.
Few people remain worried about COVID infections
According to the Annenberg Public Policy Center’s press release, its survey results also showed:
- Relatively few are worried: Only 1 in 5 people (20%, July 2024) are somewhat or very worried they or someone in their family will contract COVID, down from 25% in February 2024 and 35% in October 2023.
- Decreased interest: Under half of those surveyed (44%) said in February 2024 they are “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to get a yearly COVID-19 vaccine if it is recommended by the CDC, down from 52% in June 2023.
- Benefits vs. risks: Two-thirds of Americans (66% in July 2024) say the benefits of taking COVID-19 vaccines outweigh the risks — but that is lower than the percentage who say the benefits outweigh the risks for the mpox vaccine (70% in July 2024), RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) vaccine for adults 60 and older (74% in October 2023), and MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine (89% in August 2023).
- Covid-19 vaccines seen as less safe and effective than others: As of [the] October 2023 survey, fewer people regard COVID-19 vaccines as safe (66%) and effective (65%) than a variety of other vaccines: MMR (81% safe, 83% effective); flu (81% safe, 75% effective); shingles (78% safe, 73% effective) or pneumonia (74% safe, 69% effective).
- A hypothetical trivalent vaccine: In July 2024, less than half of those surveyed (49%) would be likely to take a combined single-shot mRNA vaccine to protect against flu, RSV, and COVID-19 if one existed and the CDC recommended it. At the same time, 27% say they would be “not at all likely” to take such a single-shot mRNA vaccine.
Nearly 1 in 3 doubt effectiveness of HPV vaccine
According to the survey, U.S. adults are skeptical about other vaccines, not just the COVID-19 shots.
Roughly a third (32%) of U.S. adults said they were unsure of the effectiveness of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
Additionally, 23% were uncertain about the pneumonia vaccine, 19% doubted the shingles vaccine, and 47% were unsure about the RSV vaccine during pregnancy or at age 60 and older (37%).
The survey did not appear to report public perceptions of these vaccines’ safety profile. However, the authors did report that public perception of both the safety and effectiveness of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine dropped to 81% and 83%, respectively, from 2023 when 88% said it was somewhat or very safe, and 87% said it was somewhat or very effective.
The Annenberg Public Policy Center, established in 1993, educates the public and policymakers about communication’s role in advancing public understanding of political, science, and health issues at the local, state, and federal levels.
Its ongoing survey is funded by an endowment established by the Annenberg Foundation.
Doctors Quit British Medical Association Over It’s Support Of Puberty Blockers For Trans Kids
Hundreds of doctors in the UK are resigning from the British Medical Association in revolt against the unions opposition to a ban on puberty blockers for kids according to reports in The Times and The […]
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NATO Warns Its Members Against Shooting Down Russian Missiles Over Ukraine
Poland has suggested that shooting down Russian missiles over Ukraine would be its “duty” but NATO appears to disagree and has warned its members against such a move. Adressing demands from Ukraine and statements by […]
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New Right-Wing Party to Create French ‘Union of the Rights’
Acknowledging the splintering of his political family following his controversial decision to form an alliance with Marine Le Pen’s Rassemblement National in June, Les Républicains (LR) party chairman Éric Ciotti announced the birth of a new right-wing political party, the UDR, or Union des Droites pour la République.
On Saturday, August 31st, Ciotti announced in a rally the creation of a new party, born from the rubble of Les Républicains.
The acronym was not chosen by chance. For Ciotti, the UDR stands for ‘Union des Droites pour la République’ (Union of the Rights for the Republic) and embodies his programme initially sketched in June—a right-wing political party willing to work hand in hand with the Rassemblement National—but above all, it stands as a historical reference for the French.
The UDR refers to the Union pour la Défense de la République, a right-wing political party launched by General de Gaulle in response to the May 1968 movement in France. Ciotti thus joins the long line of so-called Gaullist-inspired parties that have succeeded one another on the Right for several decades, with numerous and regular name changes (UDR, RPR, UMP, LR, and so on).
The birth of Ciotti’s version of the UDR can be explained by the break-up of his party at the time of the European and legislative elections in June 2024. Officially president of the Les Républicains, Ciotti opted for an electoral alliance with the Rassemblement National and was therefore disowned by a large part of his party’s leading team—although he claimed to be able to count on the support of its activists. A legal battle ensued, with the party’s leaders making three unsuccessful attempts to have him expelled.
Today, the Les Républicains party no longer really exists, even though Ciotti is still formally its chairman. Ciotti now sees himself as part of the UDR, and his former party colleagues—elected to the National Assembly by refusing any alliance with the RN and united behind Laurent Wauquiez—have formed a new parliamentary group called La Droite Républicaine.
Ciotti explained his strategy as follows on Saturday, August 31st, in front of his audience and then the press:
The Les Républicains brand is now outdated, discredited by its defeats, its contradictions, its lack of courage. The Union des Droites pour la République will be the great party of the right. The Republicans are changing. The spirit of the Republicans, or at least the spirit that I carried, is not dead. It is being transformed, rebuilt and reinvented. It’s a form of rebirth today.
The ideological line claimed by Ciotti is that of a union of the Rights that embraces its identity and rejects the pretences of Macronism and the centre-right—for now, paralysed by its proximity to the presidential camp. He denounces “the ten plagues of the ‘en même temps’ (at the same time).” Its programme includes measures such as strengthening direct democracy with regular recourse to referendums modelled on the Swiss system, ending jus soli, and introducing national preference.
The movement was launched with a view to breaking the cultural straitjacket of political correctness. “Here, we sing Sardou and we love Delon. Here France is at home,” Ciotti joked from the podium, announcing “our victory or chaos.”
It remains to be seen in the coming months whether the political niche of an assertive Right, left vacant for quite a long time in France, will be effectively occupied by Ciotti and his supporters.
Italy: ‘I Don’t Know Why. I Saw Her and Killed Her’ — Malian Migrant Confesses to Murder of Sharon Verzeni
A man arrested on Thursday on suspicion of stabbing to death an Italian woman as she took an evening stroll near her home in July this year has confessed to the murder, claiming he had no idea why he attacked his victim.
Moussa Sangare, the 31-year-old Italian citizen born to Malian immigrants, admitted stabbing 33-year-old Sharon Verzeni four times on a small street, Terno d’Isola, in Bergamo, in the early hours of July 30 this year.
Sharon had decided to take a late-night walk while her partner slept when she was accosted by Sangare who stabbed her three times in the back and once in the chest — an attack her autopsy revealed was rapid and which left her no time to react.
As her attacker fled, Sharon managed to call the emergency services to tell them, “He stabbed me,” but died shortly after her transfer to the hospital.
A widescale search for Sharon’s killer took place last month, with the Italian authorities particularly interested in the identity of a man caught on CCTV footage fleeing the vicinity of the murder on a bicycle.
That man was later identified as Sangare who was arrested last week and admitted to the murder.
“Tonight, at the end of very intense investigations, we were able to identify the gentleman on the bicycle who during the night first made spontaneous statements and then made a full confession,” Bergamo’s deputy prosecutor Maria Cristina Rota told the press.
During his police interview, Sangare claimed to have “had a sudden fit” which prompted him to attack Sharon — a woman he had never met and had no prior knowledge of.
“I can’t explain why it happened, I saw her and I killed her”, Sangare told the police.
However, the local prosecutor’s office claimed the killer left his house equipped with four knives, leading them to believe the attack was premeditated.
“The aim was obvious, he wanted to hurt someone,” said Rota, who revealed that his statements to the police led to the recovery of his clothes worn that evening along with several knives unused in the attack, and crucially, the recovery of another knife buried near the Adda River the prosecutor believes is the murder weapon.
“We believe this based on the length and width of the blade, which is compatible with the wounds found by the medical examiner on the body,” the deputy prosecutor told journalists.
The investigation also found that two minors, aged 15 and 16, had been threatened by Sangare with a knife just moments before the murder. Rota explained how the killer Sangare “gave up with the two kids and then met Verzeni who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
The suspect, of Malian origin, lived just five kilometers from the crime scene in Suisio. He was unemployed and had no criminal record.
During a search of his property, police officers found a cardboard cutout the size of an adult human which had been used as a practice board for throwing knives.
Following the confession, a statement from Sharon’s family conveyed their relief that the killer had been apprehended and would be brought to justice.
“The news relieves us and also sweeps away all the speculations that have been made about Sharon’s life,” it read.
The killer’s lawyer has suggested the existence of a psychiatric illness that, if medically substantiated, could see Sangare avoid prison and be sent to a psychiatric facility.
“It is very likely that there is a psychiatric problem, even if it is premature and will be a topic to be explored further with consultancy and a possible request for an expert opinion, but this is still a very relevant aspect,” explained lawyer Giacomo Maj.
North Carolina REJECTS RFK Jr.’s Request to be Taken Off the State’s Ballot
The state of North Carolina has declined a request by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) to be taken off the state’s 2024 ballot.
The independent presidential candidate and nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy suspended his campaign on Aug. 23 during a press conference in Phoenix. He later joined former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, during the latter’s campaign rally in the city. RFK Jr. then endorsed Trump and exhorted his supporters to do the same.
In line with his withdrawal, RFK Jr. said he plans to remove his name from the ballot in states where it could potentially hurt Trump, while stating his intention to remain on the ballot in states where his presence would harm Democratic nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“In about 10 battleground states where my presence would be a spoiler, I’m going to remove my name,” he said. “And I’ve already started that process and urge voters not for me.”
Officials in the Tar Heel State turned down his request, however. The North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE) voted on Aug. 29 to keep RFK Jr. on the ballot, citing logistical and financial challenges. Despite this, votes cast for the now-withdrawn independent candidate won’t be counted.
WBTV 3 reported that the NCSBE made the decision due to the timing of his withdrawal, which coincided with the start of ballot printing across the state. Approximately 1.73 million ballots had already been printed in over 60 counties by the time the board voted on RFK Jr.’s request.
NCSBE Executive Director Karen Brinson also explained that reprinting and redistributing ballots without his name would require at least 13 days and incur additional costs. Thus, the board ruled it was impractical to make the changes given the tight timeline and financial considerations.
RFK Jr.’s name also stays on the ballot in Michigan
Michigan likewise rejected RFK Jr.’s request to have his name struck off the state ballot.
“RFK Jr.’s campaign reached out to the Michigan Bureau of Elections (MBE) … in an attempt to withdraw his name,” said Cheri Hardmon, a spokeswoman for the bureau. She subsequently told Michigan Public Radio that the campaign was informed that the Aug. 6 deadline to remove his name from the ballot had passed.
According to WKAR 23, RFK Jr. is on the state ballot as the nominee of the Natural Law Party of Michigan (NLPM) which helped its nominating convention in April. The MBE spokeswoman said it could have held a new nominating convention any time until the state’s August primary.
“The [NLPM] held their convention to select electors for RFK Jr. They cannot meet at this point to select new electors since it’s past the primary,” she explained. The NLPM and RFK Jr.’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment sent by WKAR 23.
Head over to RFKJr.news for similar stories.
Watch Robert F. Kennedy Jr. disclosing that he would be actively campaigning for former President Donald Trump during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday.”