January 1, ABC Under Fire for Editing of CDC Director’s Interview

ABC News received backlash for how it edited an interview with CDC Director Rochelle Walensky on Good Morning America.

“In the interview, Walensky discussed a study that showed how most vaccinated people who died of coronavirus were also sick for other reasons. But the way the interview was edited, it wasn’t clear she was talking about vaccinated people — and references spread widely online implying she was talking about all COVID-19 victims,” the AP reported.

According to the outlet, public figures, including Donald Trump Jr. and Tucker Carlson, used the interview to “imply the Biden administration has been lying to the public about the importance of vaccines.”

Cecilia Vega asked Walensky about the “encouraging headlines” surrounding a study on how vaccines worked to prevent severe illness. Walensky’s response started with her summarizing some of the study’s findings, but the network edited out roughly 20 seconds of her answer. The director’s complete response appeared to be: “The overwhelming numbers of deaths, over 75%, occurred in people who had at least four comorbidities, so really these were people who were unwell to begin with.”

Neither ABC News nor Walensky provided a comment to AP for their report. But on Monday, ABC posted a version of the interview that included the previously omitted 20 seconds, with a note that said a “shorter version edited for time” was previously broadcast.

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ABC News draws fire for editing of CDC director’s interview