Senator's Speech on COVID Treatments Gets Dinged on YT

Ron Johnson earns one-week suspension after site says he spread medical misinformation
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 12, 2021 9:15 AM CDT
Ron Johnson Gets Booted From YouTube for One Week
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., is seen Tuesday on Capitol Hill in Washington.   (Greg Nash/Pool via AP)

Ron Johnson had some thoughts earlier this month on treatments for COVID, and those nuggets have now earned him a one-week suspension from YouTube. The Republican senator from Wisconsin made a June 3 appearance at the Milwaukee Press Club, where he slammed both the Trump and Biden administrations for "not only ignoring but working against robust research [on] the use of cheap, generic drugs to be repurposed for early treatment of COVID." Johnson's staff uploaded clips from his speech to YouTube, but they tell the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel those clips have since been taken down. Those who click on the YouTube link now see a message that reads: "This video has been removed for violating YouTube's Community Guidelines."

The more in-depth reason, per a YouTube spokesperson: "We removed the video in accordance with our COVID-19 medical misinformation policies, which don't allow content that encourages people to use hydroxychloroquine or ivermectin to treat or prevent the virus." On Friday afternoon, Milwaukee Press Club President Corri Hess tweeted that the group would keep the "on the record event with journalists" on the club's YouTube channel, but a couple of hours later, she noted their video was removed as well, per NBC News. Not surprisingly, Johnson isn't thrilled with the decision. "Big Tech and mainstream media believe they are smarter than medical doctors who have devoted their lives to science and use their skills to save lives," Johnson said in a statement. "They have decided there is only one medical viewpoint allowed and it is the viewpoint dictated by government agencies." (More Ron Johnson stories.)

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