WHO Official Promotes Conspiracy Theory Website to Bolster China’s Disinformation Campaign

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WHO Official Promotes Conspiracy Theory Website to Bolster China’s Coronavirus Disinformation Campaign



A top World Health Organization official promoted a report from a website that traffics in conspiracy theories to bolster China's false claim that the communist regime was the first to report the existence of the coronavirus.

WHO communications director Gabby Stern tweeted on Monday false claims that "Taiwan never provided any warning" to the organization "about the novel coronavirus or its transmissibility." Her tweet linked to an article published by the fringe website The Grayzone. The site is run by Max Blumenthal, the son of Hillary Clinton confidante Sidney Blumenthal. Max Blumenthal is known for his pro-Iran, anti-Israel stance, and his website routinely publishes conspiracy theories that adopt China’s false rhetoric about the coronavirus pandemic.

The article, headlined, "With US support, Taiwan planted deception about warning World Health Org of Covid," says Taiwan never informed the WHO about the emerging virus in the early days of the pandemic. This contradicts evidence provided by Taiwan and later the United States showing that the WHO was alerted by colleagues in Taiwan in late December that a new virus was spreading.

The official’s promotion of a fringe website raises fresh questions about the embattled health organization's judgment, particularly given The Grayzone’s pro-China bent. The WHO is already under fire from the United States and other nations for its response to the coronavirus pandemic, which they view as overly deferential to China.

Stern's promotion of the article has drawn outrage in Congress, where China hawks see the international organization as doing damage control on behalf of the Communist Party. The Washington Free Beacon first reported this month that the WHO quietly edited claims on its website that China was first to report the virus, now known to be false. However, the WHO, under the leadership of director general Tedros Adhanom, has continued to promote Chinese propaganda about the pandemic and its response.

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