Sky News Australia deletes dozens of videos promoting unproven Covid treatments
Sky News Australia has quietly deleted at least 31 videos that question the public health response to Covid-19 or promote unproven treatments as the broadcaster prepares for its chief executive, Paul Whittaker, to appear at a Senate inquiry on Friday, Guardian Australia can reveal.
Sky News will face the media diversity inquiry after the broadcaster was suspended from YouTube for seven days for posting 21 videos that violated the platform’s Covid medical misinformation policies.
Whittaker, presenter Sharri Markson and the Sky News digital editor, Jack Houghton, have all criticised YouTube for deleting the videos but Sky has given no explanation for scrubbing its own skynews.com.au website of what could be perceived as contentious content.
The disappearing videos include Alan Jones saying Victorian premier Daniel Andrews is “wrong” on face masks: “that bloke is in need of medication”; and a Jones interview with a Canadian pathologist who claimed Covid was the “greatest hoax ever perpetrated on an unsuspecting public”.
After the interview Jones said: “well there you are, as I have said all along, there is no epidemiological justification for any of this. Lockdowns, face masks, social distancing”.
Markson, whose content has not been targeted, called the YouTube ban “the most extreme cancellation of free speech imaginable” last week and Houghton said it was “tech giant censorship” when the popular channel was barred from adding any new videos up until Thursday evening.
YouTube said: “We have clear and established Covid-19 medical misinformation policies based on local and global health authority guidance, to prevent the spread of Covid-19 misinformation that could cause realworld harm.”
As a result of Sky removing the videos they have disappeared from all News Corp newspaper websites and Facebook pages where they were hosted.
In another removed video Andrew Bolt says hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin should not be banned: “Listen I don’t know if these drugs work, but I do not see a good reason to ban or restrict them.”
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Outsiders co-host Rowan Dean has also spoken about the unproven treatments, going so far as to say governments are “directly responsible for the deaths of Australians” whose lives could have been saved by hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin.
In another video which has been taken down Jones says Covid-19 is not a “unique disease” and the public is being lied to by authorities.
“It does not appear to have a noticeably higher mortality rate than the so-called common cold,” Jones said in October last year. “Yet here we are with lockdowns everywhere. “I won’t be letting up on this because I am sick and tired of the nation being told rubbish. Or should that word be lies? “The point is, none of us are trusted. Governments are determining what we do about our health. And the consequences may be damaging indeed.
“Can some of these politicians do some research of some scholarship, bury the alarmism, bring on the truth.”
The former prime minister Kevin Rudd said Sky News should have explained to viewers why the content had been removed, and apologised if it was wrong.
“Murdoch’s commentators have defended their pandemic misinformation as ‘responsible, informed coverage’,” Rudd told Guardian Australia.
“This scrubbing of Murdoch’s websites proves the exact opposite. Sky News’s claims have been irresponsible, indefensible and dangerous – and they know it.”
Sky commentators have labelled YouTube “left wing” and said that YouTube’s approach to policing debate around Covid-19 policies “appears arbitrarily focused against conservative voices”.
Rudd, who will give evidence to the inquiry on Friday, said Sky should explain the removal.
“When a serious broadcaster retracts a story, they explain their reasons and issue an apology,” he said.
According to the health department there is currently insufficient evidence to support the safe and effective use of ivermectin and the use of hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of Covid-19 is not recommended outside of randomised trials with appropriate ethical approval.
The vast majority of the 31 videos contain positive comments about the use of ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of Covid-19.
Earlier in the year Jones was forced to publish a correction to his August 2020 editorial railing against Covid-19 restrictions in Victoria after the Australian Communications and Media Authority found he had “misrepresented the research” on the effectiveness of masks and lockdowns. However, Acma has been silent on the move by YouTube against medical misinformation and will face questions from committee members over its role.
Greens senator Sarah HansonYoung, the chair of the senate inquiry into media diversity, has said the “obvious question is if the spread of misinformation isn’t allowed on the internet why is it on television broadcasts”.
According to reports in News Corp papers on Monday, Whittaker has written to YouTube to question its editorial policies concerning Covid-19, saying they are “internally inconsistent and incapable of compliance”.
Sky News did not respond to a request for comment.
The list of the 31 videos which have been removed:
Ivermectin treatment caused ‘amazing improvement’: Melbourne COVID patients
Statistical analysis of 118 studies proves ‘efficacy’ of Hydroxychloroquine
Potential COVID treatment facing ‘intrinsic bias due to non-scientific concerns’
Doctor claims Ivermectin triple therapy is ‘amazingly effective’ in treating COVID-19
Ivermectin treatment ‘could bring us all together by Christmas’
‘Dangerous Dan is wrong about compulsory facemasks’: Alan Jones
There is no good reason to ban two potential ‘COVID cures’: Andrew Bolt
Systemic discouragement of Hydroxychloroquine is a ‘national scandal’
Doctors, patients should be free to decide on whether to take hydroxychloroquine
There is ‘much ado about nothing’ amid hysteria at NSW premier’s breach of guidelines
Australian scientists roll out hydroxychloroquine trial
Bureaucrats ‘deny the evidence, Hydroxychloroquine reduces death by 73 per cent’
US stockpiles 29 million doses of hydroxychloroquine drug
The jury is in on Hydroxychloroquine – ‘it saves lives’: Rowan Dean
COVID-19 is ‘not a unique disease’, yet here we are, with lockdowns every
where: Jones
‘Evil’: Family kicked off plane for ‘authoritarian’ mask rules: Outsiders
Were doctors free to prescribe Hydroxychloroquine, ‘we wouldn’t need the lockdowns’
Clinical trials show Hydroxychloroquine is ‘safe’ with no reported toxicity
‘Fears of people taking Hydroxychloroquine in unregulated ways are quite real’
There is a ‘mountain of evidence’ supporting Hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID
‘Coronavirus death rate is roughly inline with the flu’: Medical professor
Melbourne GP says Ivermectin treatment is ‘very effective’
Andrews’ mask mandate is another ‘dreamt up draconian measure’: Alan Jones
Covid-19 treatments are ‘staring at us in the face’ but have been ignored
Doctors warn public against use of Hydroxychloroquine after Trump revelation
Ivermectin treatment is a ‘real killer of coronavirus’: Professor
Studies show hydroxychloroquine cuts ‘virus mortality in half in high risk groups’
People are out ‘to prove President Trump wrong’ on Hydroxychloroquine There is ‘rank dishonesty’ about Hydroxychloroquine: Alan Jones
Leftist media ‘willing to have lives lost’ as a result of hatred for Trump
‘Only a one in 17 billion chance hydroxychloroquine doesn’t work’: medical professor: Outsiders