One of the top conservative radio hosts in the country had some harsh words of criticism for Fox News and other media outlets who have pushed a controversial anti-malaria drug as a potential treatment for the coronavirus.
Dr. Michael Savage, who holds a Ph.D. in nutritional ethnomedicine from the University of California, Berkeley, condemned news networks that have induced “mass hysteria” among the U.S. populace while pushing hydroxychloroquine.
“I was the only voice warning about Hydroxy,” Savage tweeted on Wednesday. “Mass hysteria induced by Fox News. All wanted a ‘magic bullet’ – the hatred was worse than I have ever seen. Almost impossible to educate the brainwashed masses who distrust and hate science.”
I WAS THE ONLY VOICE WARNING ABOUT HYDROXY. MASS HYSTERIA INDUCED BY FOX NEWS. ALL WANTED A ‘MAGIC BULLET’- the hatred was worse than I have ever seen. almost impossible to educate the brainwashed masses who distrust and hate science
— Michael Savage (@ASavageNation) April 22, 2020
Savage, who was an early backer of President Trump ahead of the election in 2016, is a syndicated radio host with more than 20 million listeners on more than 400 terrestrial stations across the country.
Savage has taken the threat of the coronavirus seriously and accused rival host Rush Limbaugh of “downplaying” concerns over the disease, asking on March 13 if Limbaugh had studied the “germ theory of disease?”
The debate over the efficacy of using hydroxychloroquine has been fiercely debated by proponents and skeptics of the drug. Trump has repeatedly touted the drug for use in treating the coronavirus, and a Michigan state Democratic representative said the drug saved her life when she was in the hospital with the coronavirus.
Skeptics say the evidence of the drug’s efficacy against the coronavirus is anecdotal and have noted a study analyzing the deaths of 368 male veterans who were confirmed positive for the coronavirus by the Veterans Health Administration medical centers. The study suggested that hydroxychloroquine is ineffective at treating the coronavirus.
