“I just was stalked in front of my home by a couple of anti-vaxxers taunting me to debate RFKJr,” Houston-based scientist Peter Hotez tweeted Sunday.
CNN reached out to Hotez looking for extra particulars on the incident, however he was not out there for remark.
Hotez, who frequently seems on newscasts — together with CNN, is the dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and a professor of paediatrics and molecular virology and microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine.
He has continuously debunked COVID-19 vaccine misinformation on his social media accounts through the pandemic.
The confrontation got here after Hotez tweeted Saturday in help of a Vice article that criticised Spotify’s dealing with of vaccine misinformation on Rogan’s present.
“From all the online attacks I’m receiving after this absurd podcast, it’s clear many actually believe this nonsense,” he mentioned.
Rogan then replied, providing to donate $US100,000 ($146,000) to a charity of Hotez’s alternative if he would debate RFK Jr on Rogan’s present “with no time limit” in a tweet that has now been considered over 50 million occasions.
Hotez replied that Rogan had his contact info and mentioned, “I’m always willing to speak with you.”
But on-line controversy rapidly snowballed.
“He’s afraid of a public debate, because he knows he’s wrong,” Twitter proprietor Elon Musk tweeted in response to Rogan, who claimed Hotez’s response was a “non answer”.
“I will add $150,000 to @joerogan’s wager so now $250,000 can go to charity and the public can hear an open debate on an important topic,” billionaire hedge fund supervisor Bill Ackman tweeted.
Hotez contended he would seem on the podcast however wouldn’t debate Kennedy, the environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist who declared he was operating for president in April.
“I offered to go on Joe Rogan but not to turn it into the Jerry Springer show with having RFK Jr. on,” Hotez mentioned on MSNBC Sunday.
Hotez has skilled harassment over vaccines even earlier than the onset of the pandemic, after writing a 2018 ebook about his daughter referred to as Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel’s Autism.
“You have no morals whatsoever and you know that you are a (f—ing) liar. I hope you rot in hell,” one anti-vaxxer emailed Hotez.
Investor Mark Cuban defended Hotez, leaping into the Twitter debate.
“Trying to bully Dr Hotez is ridiculous,” Cuban tweeted, accusing Musk and Rogan of appearing in their very own self-interest.
CNN has reached out to Kennedy’s marketing campaign workforce for remark.
In a response to Rogan, Kennedy steered to Hotez that they’ve a “respectful, congenial, informative debate”.
Following the backlash, Spotify added a content material advisory to all podcast episodes that embody discussions of COVID-19.
Spotify declined to remark.
Source: www.9news.com.au
