Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
A news report states that “An Australian biotech company has developed a new treatment it hopes will prevent people dying from Covid vaccines.”
The archived version of the tweet can be seen here.
Fact
Newschecker first ran a keyword search for “Australian biotech company treatment against Covid-19 vaccines”, which did not lead us to any credible news reports, raising our doubts.
We noticed the logo of Australian media outlet, 7 News, in the bottom-right corner of the screen. Taking a cue from this, we ran a relevant keyword search, which led us to an archived version of a 7 News bulletin, dated April 16, 2021, on Youtube. The viral excerpt can be seen from the 20:38 mark of the 57:11 video, where the anchor says “Covid vaccine”. However, the following part, which was cut out in the viral video, sees her correcting herself by stating “Covid-19”.
“An Australian biotech company has developed a new treatment it hopes will prevent people dying from Covid vaccine – Covid-19. As Katrina Blowers reports, it is now being trialled in the United States,” says the presenter.
We learnt that on April 16, 2021, a new anti-inflammatory drug developed by University of Queensland scientists entered a Phase II clinical trial in Covid-19 patients in 10 to 15 hospitals across the USA. “The drug, IC14, is the lead therapeutic compound for Brisbane and Seattle-based biotech company, Implicit Bioscience…Professor Frazer, said as the world welcomes Covid-19 vaccine candidates and a widespread prevention strategy, it remains vital to develop viable treatments that can help people who experience a life-threatening response to the virus,” read the report. A similar report can be seen here, confirming that the news presenter was talking about a treatment against the virus and not the vaccine. The viral video had first surfaced in 2021 itself, which was disproved by AFP.
Also Read: 2014 Video Of Iraqi Soldier Getting Shot Falsely Linked To Israel-Hamas Conflict
Result: False
Source
Youtube video, April 16, 2021
AFP report, May 27, 2021
Translational Research Institute report, April 16, 2021
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
