buzzfeednews--2020-04-27--A California Pair Have Been Arrested And Charged With Fraud Over A Multimillion-Dollar Face Mask And

A California Pair Have Been Arrested And Charged With Fraud Over A Multimillion-Dollar Face Mask And Respirator Deal

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Two California men were arrested on Monday in connection with an alleged conspiracy to sell $ 4 million worth of personal protective equipment they did n't actually possess .
In a criminal complaint that was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn , prosecutors allege that Donald Allen , 62 , of Riverside , California , and Manuel Revolorio , 37 , of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an undercover agent about their business experience and inventory of surgical face masks and KN95 respirators in an effort to get a potential investor to wire them millions of dollars .
They 're now facing federal fraud charges .
In recent weeks , the market for face masks and respirators has become highly competitive and often corruption-filled , as swindlers have fed off the desperation of health care providers , governments , and individuals desperately searching for scarce equipment during the global coronavirus pandemic .
“ The defendants sought to take advantage of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protective equipment through a fraudulent scheme designed to line their own pockets , ” Richard P. Donoghue , the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York , said in a statement .
Donoghue added that his office was `` working tirelessly to ensure that scam artists who seek to capitalize on the worldwide pandemic will be brought to justice.
” On April 9 , the day after Allen spoke with a potential investor — who has pleaded guilty to a separate crime and is now working with federal authorities — Allen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for their company , International Commerce and Investment Group , that falsely claimed they had been working closely with global traders , medical institutions , and other companies to supply personal protective equipment since 2014 .
In fact , International Commerce and Investment Group was incorporated in September 2017 as a real estate investment firm with Allen as the vice president and Revolorio as the president .
According to the complaint , the company did not get involved with medical supplies until March 2020 .
The toll-free telephone number listed on the “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actually connected to automated message advertising an adult telephone service .

Two California men were arrested on Monday in connection with an alleged conspiracy to sell $4 million worth of personal protective equipment they didn't actually possess.
In a criminal complaint that was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn, prosecutors allege that Donald Allen, 62, of Riverside, California, and Manuel Revolorio, 37, of Rancho Cucamonga, California, lied to an undercover agent about their business experience and inventory of surgical face masks and KN95 respirators in an effort to get a potential investor to wire them millions of dollars. They're now facing federal fraud charges.
In recent weeks, the market for face masks and respirators has become highly competitive and often corruption-filled, as swindlers have fed off the desperation of health care providers, governments, and individuals desperately searching for scarce equipment during the global coronavirus pandemic.
“The defendants sought to take advantage of the urgent national need for life-saving personal protective equipment through a fraudulent scheme designed to line their own pockets,” Richard P. Donoghue, the US attorney for
the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement.
Donoghue added that his office was "working tirelessly to ensure that scam artists who seek to capitalize on the worldwide pandemic will be brought to justice.”
On April 9, the day after Allen spoke with a potential investor — who has pleaded guilty to a separate crime and is now working with federal authorities — Allen and Revolorio allegedly set up a website for their company, International Commerce and Investment Group, that falsely claimed they had been working closely with global traders, medical institutions, and other companies to supply personal protective equipment since 2014.
In fact, International Commerce and Investment Group was incorporated in September 2017 as a real estate investment firm with Allen as the vice president and Revolorio as the president. According to the complaint, the company did not get involved with medical supplies until March 2020. The toll-free telephone number listed on the “contact us” page of the website actually connected to automated message advertising an adult telephone service.


buzzfeednews--2020-05-15--There's Already A Justice Gap For People Who Can’t Afford Lawyers. The Coronavirus Has Made It Worse

There's Already A Justice Gap For People Who Can’t Afford Lawyers. The Coronavirus Has Made It Worse.

With courthouses still closed , judges and legal aid groups fear people who can ’ t afford lawyers are being shut out of the civil justice system altogether .
WASHINGTON — Russell Crawford , a 50-year-old father of five who lives in the Detroit suburbs , was due in court on April 8 for a hearing about his child support arrangement with the mother of his children .
When the court restricted public access in March because of the coronavirus pandemic , that hearing was postponed .
Crawford , who doesn ’ t have a lawyer , told BuzzFeed News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there was a way to resolve the situation remotely in the meantime , or if the court would consider his case an emergency and hold a hearing .
He works at a Ford automotive plant and said he was temporarily laid off during the pandemic .
He said he called the court and spent four hours waiting on the phone before being transferred to the wrong unit .
Under normal circumstances , he said , he ’ d go to the courthouse for help .
He ’ s anxious about trying to file @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
His fiancé tweeted at the 3rd Circuit Court of Michigan about his case , asking what it would take to get an emergency hearing , but didn ’ t get a response .
“ You can go file , pay the money .
If they find one mistake , they disregard it .
So I go down there to try to get help to make sure I get everything done properly , ” Crawford said .
State and local court officials across the United States are scrambling to keep the civil justice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That includes making sure people who can ’ t afford a lawyer can still access the legal system , which was a challenge long before the pandemic .
The majority of people who go to court to deal with a child support dispute , to fight an eviction , or to get a restraining order against an abuser are doing it on their own .
People who end up in court in civil cases do not have a constitutionally protected right to a lawyer like they do in criminal cases .
At @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doesn ’ t have a lawyer in three-quarters of cases , according to a 2015 report by the National Center for State Courts , and the numbers are higher in cases more likely to involve litigants with lower incomes .
The shift to remote operations is in some ways deepening a justice gap that legal aid lawyers and judges say they could barely manage before .
With courthouses closed or operating on a skeletal basis to limit the spread of the coronavirus , self-represented litigants can no longer rely on the in-person help @ @ @ @ @ @ @ centers staffed by court employees and legal aid lawyers .
Courts are moving information and operations online during the pandemic , which is also creating barriers to access .
Relying on online systems not only assumes people can figure out an electronic filing system , but also that they have a computer and internet access at home at all .
Courts are turning to conference calls and video platforms like Zoom for hearings , but that still requires a computer or smartphone and assumes people can afford the internet connection or minutes needed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expected to get worse as millions of Americans are out of work and struggling to pay bills .
And that 's all assuming courts are providing instructions and documents in plain enough language , and in multiple languages , that litigants can figure out on their own , from home , what documents they need to file and how to do it .
“ Basically the court system and legal resolution is just off the table during one of the greatest crises our country has faced , ” said Katherine Alteneder , an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a national organization of legal aid providers .
Before the pandemic , 10,000 people passed through the District of Columbia Superior Court on an average day .
Chief Judge Robert Morin said that filings in civil cases are down since the court began restricting in-person access to the courthouse in March , and he fears it 's because people ca n't figure out how to handle cases on their own from home or don ’ t have the technology .
`` This is the stuff that keeps me up at night , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people 's legal issues miraculously resolved , or people feel they do n't have access to the court 's processes . ''
The pandemic has added new pressures to an already overloaded civil justice system .
Most states have some type of eviction moratorium in place during the pandemic — but tenants still owe rent , and legal aid lawyers are bracing for a flood of eviction cases when the moratoriums lift .
A 2015 survey of research on legal representation in housing-related cases published by the Institute for Research on Poverty found @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had lawyers and the tenants did not in 90 % of cases .
In addition to the challenges that came with fighting an eviction without a lawyer before the pandemic , tenants now have to sort through federal , state , and local moratoriums during the outbreak to understand their rights , said John Pollock , coordinator of the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel .
A housing lawyer would know what questions to ask , what evidence a tenant needed to present to a judge , and how to find @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is federally backed and therefore covered by a federal eviction moratorium as well as a state one , he said .
“ Evictions are being filed by landlords that don ’ t comply with federal law , but no one is going to know that , ” he said .
Melissa Picciola , director of volunteer services at Legal Aid Chicago , said the organization is fielding phone calls from people struggling to keep up with the status of their cases as the court has delayed hearings .
There was confusion at first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ orders in domestic violence cases , she said , but that got solved .
Picciola said she recently had a call with a woman who learned that her child ’ s father had filed a request in court to change their custody arrangement , but the woman didn ’ t know what the father had asked for and couldn ’ t access it online .
The Circuit Court of Cook County makes case dockets available online , but not copies of documents .
“ Normally we ’ d advise people , go to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ court file , ” Picciola said .
“ I advised her to call the clerk ’ s office and ask if they ’ ll read it to you over the phone.
” The pandemic has added a new sense of urgency to a long-simmering movement to establish a right to counsel in some types of civil cases .
Last week , Rep. Joe Kennedy III , a Massachusetts Democrat , introduced a resolution to create a national right to counsel for litigants who can ’ t afford a lawyer in cases that involve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , safety , family , shelter , or sustenance.
” “ I ’ m not sure you could get a more urgent moment than this one .
As the last recession showed us , one of the ways in which the consequences of this amount of economic dislocation and pain manifest is through our civil courts , ” Kennedy , who is running against Sen. Ed Markey this year , said .
Kennedy ’ s resolution acknowledges that it ’ s largely up to state and local governments to figure out how to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for it .
Some cities and states have pilot projects , but the movement has been slow to spread .
Kennedy ’ s office said it does n't have an estimate for how much it would cost , but cited studies showing that investment in civil legal aid saved states money in the long term ; a 2014 report from the Boston Bar Association found that for every $ 1 invested in legal services for evictions and foreclosures , Massachusetts saved $ 2.69 in other costs , such as emergency shelters and healthcare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
” The challenges that self-represented litigants face as they try to research the law and figure out court procedures on their own while courthouses are largely closed is apparent online ; some people have taken to tweeting their questions at courts .
Maria Hernandez , a 44-year-old nurse in Orange , California , was helping her adult son deal with a custody fight in March when the pandemic forced the Los Angeles Superior Court to limit public access .
It was too expensive to hire a lawyer to help her and her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ file to secure visitation rights for his child and how to do it , Hernandez told BuzzFeed News .
Normally , she would go to the courthouse to ask for help , but that wasn ’ t an option .
She called the court and said she was told to check the website .
She found a document that looked relevant but it said “ Notice to Attorneys ” at the top , so she wasn ’ t sure it applied .
Frustrated , she tweeted a question at the court ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t know what to do .
“ You can ’ t get any answers , ” Hernandez said in a phone interview with BuzzFeed News last week .
“ What do you do ?
Who do you go to ?
” Jorge Alverz , a 29-year-old retail worker in Miami who said he ’ s out of work because of the pandemic , tweeted at the account for the Miami-Dade County court system in late April .
He said he repeatedly tried calling the court for information about how to file for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disconnect each time .
Alverz is in a same-sex marriage , and he told BuzzFeed News he didn ’ t know what to do with divorce forms he found on the court ’ s website that use the terms “ husband ” and “ wife.
” Hiring a lawyer is expensive , he said , and he didn ’ t feel comfortable hiring someone to do something as personal as a divorce when they couldn ’ t meet face-to-face .
He figured out how to use an online chat system the court offers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when a court employee told him to use the forms with the wrong terms .
He wrote his own divorce petition but hasn ’ t filed it yet .
He said he ’ d prefer to go to the courthouse to do it .
“ I just want to take my time and make sure I get everything right .
It costs $ 409 to file for divorce , and even for me that ’ s a lot of money right now , during this time .
I don ’ t want to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s going to be rejected , ” he said .
Judge Linda Singer Stein , the administrative judge of the County Court Civil Division for the 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida , which covers Miami-Dade County , said court officials have tried to anticipate the needs of self-represented litigants as the court system moved operations online during the pandemic .
On Monday , the chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court released new guidance for judges , employees , lawyers , and self-represented litigants about procedures during the pandemic .
Courts adopted Zoom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to call in by telephone if they can ’ t do video , Stein said .
Judges ’ staffers are encouraging litigants they interact with to sign up for the e-filing site and sending hearing reminders by email as well as regular mail .
The court is preparing to launch a system to send reminders by text message , she said .
“ We are doing everything we can to make sure everyone has a full hearing , ” Stein said .
At the Los Angeles Superior Court , officials have tried to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has a self-help phone line available on weekdays and is rolling out new online programs to help self-represented litigants like Hernandez and her son resolve custody fights and other legal issues at home .
The “ digital divide ” is not a new problem for the legal system , but court officials and legal aid organizations could rely on workarounds in the past , Alteneder said ; even if people didn ’ t have a computer or internet at home , they could come to the courthouse or use a computer and printer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ friend ’ s or a family member ’ s house .
With libraries and other public buildings closed and stay-at-home orders limiting movement , however , those options have evaporated .
Courts need to confront a variety of technological shortcomings , Alteneder said , such as making sure documents can be edited on a smartphone since that may be the only way a litigant can access the internet .
Legal aid organizations that previously made lawyers available at courthouses are now figuring out how to reach people at home .
In the DC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ resource center quickly transitioned to a telephone-based system , said Stephanie Troyer , supervising attorney for the family law and domestic violence unit of Legal Aid DC .
Now , if someone calls the family court or domestic violence division at the court , they ’ re transferred to the resource center line .
Litigants can ask questions and get forms that they can edit online , she said .
If they still need a lawyer , they ’ re directed over to a network of legal aid attorneys .
Troyer expects the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ court is allowing people to file nonemergency matters , even if judges aren ’ t scheduling hearings .
Litigants who ’ ve received multiple rescheduling notices are struggling to figure out the status of their cases , said Troyer .
“ There are lots of people who just don ’ t know what is available to them at the court , ” she said .
Raun Rasmussen , executive director of Legal Services NYC , said his organization has expanded its hotline capabilities to handle a rise in demand for information about issues @ @ @ @ @ @ @ benefits to confusion about delays in immigration cases .
“ There ’ s still just a really basic lack of comprehension , lack of ability to utilize the systems that are available so that people can successfully either get benefits or get a case filed or get an order of protection filed , ” Rasmussen said .
“ It ’ s just too complicated to navigate for a lot of people.
” ●

WASHINGTON — Russell Crawford, a 50-year-old father of five who lives in the Detroit suburbs, was due in court on April 8 for a hearing about his child support arrangement with the mother of his children. When the court restricted public access in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, that hearing was postponed.
Crawford, who doesn’t have a lawyer, told BuzzFeed News he was trying to figure out if there was a way to resolve the situation remotely in the meantime, or if the court would consider his case an emergency and hold a hearing. He works at a Ford automotive plant and said he was temporarily laid off during the pandemic. He said he called the court and spent four hours waiting on the phone before being transferred to the wrong unit.
Under normal circumstances, he said, he’d go to the courthouse for help. He’s anxious about trying to file on his own and doing it wrong. His fiancé tweeted at the 3rd Circuit Court of Michigan about his case, asking what it would take to get an emergency hearing, but didn’t get a response.
“You can go file, pay the money. If they find one mistake, they disregard it. So I go down there to try to get help to make sure I get everything done properly,” Crawford said.
State and local court officials across the United States are scrambling to keep the civil justice system functioning while courthouses are physically closed. That includes making sure people who can’t afford a lawyer can still access the legal system, which was a challenge long before the pandemic.
The majority of people who go to court to deal with a child support dispute, to fight an eviction, or to get a restraining order against an abuser are doing it on their own. People who end up in court in civil cases do not have a constitutionally protected right to a lawyer like they do in criminal cases. At least one party in a civil lawsuit doesn’t have a lawyer in three-quarters of cases, according to a 2015 report by the National Center for State Courts, and the numbers are higher in cases more likely to involve litigants with lower incomes.
The shift to remote operations is in some ways deepening a justice gap that legal aid lawyers and judges say they could barely manage before. With courthouses closed or operating on a skeletal basis to limit the spread of the coronavirus, self-represented litigants can no longer rely on the in-person help available at courthouses, such as resource centers staffed by court employees and legal aid lawyers.


buzzfeednews--2020-04-30--Coronavirus Research Grants Are Being Used To Smear Dr. Fauci

BuzzFeed News has reporters across five continents bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
Right-wing media and conspiracy theorists have seized on a series of grants awarded over the course of six years to study coronaviruses to undermine Dr. Anthony Fauci , the immunologist who ’ s been at the helm of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984 .
The narrative moved to the spotlight at the White House when , during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a reporter with Newsmax asked President Donald Trump about the grants , totaling $ 3.7 million since 2014 .
The Daily Mail , a British tabloid known for publishing unreliable stories , first reported the $ 3.7 million figure on April 11 .
The paper wrote a story on the funding , parts of which went to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China .
Although the article stated that there ’ s no evidence the novel coronavirus leaked from the lab , it implied a correlation between the grants and the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Institute was experimenting on bats from the area already known to be the source of COVID-19 — and doing so with American money — has sparked further fears that the lab , and not the market , is the original outbreak source . ''
Those questions have had real effects .
Politico reported on April 27 that the National Institutes of Health would be revoking grants given to New York–based nonprofit organization EcoHealth Alliance in 2019 , including funds for 2020 that the nonprofit now has to return .
But in reality , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do with the coronavirus pandemic .
In fact , they were awarded after a different kind of coronavirus — SARS — spread across the world in 2003 .
The NIH also didn ’ t give the funds directly to the Wuhan Institute , instead awarding them to EcoHealth Alliance , which invests in health research globally .
The money helped support research that led to 20 research papers on coronaviruses published over the six years , according to the NIH .
It ’ s not clear whether Fauci was personally involved in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Wuhan Institute , those funds also went to research facilities in Shanghai , Beijing , and Singapore .
The grants were meant to “ support research that aims to understand what factors allow coronaviruses , including close relatives to SARS , to evolve and jump into the human population and cause disease ( called a spillover event ) , ” an NIH spokesperson told BuzzFeed News .
“ Most emerging human viruses come from wildlife , and these represent a significant threat to public health and biosecurity in the US and globally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 2002–03 , and the current COVID-19 pandemic , ” the spokesperson said .
“ The project includes studying viral diversity in animal ( bats ) reservoirs , surveying people that live in high-risk communities for evidence of bat-coronavirus infection , and conducting laboratory experiments to analyze and predict which newly discovered viruses pose the greatest threat to human health.
” The grant also wasn ’ t the first awarded to EcoHealth Alliance .
The NIH has been funding infectious disease research projects through the nonprofit since 2005 .
But the Daily Mail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did the Newsmax reporter , who on April 17 asked Trump : `` There was also another report [ saying ] that the NIH under the Obama administration in 2015 gave that lab $ 3.7 million in a grant .
Why would the US give a grant like that to China ?
” Newsmax reporter Emerald Robinson did not return a request for comment .
For Joan Donovan , the director of the Technology and Social Change Project at Harvard 's Shorenstein Center , the attacks and conspiracies are part of a larger @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ If you don ’ t trust the scientist , you don ’ t trust the science , ” Donovan said .
And the right-wing media and conspiratorial YouTube channels have used the grants to stoke that distrust .
On April 26 , Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani called for an investigation of the grant on a New York morning radio show .
Falsely and without evidence , the former mayor of New York implied the virus was created as a biological weapon , blaming Fauci and the administration of President Barack Obama .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 12 years has been carrying on these experiments , including in this Wuhan laboratory , with animals , and actually making this virus more dangerous , ” Giuliani said on the show .
“ You could say that ’ s for scientific purposes , or you could say that ’ s for the purpose of weaponizing them.
” “ 'Paid for the Damn Virus That ’ s Killing Us ' : Giuliani Rips Fauci Over Grants to Wuhan Laboratory , ” said a Washington Examiner headline on April 26 , gathering over 150,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Anthony Fauci Should Explain ' $ 3.7 Million to the Wuhan Laboratory ' ” read a headline in the Washington Times on April 27 , which received over 165,000 Facebook likes , shares , and comments .
Rep. Matt Gaetz and Newsweek may have also perpetuated the falsely shaded narrative , but the most popular piece of content about the grants came from the Next News Network , a YouTube channel known for circulating baseless claims , including a fabricated story about President Bill Clinton sexually assaulting a teenager .
Hosted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the channel has over a million subscribers and surpassed a billion views in December , according to Forbes .
On April 19 , the Next News Network posted a video about the grants , which has received over 2.3 million views .
In it , osteopath Rashid Buttar drew a direct line between the grant , Fauci , and the pandemic .
According to YouTube , the video did not violate the social media company 's policies .
“ Is Fauci directly responsible for this pandemic ?
” Franchi asked Buttar in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to say this : I ’ ve seen some petitions going around . ''
Buttar responded .
“ I think he ’ s a criminal .
He ’ s going against the law .
He ’ s going against the government.
” Franchi told BuzzFeed News he was asking Buttar `` to clarify his belief that Dr. Fauci ’ s work with coronaviruses has led to the pandemic.
” He added : “ The video as a whole revolves around President Trump responding to a reporter that he is investigating the widely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wuhan Lab in 2015 by the NIH to continue coronavirus research after a moratorium was placed on such research in the United States and Dr. Fauci ’ s involvement with the funding of that research.
” In addition to spreading conspiracy theories about the pandemic , Buttar has a history of action taken against him by medical authorities .
In 2010 , the North Carolina medical board reprimanded him for , among other complaints , three cancer patients who sought treatment from him and paid for treatment that had “ no known value @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Buttar has spent years selling skin drops at $ 150 a bottle as a treatment for diseases ranging from autism to cancer , ” WCNC reported at the time .
In 2013 , the FDA sent Buttar a warning letter for promoting and distributing unapproved medical products on his websites and YouTube videos .
Buttar did not respond to a request for comment on his statements about Dr. Fauci .
`` The medical board and FDA have a responsibility to make sure doctors do n't push too close to the edge , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ BuzzFeed News .
`` The regulatory bodies serve an important function and are needed to safeguard the public . ''

Right-wing media and conspiracy theorists have seized on a series of grants awarded over the course of six years to study coronaviruses to undermine Dr. Anthony Fauci, the immunologist who’s been at the helm of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984. The narrative moved to the spotlight at the White House when, during a press conference on April 17, a reporter with Newsmax asked President Donald Trump about the grants, totaling $3.7 million since 2014.
The Daily Mail, a British tabloid known for publishing unreliable stories, first reported the $3.7 million figure on April 11. The paper wrote a story on the funding, parts of which went to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China. Although the article stated that there’s no evidence the novel coronavirus leaked from the lab, it implied a correlation between the grants and the pandemic: "The revelation that the Wuhan Institute was experimenting on bats from the area already known to be the source of COVID-19 — and doing so with American money — has sparked further fears that the lab, and not the market, is the original outbreak source."
Those questions have had real effects. Politico reported on April 27 that the National Institutes of Health would be revoking grants given to New York–based nonprofit organization EcoHealth Alliance in 2019, including funds for 2020 that the nonprofit now has to return.
But in reality, the grants appear to have nothing to do with the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, they were awarded after a different kind of coronavirus — SARS — spread across the world in 2003. The NIH also didn’t give the funds directly to the Wuhan Institute, instead awarding them to EcoHealth Alliance, which invests in health research globally. The money helped support research that led to 20 research papers on coronaviruses published over the six years, according to the NIH. It’s not clear whether Fauci was personally involved in the grants in any way.
Aside from the Wuhan Institute, those funds also went to research facilities in Shanghai, Beijing, and Singapore. The grants were meant to “support research that aims to understand what factors allow coronaviruses, including close relatives to SARS, to evolve and jump into the human population and cause disease (called a spillover event),” an NIH spokesperson told BuzzFeed News.
“Most emerging human viruses come from wildlife, and these represent a significant threat to public health and biosecurity in the US and globally, as demonstrated by the SARS epidemic of 2002–03, and the current COVID-19 pandemic,” the spokesperson said. “The project includes studying viral diversity in animal (bats) reservoirs, surveying people that live in high-risk communities for evidence of bat-coronavirus infection, and conducting laboratory experiments to analyze and predict which newly discovered viruses pose the greatest threat to human health.”
The grant also wasn’t the first awarded to EcoHealth Alliance. The NIH has been funding infectious disease research projects through the nonprofit since 2005.
But the Daily Mail failed to note that context, as did the Newsmax reporter, who on April 17 asked Trump: "There was also another report [saying] that the NIH under the Obama administration in 2015 gave that lab $3.7 million in a grant. Why would the US give a grant like that to China?”
Newsmax reporter Emerald Robinson did not return a request for comment.
For Joan Donovan, the director of the Technology and Social Change Project at Harvard's Shorenstein Center, the attacks and conspiracies are part of a larger narrative undermining Fauci and his work. “If you don’t trust the scientist, you don’t trust the science,” Donovan said.
And the right-wing media and conspiratorial YouTube channels have used the grants to stoke that distrust.
On April 26, Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani called for an investigation of the grant on a New York morning radio show. Falsely and without evidence, the former mayor of New York implied the virus was created as a biological weapon, blaming Fauci and the administration of President Barack Obama.
“China for the last 10 to 12 years has been carrying on these experiments, including in this Wuhan laboratory, with animals, and actually making this virus more dangerous,” Giuliani said on the show. “You could say that’s for scientific purposes, or you could say that’s for the purpose of weaponizing them.”
“'Paid for the Damn Virus That’s Killing Us': Giuliani Rips Fauci Over Grants to Wuhan Laboratory,” said a Washington Examiner headline on April 26, gathering over 150,000 Facebook likes, shares, and comments.
“Anthony Fauci Should Explain '$3.7 Million to the Wuhan Laboratory'” read a headline in the Washington Times on April 27, which received over 165,000 Facebook likes, shares, and comments.
Rep. Matt Gaetz and Newsweek may have also perpetuated the falsely shaded narrative, but the most popular piece of content about the grants came from the Next News Network, a YouTube channel known for circulating baseless claims, including a fabricated story about President Bill Clinton sexually assaulting a teenager. Hosted by commentator and conspiracy theorist Gary Franchi, the channel has over a million subscribers and surpassed a billion views in December, according to Forbes.
On April 19, the Next News Network posted a video about the grants, which has received over 2.3 million views. In it, osteopath Rashid Buttar drew a direct line between the grant, Fauci, and the pandemic. According to YouTube, the video did not violate the social media company's policies.
“Is Fauci directly responsible for this pandemic?” Franchi asked Buttar in the clip.
“I’m going to say this: I’ve seen some petitions going around." Buttar responded. “I think he’s a criminal. He’s going against the law. He’s going against the government.”
Franchi told BuzzFeed News he was asking Buttar "to clarify his belief that Dr. Fauci’s work with coronaviruses has led to the pandemic.”
He added: “The video as a whole revolves around President Trump responding to a reporter that he is investigating the widely reported 3.7 million dollars sent to the Wuhan Lab in 2015 by the NIH to continue coronavirus research after a moratorium was placed on such research in the United States and Dr. Fauci’s involvement with the funding of that research.”
In addition to spreading conspiracy theories about the pandemic, Buttar has a history of action taken against him by medical authorities. In 2010, the North Carolina medical board reprimanded him for, among other complaints, three cancer patients who sought treatment from him and paid for treatment that had “no known value for the treatment of cancer.”
“Buttar has spent years selling skin drops at $150 a bottle as a treatment for diseases ranging from autism to cancer,” WCNC reported at the time.
In 2013, the FDA sent Buttar a warning letter for promoting and distributing unapproved medical products on his websites and YouTube videos.
Buttar did not respond to a request for comment on his statements about Dr. Fauci.
"The medical board and FDA have a responsibility to make sure doctors don't push too close to the edge," he said in an emailed statement to BuzzFeed News. "The regulatory bodies serve an important function and are needed to safeguard the public."


buzzfeednews--2020-04-30--A US Senator Wants To Know Which Federal Authorities Are Using Clearview AI To Track The Coronavirus

Clearview AI , the facial recognition company that claims to have scraped over 3 billion photos from social media to power its face-matching tool , is now facing questions from Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey about recent claims that it ’ s developing a digital contact tracing tool for COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
Clearview AI CEO Hoan Ton-That claimed in a recent NBC interview that the company is in talks with “ federal and state ” authorities about developing a tool that would use facial recognition to track where a person diagnosed with COVID-19 has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in contact with .
Clearview has not identified any of these authorities nor the length of the agreements or contracts it has signed or is seeking .
It ’ s also unclear how Clearview ’ s facial recognition tools would aid in contact tracing efforts or how the company would obtain pictures of people diagnosed with the disease and track their movements at scale .
In a letter to Ton-That , Markey asked Clearview to name the government agencies it claims to be communicating with and to disclose any agreements it may have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if Clearview is planning to use real-time facial recognition to power its contact tracing tool .
BuzzFeed News previously reported that Clearview had developed a sister company called Insight Camera that partnered with at least two organizations to do real-time facial recognition and surveillance .
“ Technology has an important role to play in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic , but this health crisis can not justify using unreliable surveillance tools that could undermine our privacy rights , ” the letter reads .
“ Given that your responses to my previous letter failed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ particularly around accuracy and bias testing — any plans to deploy it widely to fight the coronavirus could further increase Clearview 's threat to the public 's privacy.
” In response to a detailed list of questions , Ton-That told BuzzFeed News : “ We just received the letter from Senator Markey , for whom we have great respect .
We will be responding to him directly.
” Asked by BuzzFeed News , Ton-That did not comment on which state or federal authorities the company is working with .

Clearview AI, the facial recognition company that claims to have scraped over 3 billion photos from social media to power its face-matching tool, is now facing questions from Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey about recent claims that it’s developing a digital contact tracing tool for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Clearview AI CEO Hoan Ton-That claimed in a recent NBC interview that the company is in talks with “federal and state” authorities about developing a tool that would use facial recognition to track where a person diagnosed with COVID-19 has traveled and whom they may have come in contact with. Clearview has not identified any of these authorities nor the length of the agreements or contracts it has signed or is seeking. It’s also unclear how Clearview’s facial recognition tools would aid in contact tracing efforts or how the company would obtain pictures of people diagnosed with the disease and track their movements at scale.
In a letter to Ton-That, Markey asked Clearview to name the government agencies it claims to be communicating with and to disclose any agreements it may have reached with them. He also asked if Clearview is planning to use real-time facial recognition to power its contact tracing tool. BuzzFeed News previously reported that Clearview had developed a sister company called Insight Camera that partnered with at least two organizations to do real-time facial recognition and surveillance.
“Technology has an important role to play in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic, but this health crisis cannot justify using unreliable surveillance tools that could undermine our privacy rights,” the letter reads. “Given that your responses to my previous letter failed to address ongoing concerns about your product — particularly around accuracy and bias testing — any plans to deploy it widely to fight the coronavirus could further increase Clearview's threat to the public's privacy.”
In response to a detailed list of questions, Ton-That told BuzzFeed News: “We just received the letter from Senator Markey, for whom we have great respect. We will be responding to him directly.” Asked by BuzzFeed News, Ton-That did not comment on which state or federal authorities the company is working with.


buzzfeednews--2020-04-30--Summer Won’t Save Us From The Coronavirus Pandemic

Recent research suggests that summer conditions can help kill the coronavirus more quickly .
But “ don ’ t expect miracles , ” one scientist said .
Last week , the Department of Homeland Security revealed preliminary research results with seemingly optimistic news for the summer : In agency lab tests , the coronavirus died faster in sunnier , hotter , and more humid conditions .
The new analysis , which has not yet been released in full or peer-reviewed , was the basis for President Donald Trump ’ s bizarre suggestion to bring “ light inside the body ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But the new findings are also consistent with a growing number of lab experiments and models that suggest a link between virus viability and “ seasonality , ” or weather and climate conditions .
So does this mean the US should expect the pandemic to end this summer ?
It ’ s become a popular idea , fueled in part by Trump ’ s claims that the virus would “ disappear ” in the warmer months `` like a miracle . ''
According to the results of a new Pew Research Center @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US adults polled in April said they ’ d heard the virus would go away in warmer weather .
But scientists are warning that ’ s unlikely to happen .
“ Don ’ t expect miracles , ” said Roger Shapiro , an associate professor of immunology and infectious diseases at Harvard University .
While the links to seasonality are promising , Shapiro and other scientists stress that the disease has already spread worldwide regardless of warm weather and that much of the population is still vulnerable to infection .
“ I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transmission of this pathogen , ” said Jesse Bell , a climate health expert at the University of Nebraska who is studying this issue .
But he added : “ I wouldn ’ t stake any money on it.
” Here ’ s what we know so far about the impacts of seasonality on the coronavirus spread : 1 .
Yes , the virus does seem to die faster in sunnier , hotter , and more humid lab conditions .
A handful of lab experiments in China and the United States suggest the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ winter conditions .
Researchers in Hong Kong found that when a sample of the coronavirus in a cell culture was left at 39 degrees Fahrenheit , it was still detectable after 14 days ; at 71 degrees , the virus degraded significantly over 7 days and was not detectable after 14 days .
And when exposed to 98 degrees , no virus was detectable by the second day , according to results published April 2 in the Lancet .
The preliminary DHS study announced similar findings — though the agency did not release @ @ @ @ @ @ @ experiment exposed virus in droplets of simulated saliva on a stainless steel surface to different levels of solar radiation to simulate sunlight , as well as a range of temperatures and humidities .
Under the 70 to 75 degree Fahrenheit temperature range , with 20 % humidity , the virus decayed by half over 18 hours ; when humidity was increased to 80 % , the virus decayed by half in only 6 hours .
When the temperature was increased to 95 degrees Farhenheit combined with the higher humidity , the virus half-life @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus rapidly decayed in 2 minutes when exposed to 75 degrees Fahrenheit , 80 % humidity , and intense solar radiation used to simulate sunlight .
The virus similarly disappeared rapidly in aerosol form , decaying by half in about 1 hour and 1.5 minutes , respectively , when exposed to 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures , 20 % humidity , and no versus intense sunlight .
“ Our most striking observation to date is the powerful effect that solar light appears to have on killing the virus both on surfaces @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bryan , senior official performing the duties of the DHS undersecretary for science and technology , said in a statement shared with BuzzFeed News .
“ We ’ ve seen a similar effect with both temperature and humidity as well , where increasing temperature , humidity , or both is generally less favorable to the virus.
” A separate study by the University of Nebraska Medical Center developed a method to decontaminate N95 respirators , protective masks used by health care workers treating COVID-19 patients , using ultraviolet ( UV ) light .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s important to remember that how the virus behaves in the lab may not match its behavior in the real world , according to David Relman , a professor of microbiology and immunology at Stanford University who contributed to a National Academies of Sciences report on the coronavirus ’ s survival in hot and humid conditions shared with the White House .
He added that these experiments also do not account for human behavior , such as whether people keep up social distancing , wearing masks , and washing their hands .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus has spread more slowly in hot and humid countries — but even those countries are not immune .
Not every country is seeing the virus spread at the same clip as the United States , where more than 1 million are confirmed to be infected .
Though this has been in part driven by a slow response to containing and responding to US outbreaks , as well as a botched rollout of testing for the disease by US officials , another contributing factor may be weather and climate .
An MIT @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seasonality conditions across the globe found 90 % of virus transmission recorded through March 22 occurred within the temperature zone of 37 to 62 degrees Fahrenheit .
Updated research on the topic , which has not yet been published , came to the same general conclusion that temperature and humidity are impacting transmission , Qasim Bukhari , one of the study 's authors , told BuzzFeed News .
He noted that while low reported case numbers in certain places may be attributed to a lack of access to testing or a variation in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not fully explain lower case numbers in hotter and more humid regions globally .
Ongoing research out of the University of Nebraska suggests a similar trend .
“ There is some kind of underlying climate and weather factor that is influencing the spread of this disease , ” said Bell .
His team ’ s research showed the strongest relationship between the length of day and ultraviolet light , which usually peaks in the middle of the day and during summer .
“ These variables did seem to decrease transmission.
” Perhaps the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ won ’ t soon disappear with the change of seasons is the fact that even the hottest and most humid countries haven ’ t been immune to the pandemic .
“ You ’ re still seeing it spread all across the globe , ” Bell said about the disease .
3 .
The US outbreak may slow down in the summer , but the virus is too infectious to disappear from heat alone .
When it comes to sunnier and warmer weather , “ the effect could turn out to be very small @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ It may not even be noticeable.
” Here ’ s why : The virus is very infectious , and there are a lot of people that haven ’ t yet been infected .
There are also still big questions about how this virus is transmitted : What is the viral load it takes for someone to get infected ?
What size particle is most infectious ?
If it takes a lot of virus to get someone infected , Relman explained , then perhaps the combined impacts of sunlight , humidity , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can greatly cut down transmission .
But if it only takes a little bit of virus , especially small particles of the virus that can stay aloft in the air for hours , you ’ ll still see transmission inside the offices , restaurants , and movie theaters people will be spending time in , regardless of the weather outside .
Harvard ’ s Shapiro agreed .
“ It might go down a little because we know that the virus does not like hotter and wetter conditions , ” he said , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic because “ we just have too many susceptible people.
” Though the flu is a completely different type of virus , it also has a seasonal pattern , peaking in the colder US month — from October to May .
But past flu pandemics also suggest the influence of seasonality will be minimal .
“ There have been 10 influenza pandemics in the past 250-plus years — two started in the northern hemisphere winter , three in the spring , two in the summer and three in the fall .
All had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after emergence of the virus in the human population , regardless of when the initial introduction occurred , ” according to the NAS report .
All the experts agreed that seasonality is only part of the picture , and stopping the spread of the virus will continue to rely heavily on changed behaviors .
“ Weather and climate can only explain part of the transmission , the other factors are nonenvironmental — social distancing , washing hands , covering your cough , staying home when you are sick — and these factors are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” said Bell of the University of Nebraska .
“ Understanding climate and weather will only tell you when the environmental conditions are optimal for the spread of the virus .
”

Last week, the Department of Homeland Security revealed preliminary research results with seemingly optimistic news for the summer: In agency lab tests, the coronavirus died faster in sunnier, hotter, and more humid conditions.
The new analysis, which has not yet been released in full or peer-reviewed, was the basis for President Donald Trump’s bizarre suggestion to bring “light inside the body” as a way to treat an infection. But the new findings are also consistent with a growing number of lab experiments and models that suggest a link between virus viability and “seasonality,” or weather and climate conditions.
So does this mean the US should expect the pandemic to end this summer?
It’s become a popular idea, fueled in part by Trump’s claims that the virus would “disappear” in the warmer months "like a miracle." According to the results of a new Pew Research Center survey, 22% of about 10,000 US adults polled in April said they’d heard the virus would go away in warmer weather.
But scientists are warning that’s unlikely to happen. “Don’t expect miracles,” said Roger Shapiro, an associate professor of immunology and infectious diseases at Harvard University.
While the links to seasonality are promising, Shapiro and other scientists stress that the disease has already spread worldwide regardless of warm weather and that much of the population is still vulnerable to infection.
“I’m hopeful weather and climate variables reduce transmission of this pathogen,” said Jesse Bell, a climate health expert at the University of Nebraska who is studying this issue. But he added: “I wouldn’t stake any money on it.”
Here’s what we know so far about the impacts of seasonality on the coronavirus spread:
1. Yes, the virus does seem to die faster in sunnier, hotter, and more humid lab conditions.
A handful of lab experiments in China and the United States suggest the coronavirus decays more quickly in summer versus winter conditions.
Researchers in Hong Kong found that when a sample of the coronavirus in a cell culture was left at 39 degrees Fahrenheit, it was still detectable after 14 days; at 71 degrees, the virus degraded significantly over 7 days and was not detectable after 14 days. And when exposed to 98 degrees, no virus was detectable by the second day, according to results published April 2 in the Lancet.
The preliminary DHS study announced similar findings — though the agency did not release its methodology or raw data. The experiment exposed virus in droplets of simulated saliva on a stainless steel surface to different levels of solar radiation to simulate sunlight, as well as a range of temperatures and humidities.
Under the 70 to 75 degree Fahrenheit temperature range, with 20% humidity, the virus decayed by half over 18 hours; when humidity was increased to 80%, the virus decayed by half in only 6 hours. When the temperature was increased to 95 degrees Farhenheit combined with the higher humidity, the virus half-life again dropped to 1 hour. And the virus rapidly decayed in 2 minutes when exposed to 75 degrees Fahrenheit, 80% humidity, and intense solar radiation used to simulate sunlight.


buzzfeednews--2020-04-30--For A Billion Indians, The Government’s Voluntary Contact Tracing App Might Actually Be Mandatory

The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
One afternoon in the last week of April , a pair of uniformed security guards stopped photographer Altaf Qadri from entering the pharmacy inside a large residential complex in Noida , a city near the Indian capital of New Delhi , unless he first showed them his phone .
They wanted to see if he had installed the Indian government ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ buy medicine for his father , Qadri protested .
But then he saw other people trying to get into the pharmacy .
They were downloading the app .
“ That ’ s when I realized this shit is real , ” he said .
“ They really meant it.
” In early April , India ’ s government released its contact tracing app , called Aarogya Setu — “ a bridge to health ” in Hindi .
Using a combination of self-declared personal information like travel history and symptoms , as well as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hands out green , yellow , and orange badges to people showing their infection risk .
Urging people to download it , Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it an “ important step in our fight against COVID-19.
” Millions of Indians have obeyed .
Three weeks after it launched , India ’ s IT ministry said more than 75 million people in the country had installed the app on their smartphones .
But the app has kicked off a debate in the country of 1.3 billion people that does not have a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are concerned about the app ’ s potential as a tool for state surveillance beyond the pandemic — among other things , it requires access to people ’ s location at all times .
And as India ’ s government continues to work on the app — state-issued e-passes to let people move around the country are coming soon , as is telemedicine — critics are asking if millions of Indians will be forced to download a government-backed tracking app as the cost of returning to their lives .
“ Is Aarogya Setu @ @ @ @ @ @ @ limited shelf life that is only going to be used for contact tracing ?
Or is it going to be the beginning of something bigger ?
” said Nikhil Pahwa , editor of Medianama , an Indian website that covers tech news and policy .
“ Now that millions of people have downloaded it , I don ’ t expect India ’ s government to give up on this install base .
They ’ re not going to let go of it .
We ’ re going to need to show the app @ @ @ @ @ @ @ buildings , supermarkets , and pharmacies .
This is an opportunity that they ’ ve been waiting for.
” Indians aren ’ t legally required to install Aarogya Setu , but they may not have a choice .
On Wednesday , the country ’ s government mandated all federal employees to download it .
A report in Indian business daily Mint published Wednesday cited sources in the smartphone industry saying that India ’ s government asked smartphone makers to preinstall the app on devices .
Indians may also soon need to have the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take flights .
When the pandemic passes , in other words , Aarogya Setu could become a permanent part of Indians ’ lives , like their driver 's licenses and passports .
What is built in a crisis will not disappear when it passes .

The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus. To help keep this news free, become a member and sign up for our newsletter, Outbreak Today.
One afternoon in the last week of April, a pair of uniformed security guards stopped photographer Altaf Qadri from entering the pharmacy inside a large residential complex in Noida, a city near the Indian capital of New Delhi, unless he first showed them his phone. They wanted to see if he had installed the Indian government’s coronavirus contact tracing app.
There to buy medicine for his father, Qadri protested. But then he saw other people trying to get into the pharmacy. They were downloading the app.
“That’s when I realized this shit is real,” he said. “They really meant it.”
In early April, India’s government released its contact tracing app, called Aarogya Setu — “a bridge to health” in Hindi. Using a combination of self-declared personal information like travel history and symptoms, as well as Bluetooth and location data, the app hands out green, yellow, and orange badges to people showing their infection risk. Urging people to download it, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it an “important step in our fight against COVID-19.” Millions of Indians have obeyed. Three weeks after it launched, India’s IT ministry said more than 75 million people in the country had installed the app on their smartphones.
But the app has kicked off a debate in the country of 1.3 billion people that does not have a federal privacy law. Indian privacy advocates are concerned about the app’s potential as a tool for state surveillance beyond the pandemic — among other things, it requires access to people’s location at all times. And as India’s government continues to work on the app — state-issued e-passes to let people move around the country are coming soon, as is telemedicine — critics are asking if millions of Indians will be forced to download a government-backed tracking app as the cost of returning to their lives.
“Is Aarogya Setu going to be an app with a limited shelf life that is only going to be used for contact tracing? Or is it going to be the beginning of something bigger?” said Nikhil Pahwa, editor of Medianama, an Indian website that covers tech news and policy. “Now that millions of people have downloaded it, I don’t expect India’s government to give up on this install base. They’re not going to let go of it. We’re going to need to show the app to access public transport, enter government buildings, supermarkets, and pharmacies. This is an opportunity that they’ve been waiting for.”
Indians aren’t legally required to install Aarogya Setu, but they may not have a choice. On Wednesday, the country’s government mandated all federal employees to download it. A report in Indian business daily Mint published Wednesday cited sources in the smartphone industry saying that India’s government asked smartphone makers to preinstall the app on devices. Indians may also soon need to have the app installed to board public transport and take flights.
When the pandemic passes, in other words, Aarogya Setu could become a permanent part of Indians’ lives, like their driver's licenses and passports. What is built in a crisis will not disappear when it passes.


buzzfeednews--2020-02-26--Six People Are Dead After A Workplace Shooting At Molson Coors In Milwaukee

The shooter , who was an active employee , and five other employees were found dead at the complex , which houses corporate offices and the famous Miller brewery .
An employee at a major multinational brewing company in Milwaukee opened fire on his coworkers Wednesday afternoon , killing five people and then himself , officials said .
Milwaukee police responded to a call of a shooting at the Molson Coors Beverage Company 's campus at about 2:08 p.m. , Police Chief Alfonso Morales said .
Molson Coors owns the iconic Milwaukee-based Miller Brewing Company .
Officers arrived on scene @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 51-year-old Anthony Ferrill , who had died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound , as well as five adult victims , who were all employees at the facility , Morales said .
`` There were five individuals who went to work today just like everybody goes to work and they thought they were going to go to work finish their day and return to their families , '' Mayor Tom Barrett said .
`` They did n't and tragically they never will . ''
In a statement Wednesday evening , Molson Coors CEO @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an active employee at the brewery .
`` Unfortunately , I am devastated to share that we lost five other members of our family in this tragic incident , '' Hattersley said .
`` There are no words to express the deep sadness many of us are feeling right now . ''
On Thursday , police identified the victims as Jesus Valle Jr. , 33 of Milwaukee , Gennady Levshetz , 61 , of Mequon , Trevor Wetselaar , 33 , of Milwaukee , Dana Walk , 57 , of Delafield , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Hattersley said the victims were power house operators , machinists , and electricians .
`` They were part of the fabric of our company and our community and we will miss them terribly , '' he said during a press conference with law enforcement officials .
At the start of a White House press conference where he planned to discuss coronavirus , President Donald Trump addressed the shooting , calling the shooter a `` wicked murderer . ''
Trump said that in addition to the deceased , there were others who were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said no one else was injured .
`` It ’ s a terrible thing , terrible thing , '' Trump said .
`` Our hearts go out to the people of Wisconsin and to the families . ''
Morales said Wednesday evening that police were still clearing the massive complex , which includes corporate offices as well as the famous Miller Brewery , where tours are held daily .
He added that more than 1,000 employees work on the campus .
A possible motive for the attack was not yet known .
Officials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hearts of the people of Wisconsin go out to the folks that were needlessly murdered at Molson Coors this afternoon , '' Gov .
Tony Evers said during a press conference .
`` It is a tragedy for Milwaukee , yes , but it is a tragedy for the entire state of Wisconsin . ''
Officials from several local agencies , as well as agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol , Tobacco , Firearms and Explosives responded to the scene .
`` Today ’ s workplace shooting at Miller Coors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hearts are heavy with sorrow for all the workers and their families impacted by this senseless act of violence , '' said Stephanie Bloomingdale , president of the Wisconsin state AFL-CIO , the union that represents Miller workers .
`` Every working man and woman who goes into work each day should be able to go home to their loved ones and their family members at the end of each and every shift , safe and sound , '' her statement continued .
The shooting was the 11th mass shooting in Wisconsin since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mandela Barnes , who called on local , state , and federal officials to take action against gun violence .
`` We shouldn ’ t accept this , '' Barnes said during a press conference .
`` This is not the way that things should be , and we should never grow comfortable in the place of these repeated tragedies all across America . ''

An employee at a major multinational brewing company in Milwaukee opened fire on his coworkers Wednesday afternoon, killing five people and then himself, officials said.
Milwaukee police responded to a call of a shooting at the Molson Coors Beverage Company's campus at about 2:08 p.m., Police Chief Alfonso Morales said. Molson Coors owns the iconic Milwaukee-based Miller Brewing Company.
Officers arrived on scene and located the suspect, identified as 51-year-old Anthony Ferrill, who had died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, as well as five adult victims, who were all employees at the facility, Morales said.
"There were five individuals who went to work today just like everybody goes to work and they thought they were going to go to work finish their day and return to their families," Mayor Tom Barrett said. "They didn't and tragically they never will."
In a statement Wednesday evening, Molson Coors CEO Gavin Hattersley confirmed that the shooter was an active employee at the brewery.


buzzfeednews--2020-02-27--Trump's Biggest Supporters Think The Coronavirus Is A Deep State Plot

The World Health Organization is still declining to call the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic , but the number of infections and deaths continue to climb as the disease spreads .
Public health authorities are split about whether containing or mitigating the virus is the best option — but both depend on whether President Donald Trump and his most conspiracy-addled followers can be convinced to go along with it .
At a press conference on Wednesday night , Trump praised his administration ’ s decision to restrict travel of people from countries where infections have been diagnosed , claimed House Speaker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ panic for political purposes , and announced that Vice President Mike Pence would lead the official coronavirus response .
“ Because of all we 've done , the risk to the American people remains very low , ” Trump said .
“ The level that we 've had in our country is very low and those people are getting very better.
” Trump at the press conference said he agreed with claims that Rush Limbaugh ( upon whom he bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the State of the Union speech ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that the deep state had created the coronavirus as a political weapon to “ to bring down Trump.
” When a reporter asked Wednesday night if he was minimizing the deadly potential of the outbreak , Trump laughed and joked that it was no different than the flu .
`` You do n't have to necessarily grab any handrail if you do n't have to , ” he said .
It ’ s true that the number of cases in the United States is still low , with 14 cases diagnosed .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ repatriated from high-risk settings — a current total of 53 cases .
Still , preparations are being made for things to worsen .
There are currently 81,000 cases worldwide , 2,700 deaths , the majority in China .
But with outbreaks in Iran , Italy , and South Korea , the CDC ’ s director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases , Nancy Messonnier , suggested on Friday it might be only a matter of weeks before US officials start talking about school and business closings .
As authorities get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials , and allies are either baselessly bragging about how prepared we are to contain the disease or spreading conspiracy theories about it — and there ’ s a ready audience for those fevered narratives .
On Monday , while in India on his first state visit , Trump tweeted , “ the Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA .
We are in contact with everyone and all relevant countries.
” Two days later , the president doubled down , railing against the media for spreading hysteria .
“ Low @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( Comcast ) & @ CNN are doing everything possible to make the Caronavirus [ sic ] look as bad as possible , including panicking markets , if possible , ” he wrote .
Echoing the message , hyperpartisan news sites , conspiracy theorists , and scammers have sown panic .
In the last two weeks , a narrative has solidified among his base : The virus is a deep state plot , possibly created by the Chinese government , to hurt Trump ’ s reelection chances .
Infowars ran a video claiming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up emergency food provisions ; the site 's sidebar advertised food rations on its online store .
Jordan Sather , a YouTuber aligned with the pro-Trump QAnon conspiracy theory , has told followers that coronavirus is a “ new fad disease , ” the release of which was “ planned.
” Sather has also promoted the idea that QAnon followers can protect themselves from COVID-19 , the illness caused by the new coronavirus , by drinking chlorine dioxide — otherwise known as bleach .
Limbaugh and other pro-Trump media sites have also attacked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — a longtime Trump punching bag and former deputy attorney general .
Meanwhile , on Tuesday , White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow claimed the US had an “ airtight containment ” of the virus .
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross , during an interview last month with Fox Business , said the coronavirus ’ s toll on mainland China could boost US employment .
Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro claimed that vaccine development will be on `` Trump time '' and said to expect a faster release to the public .
Anthony Fauci @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Allergy and Infectious Diseases , told BuzzFeed News that a vaccine will only be safe and available for limited distribution to doctors and the most vulnerable patients , those who are elderly or have a compromised immune system , within two years .
Republican Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton , while speaking on Fox News last week , claimed the virus could be a lab-made bioweapon , a hoax popular among QAnon followers .
The only part of the pro-Trump ecosystem that has been quiet about the outbreak has been Trump ’ s 2020 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ manager , Brad Parscale , nor the Trump War Room Twitter account have tweeted about the coronavirus .
BuzzFeed News has reached out to the campaign for comment .
Brandon J .
Brown , an epidemiologist at the University of California , Riverside , told BuzzFeed News there are many examples of the real-world effect of spreading medical misinformation during an outbreak , including the measles outbreak in Disneyland , which was due to anti-vaxxers , and the polio vaccination campaign in Pakistan , where misinformation was spread that claimed the vaccine would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lots of people congregated in one location , there is a higher risk of transmission , ” Brown said .
“ So , large gatherings such as presidential rallies with hundreds or thousands of people without too much personal space always can exacerbate the spread of any infection , such as flu or COVID-19.
” In addition , the surge of pro-Trump digital chaos shows exactly how unprepared American tech platforms are for an outbreak , regardless of the safeguards they ’ ve scrambled to put in place .
Last month , Facebook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with false claims or conspiracy theories that have been flagged by leading global health organizations and local health authorities that could cause harm to people who believe them.
” And the platform told Business Insider this week that it would ban ads that `` create a sense of urgency '' around the virus or promise to cure it .
Other platforms have also put up safety rails .
Twitter is prompting users who search for the coronavirus to visit official channels like the CDC for more information .
Searching “ coronavirus ” on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ live blog about the outbreak from a trusted news source , and hundreds of videos from verified channels .
And Amazon has removed listings for products that made false claims about the virus and cracked down on price gouging on face masks .
But Facebook and Twitter are still full of hoaxes and rumors about COVID-19 .
Travis View , a QAnon researcher and cohost of the QAnon Anonymous podcast , told BuzzFeed News he believes many pro-Trump conspiracy theorists believe they ’ re safe from the outbreak : “ Many QAnon followers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disasters , including global pandemics , because ‘ patriots are in control.
’ This stems from their belief that serious disasters are engineered by the evil ‘ cabal , ’ rather than being natural and unpredictable.
” “ It ’ s not so much of a question of if [ an outbreak in the US ] will happen anymore , but rather more of a question of exactly when this will happen , ” Messonnier said at a briefing Wednesday .
As a consequence , it could be a battle between ideology and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as was demonstrated in South Korea recently , nature wins .
More than 450 followers of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus , a religious organization described by the South China Morning Post as a “ doomsday cult , ” contracted the coronavirus .
On Monday , the head of the Infection Preventive Medicine Department in the city of Daegu tested positive for the virus and subsequently identified himself as a member of the church .
At least 681 of the 833 infections confirmed in South Korea have been in Daegu , the majority @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The outbreak within the Shincheonji community started on Feb. 7 , when a 61-year-old woman known as “ Patient No .
31 ” checked into a Daegu hospital following a traffic accident and complained of a sore throat .
She left the hospital twice to attend church services , exposing thousands of others to the virus in the process .
Members of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus believe the 88-year-old founder Lee Man-hee to be the second coming of Christ .
In comments not dissimilar to what Trump tweeted about the “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was the “ devil ’ s deed ” to stop the church ’ s growth .
In the US , similar claims could be found in QAnon circles .
On Tuesday , @ Inevitable_ET went viral with a tweet in which they claimed to have found a post from Q from two years ago that proved that Q knew about the coronavirus years before — and that if everyone trusted Trump , they would be fine .
“ We have assurance of safety and no justification to panic , ” another user responded @

The World Health Organization is still declining to call the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, but the number of infections and deaths continue to climb as the disease spreads. Public health authorities are split about whether containing or mitigating the virus is the best option — but both depend on whether President Donald Trump and his most conspiracy-addled followers can be convinced to go along with it.
At a press conference on Wednesday night, Trump praised his administration’s decision to restrict travel of people from countries where infections have been diagnosed, claimed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was trying to create a panic for political purposes, and announced that Vice President Mike Pence would lead the official coronavirus response. “Because of all we've done, the risk to the American people remains very low,” Trump said. “The level that we've had in our country is very low and those people are getting very better.”
Trump at the press conference said he agreed with claims that Rush Limbaugh (upon whom he bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the State of the Union speech) made during his radio show this week, that the deep state had created the coronavirus as a political weapon to “to bring down Trump.”
When a reporter asked Wednesday night if he was minimizing the deadly potential of the outbreak, Trump laughed and joked that it was no different than the flu. "You don't have to necessarily grab any handrail if you don't have to,” he said.
It’s true that the number of cases in the United States is still low, with 14 cases diagnosed. This is in addition to 39 cases repatriated from high-risk settings — a current total of 53 cases. Still, preparations are being made for things to worsen.


buzzfeednews--2020-02-27--Trump Put Mike Pence In Charge Of The Coronavirus Response. Public Health Experts Aren't Having It.

The vice president was widely criticized for his handling of Indiana 's HIV outbreak in 2016 .
President Trump on Wednesday appointed Vice President Mike Pence to lead the administration 's response to the coronavirus outbreak , assuring the public that officials were `` very , very ready '' to quash a flare up in the US .
At the White House , the president touted Pence as an `` expert '' in public health who has `` a certain talent for this , '' citing his experience as the governor of Indiana .
Public health experts , however , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ immediately recalled Pence 's widely admonished handling of his state 's HIV outbreak in 2016 .
During his time as governor , Pence came under fire for resisting the CDC 's urging to allow clean needles to be distributed because of his conservative , religious beliefs .
At the time , needle exchanges were illegal in Indiana .
But after mounting pressure from health officials and praying on it , the Republican eventually lifted the ban .
“ When Mike was governor , Mike Pence of Indiana , they have established great health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there , '' Trump said .
`` A system that a lot of the other states have really looked to and changed their systems .
They wanted to base it on the Indiana system .
It ’ s very good .
And I think he is really very expert in the field . ''
Pence 's appointment comes as the Trump administration works to bolster its response to the coronavirus amid criticism from both parties that it has so far been disjointed , late , and inadequate .
The president has continued to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threat to the US , again reiterating Wednesday that the risk to Americans is “ very low . ''
However , on Tuesday , CDC officials issued a more dire warning , saying in a press briefing that the virus 's spread in American communities was `` inevitable . ''
Earlier Wednesday , federal health officials said they had documented a patient in Northern California who somehow contracted the coronavirus without traveling to a foreign country or having been in contact with a confirmed case .
According to the CDC , there are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In accepting his role , Pence said he understood the `` vital role of partnerships of state and local governments and health authorities in responding to the potential threat of dangerous infectious diseases . ''
Public health experts have said otherwise .
`` My first take on this is that if you ’ re choosing someone who ’ s going to lead a response for a major epidemic that has the potential to become a pandemic…then you choose somebody who has a lot of experience , maybe with a medical degree , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ long track record dealing with infectious disease outbreaks , global health , pandemic preparedness , or biosecurity .
I don ’ t put those kinds of skills on Pence ’ s CV , '' Steffanie Strathdee , associate dean of global health at UCSD School of Medicine , told BuzzFeed News .
Strathdee , a trained infectious disease epidemiologist , called the move `` hasty '' and a politically-motivated decision given that the vice president will `` follow the party line . ''
Like many other leaders in her field , she pointed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ HIV outbreak .
`` Based on Pence ’ s response to the HIV outbreak in Indiana — 200 infections in that outbreak could have been prevented if that response had been earlier — that concerns me , '' she said .
`` We ’ re already getting a lot of mixed signals .
The public really needs to be reassured right now . ''
Other public health advocates and critics of the administration 's coronavirus response also cited Pence 's op-ed in 2000 declaring that `` smoking does not kill , '' the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ climate change , and his distrust in the effectiveness of condoms .
In response to Trump 's comments about the virus , the Infectious Diseases Society of America said that US `` leadership of comprehensive and evidence-based actions will be critical to reducing the spread and impacts of the disease '' and that the challenges `` must be met with appropriate resources . ''
`` We urge the president to address this crisis in ways that unify Americans in the face of the shared challenges ahead , '' the group said .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first emerged in China , has killed more than 2,700 people and has been detected in 37 countries .
The US has taken `` unprecedented steps '' to contain the outbreak , according to the CDC , such as travel restrictions , mass quarantines , and declaring a public health emergency .

In accepting his role, Pence said he understood the "vital role of partnerships of state and local governments and health authorities in responding to the potential threat of dangerous infectious diseases."
Public health experts have said otherwise.
"My first take on this is that if you’re choosing someone who’s going to lead a response for a major epidemic that has the potential to become a pandemic…then you choose somebody who has a lot of experience, maybe with a medical degree, or at least someone who has a long track record dealing with infectious disease outbreaks, global health, pandemic preparedness, or biosecurity. I don’t put those kinds of skills on Pence’s CV," Steffanie Strathdee, associate dean of global health at UCSD School of Medicine, told BuzzFeed News.
Strathdee, a trained infectious disease epidemiologist, called the move "hasty" and a politically-motivated decision given that the vice president will "follow the party line." Like many other leaders in her field, she pointed to Pence's handling of Indiana's HIV outbreak.
"Based on Pence’s response to the HIV outbreak in Indiana — 200 infections in that outbreak could have been prevented if that response had been earlier — that concerns me," she said. "We’re already getting a lot of mixed signals. The public really needs to be reassured right now."
Other public health advocates and critics of the administration's coronavirus response also cited Pence's op-ed in 2000 declaring that "smoking does not kill," the fact that he does not believe in climate change, and his distrust in the effectiveness of condoms.


buzzfeednews--2020-03-20--A Letter From The Front Lines Of The Coronavirus Outbreak

Our reporter Albert Samaha spent three days in the country 's first coronavirus containment zone .
He wrote this letter to readers from quarantine in his apartment this week .
Hi .
I 'm Albert Samaha , a reporter on the investigations desk at BuzzFeed News .
Like all of you , I ’ ve spent the last couple of weeks trying to get my head around this new world we live in .
Just 10 days ago , I still assumed I 'd spend the coming weeks finishing up long-term reporting projects while many of my colleagues covered the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still thinking about like so many other crises I ’ ve lived through .
I still hadn ’ t realized the scope and speed of a force that would soon pull every aspect of our lives into its orbit .
Last Tuesday , our science editor called me and said she wanted to send a reporter to New Rochelle , New York , where Gov .
Andrew Cuomo had designated a containment zone around the largest cluster of confirmed cases at the time .
Over my five and a half years at BuzzFeed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ range of challenging circumstances — I covered the unrest in Baltimore after the death of Freddie Gray , waded through floodwater in Houston after Hurricane Harvey , and traveled along the edge of conflict zones in the southern Philippines .
But the last week taught me that reporting on this pandemic is unlike any of that .
My reporting usually begins with going wherever people are — with face-to-face conversations , handshakes , and smiles in living rooms , barbershops , corner stores , bus stops , parks , bars , and blacktops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ close interactions could put you and others in danger ?
In our pretravel planning for New Rochelle , our security director reminded me to wash my hands regularly , avoid all physical contact , not touch my face , and if possible maintain a distance of 6 feet from the nearest person .
I was equipped with a small number of N95-certified face masks , goggles , full-body protective suits , a bag of latex gloves , and various disinfectants .
I watched a training video , shaved my beard so the mask @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tried on the full outfit , which I was to wear if I happened to interview people who 'd been diagnosed .
On past reporting trips , safety directives centered on keeping me out of danger , but on this one the overarching concern was keeping me from putting others in danger .
The orders were strict : I was to drive straight home from New Rochelle every night , commuting about an hour back to Brooklyn , and go straight to my apartment , sanitizing surfaces I touched on the way .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ stayed in a hotel , where people passing through could spread the virus .
Once I completed my assignment in New Rochelle , I would stay in self-quarantine for two weeks as a precaution in case I contracted the virus while interviewing people who lived near the outbreak .
My editors had me stock up on groceries and extend the rental car reservation through the end of my isolation to prevent me from potentially exposing anybody at the rental car place .
We played out hypothetical situations that came to mind and expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for .
I ended up reporting in New Rochelle on Wednesday , Thursday , and Friday .
I took my temperature every couple of hours and kept in close touch with our security director and several editors on a WhatsApp group chat .
Someone was online to check on me all hours of the day and night , an editor in London in the morning , New York during the day , and San Francisco late at night .
It ’ s hard to overstate how much easier my job is when I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team that ’ s looking out for me , reminding me to eat and sleep , encouraging me , and approving the expenses necessary for minimizing risks in a potentially hazardous environment .
A week later , I feel no symptoms , though I have no way to know if I was exposed .
Almost none of us do .
The conditions I found in New Rochelle last week look quaint by today 's standards .
Most people had stopped shaking hands , adopting elbow bumps , but most restaurants were still open @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protesters gathered in front of city hall demanding the closure of all 11 local schools .
In the evenings , a local McDonald 's a quarter mile outside the containment zone became a hopping social center for local high schoolers stretching their legs after being home all day ; meanwhile , their teachers scrambled to adapt lesson plans to a solely digital classroom .
There are no visible markers denoting where the containment zone starts — the area is largely residential .
The National Guard came in and distributed food donated by a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nonperishables to people who filed through the ground-floor hallway of an apartment complex .
The state government rushed to increase testing capacity , constructing a drive-through facility and organizing scores of emergency workers to conduct tests in people 's homes .
Within days , thousands in the city were tested .
On the ground , I saw the magnitude of this mobilization in the rush of emergency workers zipping through the command center , the 40-by-80-foot tents going up for the drive-through testing facility , the piles of donated food — the toil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outbreak .
The state had acted quickly to address a known hot zone : At the time , New Rochelle , a city of 80,000 people , had more diagnosed cases than New York City , population 8 million .
Every day , more and more cities surpass the number of confirmed cases that first drew national attention to New Rochelle .
Resources stretch thinner .
The pandemic touches everyone .
I have close relatives who have lost jobs , work in hospitals , or worry they may have contracted the virus .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ job , the means to hunker down , and a health insurance plan .
This week , confined to my home , I spoke — via phone call , email , text , and Signal — with about 100 people working jobs that have kept them outside .
One was an ER doctor who tested positive for the virus last Saturday .
Some were retail workers whose employers declined to close stores , even as disinfectant supplies dwindled , leaving them faced with choosing between their paycheck and the safety of their families @ @ @ @ @ @ @ jobs that keep us fed and healthy — grocery store clerks , pharmacists , and the people who transport , pack , and deliver supplies to our doorstep .
I wish I could say I ’ d found these sources through reporting savvy , but they came to us , reaching out through our tip line channels , risking their jobs to share their experiences .
After we published a story on Wednesday about stores that remained open , hundreds more tips have poured in .
As soon as I finish writing this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the inbox — you can reach me at albert.samaha @ buzzfeed.com — trying to figure out what is happening in places I ’ m unable to visit at the moment .
Over the last two days , some of the companies we ’ ve reported on have closed offices , allowed more employees to work from home , or issued new safety protocols encouraging social distancing .
The next part of my job is seeing if the policies are implemented , and to what effect .
Once my two weeks of isolation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ know when or where my next reporting trip will be , how hard it will be to get there , nor what risks we ’ ll need to assess .
We still don ’ t know much about this new virus , even less about the ripples of its impact .
I ’ m grateful to be in a position to help report on it .
Thank you for your support .

On past reporting trips, safety directives centered on keeping me out of danger, but on this one the overarching concern was keeping me from putting others in danger. The orders were strict: I was to drive straight home from New Rochelle every night, commuting about an hour back to Brooklyn, and go straight to my apartment, sanitizing surfaces I touched on the way. We decided I risked exposure if I stayed in a hotel, where people passing through could spread the virus. Once I completed my assignment in New Rochelle, I would stay in self-quarantine for two weeks as a precaution in case I contracted the virus while interviewing people who lived near the outbreak. My editors had me stock up on groceries and extend the rental car reservation through the end of my isolation to prevent me from potentially exposing anybody at the rental car place. We played out hypothetical situations that came to mind and expected to encounter situations we couldn't plan for.
I ended up reporting in New Rochelle on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. I took my temperature every couple of hours and kept in close touch with our security director and several editors on a WhatsApp group chat. Someone was online to check on me all hours of the day and night, an editor in London in the morning, New York during the day, and San Francisco late at night. It’s hard to overstate how much easier my job is when I can focus on reporting and trust the team that’s looking out for me, reminding me to eat and sleep, encouraging me, and approving the expenses necessary for minimizing risks in a potentially hazardous environment.
A week later, I feel no symptoms, though I have no way to know if I was exposed. Almost none of us do.
The conditions I found in New Rochelle last week look quaint by today's standards. Most people had stopped shaking hands, adopting elbow bumps, but most restaurants were still open, if emptier. A half dozen protesters gathered in front of city hall demanding the closure of all 11 local schools. In the evenings, a local McDonald's a quarter mile outside the containment zone became a hopping social center for local high schoolers stretching their legs after being home all day; meanwhile, their teachers scrambled to adapt lesson plans to a solely digital classroom.
There are no visible markers denoting where the containment zone starts — the area is largely residential. The National Guard came in and distributed food donated by a local pantry, handing out bags of nonperishables to people who filed through the ground-floor hallway of an apartment complex. The state government rushed to increase testing capacity, constructing a drive-through facility and organizing scores of emergency workers to conduct tests in people's homes. Within days, thousands in the city were tested.
On the ground, I saw the magnitude of this mobilization in the rush of emergency workers zipping through the command center, the 40-by-80-foot tents going up for the drive-through testing facility, the piles of donated food — the toil and resources that go into containing an outbreak. The state had acted quickly to address a known hot zone: At the time, New Rochelle, a city of 80,000 people, had more diagnosed cases than New York City, population 8 million. Every day, more and more cities surpass the number of confirmed cases that first drew national attention to New Rochelle. Resources stretch thinner.
The pandemic touches everyone. I have close relatives who have lost jobs, work in hospitals, or worry they may have contracted the virus. I’m fortunate to have my job, the means to hunker down, and a health insurance plan. This week, confined to my home, I spoke — via phone call, email, text, and Signal — with about 100 people working jobs that have kept them outside. One was an ER doctor who tested positive for the virus last Saturday. Some were retail workers whose employers declined to close stores, even as disinfectant supplies dwindled, leaving them faced with choosing between their paycheck and the safety of their families. Others included the workers in essential jobs that keep us fed and healthy — grocery store clerks, pharmacists, and the people who transport, pack, and deliver supplies to our doorstep.
I wish I could say I’d found these sources through reporting savvy, but they came to us, reaching out through our tip line channels, risking their jobs to share their experiences. After we published a story on Wednesday about stores that remained open, hundreds more tips have poured in. As soon as I finish writing this note, I’ll be back in the inbox — you can reach me at albert.samaha@buzzfeed.com — trying to figure out what is happening in places I’m unable to visit at the moment.
Over the last two days, some of the companies we’ve reported on have closed offices, allowed more employees to work from home, or issued new safety protocols encouraging social distancing. The next part of my job is seeing if the policies are implemented, and to what effect.
Once my two weeks of isolation are up, I don’t know when or where my next reporting trip will be, how hard it will be to get there, nor what risks we’ll need to assess. We still don’t know much about this new virus, even less about the ripples of its impact. I’m grateful to be in a position to help report on it. Thank you for your support.
Stay safe,
Albert Samaha