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Reddit channel posts stories of anti-vaxxers dying of Covid, scaring fence-sitters into getting the shot - CNBC

Reddit channel posts stories of anti-vaxxers dying of Covid, scaring fence-sitters into getting the shot - CNBC

Reddit channel posts stories of anti-vaxxers dying of Covid, scaring fence-sitters into getting the shot - CNBC
Oct 16, 2021 2 mins, 50 secs

"You care about what your parents think of you and whether or not they think that you're making a good decision or the right decision," Ostrowski said.

Ostrowski, who regularly scrolls through her feed on social media site Reddit, stumbled upon the forum r/HermanCainAward.

Reddit users upload screenshots multiple times a day of people who previously posted anti-vaccine comments and content on Facebook only to end up getting sick with Covid-19 before dying.

Since the subreddit's creation in September 2020, it's expanded to more than 375,000 members, with the top posts garnering thousands of user interactions. The forum has been the 10th fastest-growing subreddit over the past 30 days, according to FrontPageMetrics.com, which tracks Reddit usage.

"If dad thinks I'm an idiot because I fell for the government and I'm a sheep, so be it," Ostrowski said.

Facebook, in particular, has struggled to weed out false content, with users sharing misinformation even in the comments section of posts from authoritative sources, according to internal company documents reviewed last month by the Wall Street Journal.

President Joe Biden said as recently as last month, "This is a continuing pandemic of the unvaccinated.".

Ostrowski said the harrowing stories of death among the unvaccinated have had a major impact on her.

Reddit still has plenty of anti-vaccine content across its site, which reaches over 50 million daily active users.

As it gears up to go public, Reddit recently took steps to remove several subreddits that were being used to share misinformation.

A Reddit spokesperson said the company has policies in place to remove inaccurate posts on Covid-19 vaccines.  .

"Our Content Policy prohibits many kinds of harmful content, including health-related disinformation and other forms of manipulated content," the Reddit spokesperson said in a statement.

"You find me these stories on social media," Joly said, describing what she tells her dad.

"Misinformation is so goddamn dangerous, especially after this last president," the doctor said.

He said that scientific evidence hasn't been effective for him in trying to convince people about the safety of the vaccines.

"But this seemingly weaker evidence — word of mouth, anecdotal 'All these people are dying' — seems to hit people way harder," the doctor said.

Her family members would show anti-vaccine content on their phones to one another, and they believe that people who are vaccinated are shedding the virus.

There she found numerous posts from people complaining about the side effects they'd experienced after getting their second shots.

"You don't really realize how bad it is to be in the hospital with Covid until you see these people who are somehow giving you a play-by-play," Hannah said

Hannah said she's hoping to wait until three months after her vaccine before casually bringing it up with her family

In the meantime, she's grateful for the positive reaction she received on Reddit after posting her vaccination card. 

"I know you don't need other people to tell you you did the right thing, but it sure helps when there's a bunch of people saying, 'Hey, good job,'" she said

She said she's hoping to encourage more people to acknowledge they were wrong and that they can still change directions

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