Madonna’s Instagram Censored For Promoting COVID Conspiracy Theory
I don’t know who needs to hear this, but don’t get your medical information from Madonna’s Instagram. The New York Post reports that the social media platform has flagged a post on Madonna’s official page for promoting the conspiracy theory that a cure for COVID-19 has already “been found and proven and has been available for months.”
The censored video shows Dr. Stella Immanuel, a primary care physician in Houston, claiming to have treated 350 coronavirus patients with the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine. “They would rather let fear control the people and let the rich get richer and the poor get poorer,” Madonna wrote in the caption, declaring that Dr. Immanuel is her “hero.”
Instagram blurred the video and captioned it “False Information,” adding a link to a page debunking Immanuel’s claims and clarifying that there is no currently no cure or vaccine. Twitter temporarily suspended Donald Trump Jr. for sharing the same video, explaining that it violated the platform’s “policy on spreading misleading and potentially harmful information related to COVID-19.”
“This is utter madness!!!” Madonna’s fellow pop star Annie Lennox commented on her post. “I can’t believe that you are endorsing this dangerous quackery. Hopefully your site has been hacked and you’re just about to explain it.”
This isn’t Madonna’s first brush with controversy since the pandemic began. In March, the singer was criticized for telling fans that COVID-19 is “the great equalizer” while lying in a milky bath strewn with rose petals. And in May, she was mocked for posting her 14-year-old son’s dance tribute to George Floyd.