Deep Dive (Aug. 12): White House, Fauci Use TikTok Influencers to Boost Vaccination

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a White House Coronavirus Task Force press briefing in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Nov. 19, 2020. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
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The Department of Health and Human Services is mandating all 25,000 health care workers to get the vaccine. That makes it the third federal agency to mandate the shot. The other two are the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense. This comes as three airlines won’t be following United in mandating the vaccine. Delta, American, and Southwest are taking a different approach.

About 500,000 Americans are getting the jab a day—back to where it was in June. But for those still hesitant, the White House and health leaders are teaming up with influencers, such as TikTok stars. White House press secretary Jen Psaki gave details about the initiative on Tuesday after an email about the effort was leaked online. She said, “Today Dr. Fauci is doing five Q&A conversations on Instagram and Tiktok with Millennial mom influencers and Gen Z influencers.”

Tiffany Meier
Tiffany Meier
Author
Tiffany Meier is a New York-based reporter and host of NTD's "China in Focus."
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