COVID Vaccine Patients Eating Each Other? Viral Screenshot Is Fake

A morphed screenshot of CNN, seemingly intended as satire, is being circulated on social media to make false claims.

The image could be traced back to an op-ed on The New York Times from 2019.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A morphed screenshot of television network CNN with an image of a bloodied hospital room, stating, “Hospitals under lockdown as first COVID vaccine patients start eating other patients,” is being circulated on the social media.

The image was traced back to an op-ed published by The New York Times in 2019. The morphed CNN screenshot was also carried by meme-hosting sites like 9GAG and ifunny.

CLAIM

Several users shared the screenshot and some called it a "zombie apocalypse".

You can view an archived version here.

You can view an archived version here.

You can view an archived version here.

You can view an archived version here.

The Quint also received a query regarding the screenshot on its WhatsApp helpline.

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

A reverse image search led us to an opinion piece by The New York Times, dated 14 February 2019, carrying the image.

The image has been attributed to the author and third-year medical student, Eric Curran, with the caption that reads, “The trauma bay in the emergency department at Temple University Hospital after resuscitation efforts failed.”

In the article, Curran writes about witnessing the death of a teenager, who was a victim of gun violence.

We also found the image on websites like ‘makeameme.’

There are no news reports on hospitals being shut down following COVID vaccination or of Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, being arrested for driving under influence (DUI).

Further, we also found the CNN screenshot on meme-hosting sites like 9GAG and ifunny.

Evidently, a morphed screenshot of CNN, seemingly intended as a satire, is being circulated by social media users to make false claims.

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