Florida media coverage shows why DeSantis should not be the COVID-19 role model national outlets are making him out to be mediamatters.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from mediamatters.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Orlando Sentinel on making Florida inmates a priority for coronavirus vaccination:
Had he lived, Lawrence Carter should have been one of the first in line to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. He was 76 years old, diabetic, had one leg and was confined to a wheelchair.
But Carter was an inmate at the Seminole County jail. In the state’s view, he would have deserved the same vaccine priority as a healthy 21-year-old:
None.
When it comes to protecting prisoners from COVID-19, Florida’s attitude has been almost criminal from the start. That’s not changing now that vaccines are rolling out.
A spokesman for Gov. Ron DeSantis deactivated his Twitter account after he posted a tweet that photos of each dead COVID-19 victim should be balanced with 99 photos of people who survive the disease.
According to screenshots captured by a Miami Herald reporter and a reporter for WLRN, Fred Piccolo tweeted Wednesday in response to a photo gallery on COVID-19 victims and health care workers, “I’m wondering since 99% (of) Covid patients survive shouldn’t you have 99 photos of survivors for every one fatality? Otherwise you’re just trying to create a narrative that is not reality.”
The tweet has since been deleted.
Reports: Gov. DeSantis spokesperson deactivates Twitter account following tweet about COVID-19 deaths
Fred Piccolo Jr. became the governor s spokesperson in July and has been accused of using his personal account to spread misinformation about the pandemic.
Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Author: 10 Tampa Bay Updated: 5:06 PM EST December 24, 2020
Fred Piccolo Jr., a spokesperson for Gov. Ron DeSantis, has deactivated his Twitter account. And, according to media reports, he did so after responding to a tweet about those who have died from COVID-19.
Danny Rivero, a reporter for WRLN, screenshotted Piccolo s response to Corrinne Perkins thread of photos from Reuters, which highlight what she called the reality of COVID-19 in hospitals across the U.S.