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Showing posts from September, 2021

Democrats create bilingual tool to combat disinformation aimed at Latinos

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  The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee created a collection of graphics in English and Spanish for people to use as a "rapid response" to disinformation. Melissa Pluguez Moldavskiy, co-medical director of Unidos Contra COVID, administers a vaccination during an outreach event for the Latino community in Upper Darby, Pa., on Aug. 22. Democrats are trying to push back on disinformation aimed at Latinos, including some they say is spread by Republicans. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, responsible for getting Democrats elected and re-elected to the U.S. House, has launched what it calls a digital information hub, "Juntos Together," to target disinformation aimed at Hispanics, particularly in Spanish. The hub carries colorful infographics and GIFs in English and Spanish that can be downloaded, shared and embedded on social media platforms as something of a "rapid response" to disinformation. Many of the graphics address vaccinations,

Utah police stopped Gabby Petito and fiancé after fight on road trip before she went missing, report says

  Police said neither Petito and nor her fiance, Brian Laundrie, wanted to press charges. The couple agreed to be separated for the night, officials said. Police in Utah say they responded to a physical altercation last month between a New York woman and her fiancé while they were on a cross-country road trip — an alleged incident that occurred less than a month before her family reported her missing. A responding officer wrote Gabrielle "Gabby" Petito, 22, slapped Brian Laundrie after an argument, according to a report from the Moab City Police Department released Wednesday. But both her and Laundrie told the officer neither wanted to press charges and they love each other. The incident occurred on the afternoon of Aug. 12, according to the report. Petito's family say they lost contact with her in late August and reported her missing on Saturday. Laundrie is now a person of interest in the investigation into her disappearance, police confirmed on Wednesday. When asked fo

FDA strikes cautious tone ahead of Pfizer booster meeting

  Data published Wednesday from the agency adds to the debate over whether an extra dose of the vaccine is warranted. Influential government advisers will debate Friday if there’s enough proof that a booster dose of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine is safe and effective — the first step toward deciding which Americans need one and when. The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday posted much of the evidence its advisory panel will consider. The agency struck a decidedly neutral tone on the rationale for boosters — an unusual and careful approach that’s all the more striking after President Joe Biden and his top health advisers trumpeted a booster campaign they hoped to begin next week. Pfizer’s argument: While protection against severe disease is holding strong in the U.S., immunity against milder infection wanes somewhere around six to eight months after the second dose. The company gave an extra dose to 306 people at that point and recorded levels of virus-fighting antibodies threefold hi