Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Yemeni Armed Forces: The blockade on the Port of Haifa comes following the successful imposition of the siege on the Port of Umm al-Rashrash, which has since ceased operations
Yemeni Armed Forces: The Port of Haifa is now officially part of our target bank
Yemeni Armed Forces calls on companies with ships currently in the Port of Haifa or en route to it to take into account the contents of the statement and any forthcoming announcements
Yemeni Armed Forces: The imposition of a blockade on the Port of Haifa comes in response to the enemy’s escalation of its brutal aggression against Gaza and the continued siege and starvation
Yemeni Armed Forces: Our decisions and operations against the occupying entity will not cease until the aggression on Gaza ends and the blockade on it is lifted
Yemeni Armed Forces: We have decided to begin enforcing a naval blockade on the Port of Haifa, which is now among our list of designated targets
The Israeli occupation has released the child Mohammad, the son of martyr Ahmad Sarhan, whom it abducted earlier today from Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, but his mother remains in detention
UK, France, and Canada in a joint statement: The Israeli Government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable and risks breaching International Humanitarian Law
Leaders of UK, France, and Canada warn that their countries would take action if "Israel" does not stop a renewed military offensive in Gaza and lift aid restrictions
Putin says Trump in conversation expressed his position on cessation of hostilities in Ukraine

Twitter Files sequel: Pfizer pressed Twitter to hide anti-vax posts

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 17 Jan 2023 12:18
  • 1 Shares
5 Min Read

In the latest reveal, Twitter Files expose “how the pharmaceutical industry lobbied social media to shape content around vaccine policy.”

  • x
  • The UK has approved the Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for emergency use. (AFP via Getty Images)
    The UK approved Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for emergency use. (AFP via Getty Images)

The latest Twitter Files sequel unmasked that  Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a Pfizer director with almost 550,000 Twitter followers, noticed a tweet, on August 27, 2021, that irritated him, a tweet that could harm Pfizer's mRNA vaccine sales.

The tweet correctly stated that natural immunity following Covid infection was superior to vaccination protection. It urged the administration to "respect the research" and exempt persons with inherent immunity from forthcoming vaccine mandates.

1. New piece from the TWITTER FILES.
How the pharmaceutical industry lobbied social media to shape content around vaccine policy.

The push included direct pressure from Pfizer partner BioNTech to censor activists demanding low-cost generic vaccines for low-income countries.

— Lee Fang (@lhfang) January 16, 2023

It came not from an "anti-vaxxer" like Robert F. Kennedy Jr., but from Dr. Brett Giroir, a physician who briefly succeeded Gottlieb as FDA commissioner. Furthermore, the message urged anyone who lacked natural immunity to "Get vaccinated!"

It's now clear #COVID19 natural immunity is superior to #vaccine immunity, by ALOT. There's no science justification for #vax proof if a person had prior infection. @CDCDirector @POTUS must follow the science. If no previous infection? Get vaccinated! https://t.co/jFc0yHpF2f

— Brett Giroir (@DrGiroir) August 28, 2021

The tweet may create concerns about the shots by implying that certain people may not require Covid vaccines. Gottlieb was a senior board member at Pfizer, which relied on mRNA shots for about half of its $81 billion in sales in 2021, in addition to being a former FDA commissioner, a CNBC commentator, and a major voice on Covid public policy. Gottlieb was paid $365,000 for his work that year by Pfizer.

Gottlieb stepped in, sending an email to Todd O'Boyle, a key lobbyist at Twitter's Washington office who also served as the company's point of contact with the White House.

"The post was corrosive," Gottlieb wrote. He was concerned that it would "go viral and drive national coverage."

I discovered the email while conducting a search of Twitter data last week as part of Elon Musk's Twitter Files endeavors to lift the veil on censoring choices taken by Twitter prior to Musk's purchase of the firm in October.

O'Boyle submitted Gottlieb's email to the Twitter "Strategic Response" team using Jira, an internal system Twitter utilized to manage complaints. This organization was in charge of dealing with issues raised by the company's most important workers and users.

"Please examine this report from the former FDA commissioner," O'Boyle wrote, overlooking the fact that Gottlieb was a Pfizer board member with a financial stake in pushing mRNA shots.

An analyst with Strategic Response swiftly determined that the tweet did not break any of the company's disinformation policies.

Nonetheless, Giroir's message was flagged by Twitter, with a deceptive tag that prevented practically everyone from seeing it. Despite the fact that multiple significant investigations have supported Giroir's comments, it remains tagged.

Gottlieb tried to strike again a week later, on September 3, 2021, complaining to O'Boyle about a tweet from Justin Hart.

"I've raised concerns about social media and the threats that are being made on these platforms," says @ScottGottliebMD on Alex Berenson being kicked off Twitter. "I'm unconcerned about debate being made. I'm concerned about physical threats being made for people's safety." pic.twitter.com/hxpALiT6dZ

— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) October 14, 2022

Hart has over 100,000 Twitter followers and is a lockdown and Covid vaccination skeptic.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones but a viral pathogen with a child mortality rate of <>0% has cost our children nearly three years of schooling,” Hart wrote.

It's unclear why Gottlieb objected to Hart's statements, but the Pfizer shot would soon be approved for children aged 5 to 11, offering another large market for Pfizer if parents could be convinced Covid was a significant hazard to their children.

When he emailed the paper, O'Boyle referred to "former FDA Commissioner Gottlieb," ignoring Gottlieb's current position for Pfizer.

This time, though, Gottlieb's complaint was so broad that Twitter refused to take action.

It is worth noting that Gottlieb is one of seven members of the board's executive committee and the chairman of the regulatory and compliance committee, which is in charge of "compliance with laws, regulations, and internal processes pertaining to pharmaceutical sales and marketing activities."

Pfizer has a long history of breaking pharma industry laws and ethical guidelines. For unlawfully selling multiple medications, it agreed to pay $2.3 billion in 2009, the largest healthcare fraud settlement in US history. In 1996, it conducted a clinical study of an antibiotic in Nigeria, which resulted in the deaths of 11 children and served as the idea for John le Carre's novel The Constant Gardner.

What are the Twitter Files?

Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter, is the mastermind behind the so-called Twitter Files. He has stated that he wants to demonstrate "what really happened" about behind-the-scenes content moderation choices at the social media business before he acquired it in October.

Three journalists, Matt Taibbi, Bari Weiss, and Michael Shellenberger, have been delving into internal documents and conversations to highlight the company's decision-making process surrounding some high-profile actions, such as banning former President Donald Trump in January 2020. The Twitter Files have been released in bits and pieces throughout December into January.

  • Twitter Files sequel
  • Twitter Files #15
  • COVID-19
  • COVID-19 Vaccines
  • Pfizer

Most Read

Gaza and the logic of necropolitics: Sovereignty measured by killing

Gaza and the logic of necropolitics: Sovereignty measured by killing

  • Politics
  • 15 May 2025
Two F-35 jets arrive at it's new operational base Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015, at Hill Air Force Base, in northern Utah. (AP)

F-35 near-misses over Yemen signal new risks for 'Israel': Forbes

  • Politics
  • 14 May 2025
Abu Obaida

Abu Obeida posts shortly after Israeli reports about his assassination

  • Palestine
  • 15 May 2025
YAF say struck 'Israel's' Ben-Gurion Airport with missiles, drones

YAF say struck 'Israel's' Ben Gurion Airport with missiles, drones

  • MENA
  • 18 May 2025

Coverage

All
Gaza prevails against genocide

Read Next

All
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and Foreign secretary David Lammy leave after attending the annual Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey in London, Monday, March 10, 2025. (AP)
Politics

Labour Minister breaks ranks, blasts government over Gaza

China’s advanced AI may surpass US Efforts: Report
Asia

China’s advanced AI may surpass US efforts: Report

A Boeing 777X is brought on the runway ahead of a display flight, at the Farnborough Air Show fair in Farnborough, England, Tuesday, July 19, 2022 (AP)
US & Canada

Boeing stock rises after Trump secures major Gulf deals

MEPs urge the Commission to act so that all EU citizens can travel to the US without visas©AP Images/European Union-EP
US & Canada

Americans race for EU residency as immigration doors begin to close

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS