Fake news and COVID
Barely a week after the media in Georgia ignored the fact that a Savannah-area seven-year-old boy who supposedly died "from the coronavirus" actually had a seizure and fell in the shower, the largest newspaper in Georgia — the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) — is again perpetrating the false narrative that the Wuhan virus presents widespread danger for American children.
On Saturday, August 15, the AJC had this headline: "15-year-old Gwinnett boy dies of COVID-19." The first sentence of the piece declared: "A 15-year-old Gwinnett County boy with no underlying conditions [emphasis mine] has died after contracting COVID-19, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health."
An internet search revealed that the story was new. Thus, it seemed likely that all the AJC reporter who authored the story did was find the death info via the Georgia Department of Public Health's website that counts Wuhan virus deaths in Georgia. On this site, ages of the deceased are listed, along with whether underlying conditions were present. Being apparently eager to scare parents of school-aged children and to further the lockdown narrative, the AJC plastered at the top of its home page.
Less than 24 hours after they again went with the child dying "with no underlying conditions" misrepresentation, Atlanta's WSB radio reported: "A 15-year-old boy in Gwinnett County has died of the coronavirus, according to officials with the Georgia Department of Public Health. The boy, identified only as being Caucasian, was from Gwinnett County. Officials said he did have an underlying medical condition [emphasis mine]."
The fact that the boy died "with an underlying condition" also makes it likely that he died with the coronavirus instead of dying "of the coronavirus." Proving again the proverb that a lie makes it halfway around the world before the truth can get its boots on, much of the drive-by media were quick to run with the AJC's false account of the Gwinnett County boy's death.
An AP story on the incident stated: "A 15-year-old boy in metro Atlanta has died from complications caused by COVID-19, making him the second-youngest individual to die from the virus in Georgia, according to state health officials. The Georgia Department of Public Health said the Gwinnett County teenager had no underlying conditions, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Saturday."
Since these reports are likely to change or disappear, I provide screenshots:
U.S. News & World Report echoed the AP's account:
Sadly, even my local media outlet — housed in one of the most conservative areas of the U.S. — ran with the AP story:
The Daily Beast was quick to get in on the deceit, running their story on the same day as the AJC. A piece entitled "15-Year-Old Boy Dies of COVID in Georgia," begins: "A 15-year-old boy has become one of Georgia's latest coronavirus fatalities, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported on Saturday. The teen is the second-youngest person to succumb to the virus in the state and had no underlying health conditions."
There was also a Reddit thread on the incident. The self-described "front page of the internet" directly quoted from — and had the link to — the AJC story:
Whether or not they took their cues from the AJC, local TV also got in on the act. Atlanta's CBS 46 reported, "A 15-year-old boy in Gwinnett County has become metro Atlanta's youngest victim of COVID-19. The teen is the second youngest in the state of Georgia to die from the virus, and is reported as having no underlying medical conditions."
Notice that, whether or not a deceased individual has underlying conditions, if he has a positive Wuhan virus test (before or after death), he always seems to have died of the Wuhan virus.
Interestingly, not long after WSB radio gave a more accurate account of the boy's death, the AJC "updated" their story. Notice that, though this account contains the "original story," the first sentence of the "original story" has been edited and the "with no underlying conditions" phrase removed.
So again we see, the drive-by media are eagerly invested in keeping the lockdown narrative alive and, shamefully, are willing to use the deaths of children — thus scaring children and their parents alike — to do so.
Trevor Grant Thomas: At the Intersection of Politics, Science, Faith, and Reason.
www.trevorgrantthomas.com
Trevor is the author of The Miracle and Magnificence of America
tthomas@trevorgrantthomas.com
Screen grabs under Fair Use.