How The Media Perpetuated The Autism Vaccine Scare

1697 words - 7 pages

2Correlation ≠ Causation: How the Media Perpetuated the Autism-Vaccine ScareIn his book, The Culture of Fear, Barry Glassner describes an America lead by misguided fears: "Valid fears have their place, they clue us to danger. False and overdrawn fears only cause hardship" (xxiii). Such is the case surrounding the claims and controversy between vaccination and autism. While much is still not know about the causes of this disease, in the late 1990s, this became one of the most talked about concepts in the autistic community: vaccinations cause autism. This controversy has caused over a decade of arguments and analysis. Although extensive research has disproved the alleged connection between vaccines and autism, fear continues to perpetuate, and the news media has been largely responsible for preserving this autism-vaccination link. All of the conspiracy theories, misinformation about vaccines, and too many parents who do not fully understand the danger of diseases prevented by vaccines have allowed this controversy to continue. Ultimately, this could have severe implications and pose a major risk for public health in America.In 1998, Andrew Wakefield, a British gastroenterologist, developed a specific theory on how the MMR (measles, mumps, and rabies) vaccine could trigger autism. He published his findings in The Lancet, suggesting a possible link between measles virus in the gut and autism. He proposed that some children are genetically predisposed to immune issues, and various environmental toxins can attack the immune system:The child develops a leaky gut, tissue damage gets worse, the immune system grows weaker, and autoimmune reactions start. Then a lot of children experience a catastrophic event. Either in the form of a significant illness or a live virus vaccine. The immune system is overwhelmed and the child rapidly goes downhill. Some parents report a gradual deterioration, but many children seem to develop autism after a particular event. They go into the hospital or they get an MMR shot and they're never the same again. Autism is the end result of this developing series of reactions. (Honda 43)Following Wakefield's announcement of his findings, immediate media frenzy broke out in Great Britain. In the United States, more controversy was sparked concerning thimerosal, a specific preservative used in a number of vaccines to prevent bacterial contamination and its possible link to autism. By weight, thimerosal is fifty percent mercury, and mercury in large doses is a known neurotoxin (Baker 8). Although there was no real proof of harm, the United States government ordered that thimerosal be removed from any vaccine that was given to children under the age of six as a "precautionary" measure. With the evidence of autism on the rise, scientists conducted a number of studies to research if thimerosal was responsible. It was also during this time that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote a column in The Huffington Post in which he stated that the...

Find Another Essay On How the Media Perpetuated the Autism-Vaccine Scare

The Red Scare Essay

1000 words - 4 pages In the long years between 1947 and around 1957, fear of communism froze the very voices of America into unison. A supposedly enlightened country, the United States of America succumbed to the mass hysteria of the Red Scare with shockingly little resistance. Communist “Reds” and Communist sympathizing “Pinks” were seen everywhere and were often persecuted by the House Committee on Un-American Activities (also known by the inaccurate acronym HUAC

The Red Witch Scare Essay

867 words - 4 pages of innocent and few not so innocent government employees of being communist spies. The Crucible written in the early 1950’s during the reign of Senator Joseph McCarthy reflects strongly the anti-communist movement occurring at the time, spearheaded by Joseph McCarthy. Events and characters in Millers play reveal the dramatic, anxious, and hysterical actions and allegations that came with The Red Scare. A parallel between McCarthys world

The Red Scare

1441 words - 6 pages , 1920. Of course, when no revolution (or even attempted revolution) occurred, the people began to become skeptical of Palmer, suspicious of his blatant disregard for Civil Rights, and accusations that his Raids and the Red Scare were nothing more than tactics to boost him into a Democratic nomination for President.Another capitalizing anti-communist was Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy. An unimpressive politician, McCarthy took up many different

The Second Red Scare

2857 words - 11 pages The Second Red Scare The McCarthy era, which generally spanned from 1947 to 1957, brought to the forefront of American politics the question of civil rights. At issue were controversies about both First Amendment rights to assembly and free speech and Fifth Amendment rights to due process and freedom from self-incrimination. Anti-Communist actions often involved restrictions on these rights, and heading the anti-Communist movement was the

Sopranos and the Perpetuated Mafiosi Image

1162 words - 5 pages The Sopranos and the Perpetuated Mafiosi Image A life of organized crime, fancy cars, machine guns, beautiful women, money, power and family; these are the images that have perpetuated the associations of Italian-Americans with the Mafia in film and television for decades. It is in this traditional Godfather fashion that the HBO hit series The Sopranos continues to perpetuate this stereotypical image into the 21st century. From classic films

The Vaccine War

1136 words - 5 pages thousands of moms about how to heal autism. So my purpose, I feel, is just a constant educator to parents on how to heal and prevent autism.” (The Vaccine War, PBS) She feels like this is right way to get people to notice what vaccines could possibly do to your child. Her celebrity status has also bought people that weren’t aware of an issue of unvaccinated children into the mix, leading to people believing that vaccines may cause autism. Recalling a

The Poliomyelitis Vaccine

1410 words - 6 pages States, a vaccine has been introduced to prevent it. As a matter of fact, there has been two versions of the polio vaccine developed during the 20th century. The first vaccine was known as the Salk vaccine, created by scientist Jonas E. Salk, that contained three types of inactivated poliomyelitis viruses and induced immunity against the disease. The second vaccine was known as the Sabin vaccine, created by scientist Albert B.Sabin, that orally

How is the Government Affected by Autism?

2008 words - 9 pages circumstances. I selected this topic because very few people know about how much money they receive each year for their own child or anyone that they know. They will also discover how much people with autistic kids receive every month and year in total. Then I will explain how this affects the government in positive or negative ways. I believe the answer to this question is that autism has a huge affect on the government-economically and politically

How the Red scare influence Arthur Miller's Book on the Salem Witch Trial

826 words - 4 pages Scare was WWII. The government's wartime action against free speech. And McCarthy's reign of terror to gain power were all contributions to why Miller’s story was not only to tell about a horrible past event but also to show how hysteria and the misuse of power in a government can make country weak and corrupt. Works Cited Murray, Robert K. Red Scare: A Study in National Hysteria, 1919-1920. U of Minnesota Press, 1955. Googlescholar.web26Feb.2014. Fitzgerald, Brian. McCarthyism: The Red Scare. Capstone, 2006. Googlescholar.web26Feb.2014.

How Deadly is the Flu Virus and How Important is the Vaccine?

1823 words - 8 pages How Deadly is the Flu Virus and How Important is the Vaccine? Influenza is a very serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and even fatalities. There are many different strands, infecting people of all ages and originating from different animals, which can be extremely fatal if the right care isn’t provided. Care for flu patients have changes tremendously over the years from once having no vaccine to having a limited amount of vaccines

MMR Vaccine: Examining the Evidence

2563 words - 11 pages word surrounded by controversy in today’s parenting world and the Measles Mumps and Rubella vaccine (MMR) can be distinguished as possibly the most controversial vaccine of our time. Controversial because of the fear that many have that it causes autism along with other hazards. This fear has clouded the judgment of thousands of concerned parents who are making the decision of whether or not to vaccinate their children with the MMR vaccine. These

Similar Essays

The Vaccine Autism Controversy Essay

1143 words - 5 pages being presented on the media about vaccines. The vaccine-autism controversy is the central issue in Jeffrey S. Gerber’s and Paul A. Offits’ article “Vaccines and Autism: A Tale of Shifting Hypotheses” as well as in Andy Coghlan’s article “Vaccines May Have Triggered Autism-Like Symptoms, US Court Rules.” Gerber and Offits clearly argue that science proves vaccines are not the link to autism. They state three proposed hypotheses about how vaccines

The Vaccine War: Media Theory Essay


The Tylenol Scare Essay

2211 words - 9 pages shelves, Johnson and Johnson sent Mailgram messages explaining the situation and had to recall more products from doctors, hospitals and distributors. Johnson and Johnson also kept the media informed and established a toll-free crisis hotline so consumers had someone to call to ask questions. There was no recall requirement but Johnson and Johnson made the decision to put its customer's safety first. Because of the scare Johnson and Johnson lost most

The Red Scare Essay

1146 words - 5 pages The First and Second Red Scare of the United States paved the way for a long standing fear of communism and proved to be one of America’s largest periods of mass hysteria. Throughout the years authors and analysts have studied and formed expository albeit argumentative books and articles in an attempt to further understand this period of time; the mindset held during this period however is shown to be completely different compared to now