Enter the Age of the Vaccine Selfie

Someday, when the history of the pandemic is written, it may be a narrative told partly in images: the despair of crowded hospitals and body bags, the fear and isolation of the masks. And then the balm of a smiling individual, one sleeve rolled up practically to the collarbone, with a medical worker poised to jab a needle into their upper arm. Log in to any social platform, and the picture — not to mention The Pose — is almost impossible to miss. The vaccine selfie has gone viral.

AstraZeneca COVID shots could test Canadians' vaccine hesitancy: 'There is no way they can downplay that risk'

Canadians’ hesitancy toward COVID-19 vaccines had been softening in recent months. According to polling by the Angus Reid Institute, 66 per cent of 1,748 Canadians sampled in the first week of March said they would get a vaccine as soon as they’re eligible rather than take a wait-and-see-approach, up from 39 per cent in September. “The overall number of Canadians who say they will not be vaccinated,” the pollster reported, “remained stabled, at 12 per cent.”

House Lawmakers Question Tech Execs On Online Misinformation

CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield spoke to Frank Sesno, director of strategic initiatives in the School of Media and Public Affairs and IDDP's co-PI, about curbing the online spread of misinformation.

Volatility of vaccine confidence

Last week, the European Medicines Agency declared the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine safe and effective, after several European Union member states had suspended its use because of blood clot concerns. Will the public trust this message? This week's news could help—a U.S. phase 3 clinical trial of the vaccine shows promising efficacy in preventing symptomatic COVID-19. But sentiments toward vaccines are volatile and reflect external events—such as recent concern about AstraZeneca's efficacy data—as well as internal emotions.

'Put Me In Jail': Fierce Covid Shot Resistance For US Republicans

Patients stream steadily into the Covid vaccine center that Todd Engle can almost touch from his West Virginia backyard. But like scores of other Republican voters, force would likely be required to get a dose into his arm.