Conservative cable network Newsmax has sidelined White House correspondent Emerald Robinson after she made the utterly bonkers claim that COVID-19 vaccines contain a “bioluminescent” tracker linked to the Devil.
In a post that has since been taken down by Twitter for peddling COVID-19 misinformation, Robinson warned “Christians” that the vaccines include “a bioluminescent marker called LUCIFERASE so that you can be tracked,” all while suggesting to her followers that the shot was the “Mark of the Beast”—something she’s said before.
Needless to say, there is no truth that the vaccines contain the luminescent enzyme luciferase, that the enzyme itself is somehow satanic, or that the vaccine could lead to biblical end times.
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Besides removing the tweet for violating its platform’s rules, Twitter has also temporarily suspended Robinson “for repeated violations” of the social media giant’s coronavirus misinformation policy.
A Newsmax spokesperson confirmed to The Daily Beast that the network is “currently reviewing the posts and during that period Ms. Robinson will not be on the air but continue with duties for the network.”
Several Newsmax staffers cheered on the decision to bench Robinson. “It’s really buzzing the newsroom,” one current employee told The Daily Beast. “I think it’s a good idea. If we are going to be viewed as a news organization, we have to act like one.” Another staffer agreed that sidelining the reporter was “probably was the safe thing to do,” as “it was a stupid thing to tweet.”
Earlier this week, following her widely mocked tweet tying the life-saving vaccines to Satan, the network had distanced itself from its provocative star and rebuked her remarks.
“Newsmax strongly believes and has reported that the Covid 19 vaccines are safe and effective. We do not believe the vaccines contain any toxic materials or tracking markers, and such false claims have never been reported on Newsmax,” the network said in a Tuesday statement. “The many medical experts appearing on Newsmax have supported the use of the vaccine.”
Besides relentlessly spewing anti-vaccine rhetoric online, Robinson—who came to Newsmax from fellow pro-Trump fringe channel One America News—has also sparked controversy recently for tweeting that she doesn’t “want a multi-cultural society,” prompting some to accuse her of white supremacy.
While Newsmax has a reputation for peddling far-right viewpoints and its hosts have been outspoken against vaccine mandates, the network appears to draw a hard line at overt anti-vaccine commentary.
In July, after anchor Rob Schmitt claimed vaccines are “against nature” and some diseases are “supposed to wipe out a certain amount of people,” the network publicly scolded Schmitt and said his opinions “do not reflect the position of Newsmax.”
Furthermore, network CEO Chris Ruddy published an op-ed this summer gushing over the Biden administration’s vaccination efforts, saying the president did a “good job” and it was the “right thing” to do.
