Murdoch’s Paper Pleads With RFK Jr. to Change His Tune on the Measles Vaccine
The New York Post challenged the anti-vax crusader to back measles vaccines as Texas grapples with outbreak.
Nathan Howard/REUTERS
Trump’s favorite hometown paper just demanded Robert F. Kennedy Jr. convince them he’s not a “crank” and go to measles-hit Texas to “preach the truth” about vaccines.
The New York Post’s Trump-endorsing editorial board called on the secretary of health and human services to “prove” that he really did believe in the safety and efficacy of vaccines in Thursday’s edition.
“Go to Texas, Mr. Secretary, and preach the truth as only a convert can: This vaccine is safe, and getting children jabbed is an act of love," the board challenged the nation’s top health official.
The tabloid then slammed RFK Jr.‘s anti-vax hypocrisy, pointing out: “That’s why all your children are vaccinated, despite your well-known concerns.”
The outbreak in West Texas claimed the life of an unvaccinated child on Wednesday, the country’s first death from measles since 2015. There are currently 124 confirmed infections, most of them children.
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The Post, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch, argued that publicly backing the measles vaccine would “save lives,” as well as settle people’s “suspicions,” about RFK Jr.‘s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda.
Rupert Murdoch during Trump's second presidential inauguration in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol.
Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Reuters
It may be too late for that, however, as RFK Jr. appears to have brought his extreme views on vaccines straight to the HHS—and double-crossed Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy,a physician and lifelong vaccination advocate, in the process.
In his first address to HHS employees after being confirmed by the Senate, he announced plans to investigate the childhood vaccine schedule, declaring “Nothing is going to be off limits.”
He had reportedly promised Cassidy that he would not touch the nation’s vaccination schedule, which protects against measles, polio, and other dangerous diseases.
Trump has been hit with a slew of critical editorials from Murdoch’s American papers, including the New York Post and The Wall Street Journal, which have slammed his tariffs, foreign policy, and the Department of Government Efficiency in recent weeks.
The Post has never been fond of RFK Jr: In November 2024, the board tore into the then-nominee for secretary of HHS, writing, “He’s nuts on a lot of fronts."
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