John Oliver recently criticized the anti-vaccination movement on Last Week Tonight. Oliver humorously pointed out some of the major flaws with the anti-vaccination view. Vaccines have saved millions of lives. There is a difference between correlation and causation. There is no evidence that vaccines containing thimerosal are unsafe. There is no evidence that vaccination causes autism. Arguments suggesting that there is no proof of vaccination safety can be used unfairly.
Craig A. Foster is a professor of psychology in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership at the United States Air Force Academy.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was one of the people mentioned by Oliver as supporting anti-vaccination. Kennedy responded to Oliver’s “attack” on Tucker Carlson Tonight. Kennedy went to his usual playbook (Mnookin 2017). He is sacrificing himself to warn others about vaccination. He has some sympathy for existing research but questions its thoroughness. He implies that the increase in the number of vaccinations has something to do with the corresponding revenue generated by the pharmaceutical industry and refers vaguely to reports of the CDC’s corruption. He suggests that there is some type of media bias against him and that he is just trying to get answers to questions.