Media top headlines January 4
In media news today, comedian Patton Oswalt gets mocked for a lengthy apology after taking a picture with Dave Chappelle, Howard Stern slams Oprah Winfrey for hosting dinner parties amid COVID surge, and Governor DeSantis responds to media criticism that he was missing in December.
MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace is "gobsmacked" that more children aren’t vaccinated against COVID-19 and pondered Monday if it’s time to label it a "failure" that more kids haven’t gotten the shot.
During a segment about the recent COVID surge, Wallace was told by pediatric care specialists that many Americans are scared to vaccinate their young children and conversations need to take place in order to educate parents.
MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace is "gobsmacked" that more children aren’t vaccinated against COVID-19 .
MSNBC ANCHOR MOCKED AS 'SHAMELESSLY NEUROTIC,' 'EMBARRASSING' FOR CALLING HERSELF A 'FAUCI GROUPIE'
"Is it too early to call it a failure at this point, that this country hasn’t, I mean kids, if you have a young child, you have had so many vaccinations by the time they get to kindergarten. I’m gobsmacked by the fact that the numbers, I think it was 14 percent last week, again, I’m not sure if it ticked up at all over the weekend, with news of pediatric hospitalizations," Wallace said on MSNBC’s "Deadline: White House."
"How is it described as anything other than a failure that we’re only at 14 percent now that we have a new wave and schools seem to be willing to go for it and stay in-person?" she asked.
Wallace was quickly reminded by her guest, Dr. Michael Anderson, that getting children vaccinated is an "ongoing effort" and a lot of factors are in play.
Courtney Martin, a nurse at the University of Washington Medical Center, gives the first shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to Ani Hahn, 7, on Nov. 9, 2021, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
"This is a time like no other, there is divide, there is political divide, there is tension, misinformation, I think it’s an ongoing effort that we, the pediatricians of this country, the family medicine docs, and the families of kids just have to have this ongoing discussion," Anderson said.
The FDA authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children age 5 through 11 for emergency use on Oct. 29. Children under the age of 5 remain ineligible. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that children 5-11 get the vaccine on Nov. 2, allowing roughly 28 million American kids to be eligible.
MSNBC'S NICOLLE WALLACE GUSHES OVER JEN PSAKI: ‘VAST MAJORITY’ OF REPORTERS LIKE YOU
MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace pondered Monday if it’s time to label it a "failure" that more kids haven’t gotten the COVID vaccine. (Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
On Tuesday, the CDC announced that kids aged 5-11 can get the booster shot 28 days after their second shot.
Wallace, a former George W. Bush communications director and John McCain campaign hand, has since made a lucrative cable news living as one of the most fervent Democratic Party boosters on cable news. She recently declared herself to be a "Fauci groupie" and enthusiastically listed off her commitment to public health measures, boasting she wears a mask "everywhere."
"I'm a Fauci groupie," Wallace said last month. "I'm thrice-vaccinated, mask adherent. I buy KN95 masks by the, you know, caseload. They're in every pocket. I wear them everywhere except when I sit down."
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Fox News’ David Rutz and Cortney O'Brien contributed to this report.
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