Dr. Drew: Media Needs To Be ‘Held Accountable’ For Coronavirus Panic

Dr. Drew, insists the media needs to be held accountable for causing panic over the coronavirus outbreak.

David Drew Pinsky, better known as Dr. Drew, insists the media needs to be held accountable for causing panic over the coronavirus outbreak.

“What I have a problem with is the panic and the fact that businesses are getting destroyed, that people’s lives are being upended, not by the virus, but by the panic,” Drew said in a CBS interview.

“The panic must stop,” he continued. “And the press, they really somehow need to be held accountable because they are hurting people.”

Perspective

Drew tried putting the media-generated hysteria in perspective with statistics contrasting coronavirus and a typical heavy flu season. The numbers provide a little levity in a time of ridiculous overreactions.

“A bad flu season is 80,000 dead, we’ve got about 18,000 dead from influenza this year, we have a hundred from corona,” the media personality explained. “Which should you be worried about, influenza or Corona? A hundred versus 18,000? It’s not a trick question.”

[totalpoll id=”189155″]

Drew proceeded to explain that some good is coming from the public’s hyperawareness – such as cleaning of subway systems, people getting their flu shots, and mass usage of Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer.

“That’s a good thing, so I have no problem with the behaviors,” he added.

RELATED: Democrat Called Out During Interview For Lying About Trump’s Coronavirus ‘Hoax’ Comments

Media Irresponsibility

Dr. Drew has repeatedly hammered the media for their irresponsible coverage of the coronavirus outbreak.

Last week, in an interview on “Fox & Friends”, he accused the mainstream media of making “every effort to fan the flames of panic.”

“Look, the WHO has said there’s about a three percent fatality rate on this virus and every time they say that they always qualify it and say we expect it to drop a lot once we understand the full extent of the virus,” he explained.

Added Drew, “You’re much more likely to die of the flu than the coronavirus.”

RELATED: Pelosi Calls Herself ‘Lioness,’ Insists Trump Is ‘Most Dangerous Person’ In American History

Echoing Trump

Dr. Drew’s comments parallel those of President Trump who has insisted the media is disgracefully blowing everything out of proportion. Trump has urged calm amidst a sea of media fearmongering.

“Last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life [and] the economy go on,” the President tweeted. “At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!”

Proving Drew’s point, CNN, a virulently anti-Trump news organization, has begun calling the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, something the World Health Organization hasn’t even done.

They want you to panic because they think it will hurt the President’s re-election bid.

Rusty Weiss has been covering politics for over 15 years. His writings have appeared in the Daily Caller, Fox... More about Rusty Weiss

Mentioned in this article: