Twitter deletes Trump coronavirus adviser Scott Atlas’ claim that masks don’t work
- Social media company says post, which linked to article arguing against effectiveness of face coverings, violated rule against sharing false information
- Atlas, a Trump favourite, has repeatedly argued against lockdowns and said it is preferable to expose young, healthy people to virus to develop immunity
Twitter blocked a tweet from a contrarian medical adviser to President Donald Trump which stated that wearing masks does not help slow the spread of the coronavirus.
“Masks work? NO,” Scott Atlas said in a tweet removed as of Sunday by the social media site. The post, which linked to an article in the American Institute for Economic Research that argued against the effectiveness of masks, was in violation of the company’s rules against sharing false and harmful information, Twitter told CNN.
Trump regularly downplayed the effectiveness of masks until contracting the virus himself. Public health experts, including Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, have said wearing them helps slow the spread of the virus, which has killed nearly 220,000 Americans.
Atlas is a neuroradiologist with no epidemiology background affiliated with Stanford University’s conservative Hoover Institution. He has repeatedly argued that lockdowns are excessive, pushed for reopening the economy, and said it is preferable to expose young, healthy people to the virus so they develop immunity.
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US President Donald Trump takes mask off as he arrives at White House
Atlas was brought onto the White House coronavirus task force in August and has become a Trump favourite after appearances on Fox News and other conservative outlets where he downplayed the risk of the virus to anyone but the old and frail.
