This time last year, the mainstream media largely dismissed the Wuhan coronavirus lab leak theory as a “fringe” or “conspiracy” theory but with Dr. Anthony Fauci becoming the latest leading figure to question the origins of COVID-19, outlets are increasingly treating it as a serious possibility.
A few examples of how the media were reporting on the lab leak theory a year ago, when Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., suggested it had emerged from a lab known for bat coronavirus experiments:
“Sen. Tom Cotton Repeats Fringe Theory of Coronavirus Origins,” the New York Times wrote.
“Trump says US investigating whether coronavirus spread after China lab mishap but cites no evidence,” a USA Today article read.
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CNN’s headline from May 5, 2020 was perhaps most bold, declaring Fauci “crushed” then-President Trump’s theory on the lab leak.
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“Major media outlets spent a year demonizing the lab-leak theory as an insane conspiracy theory,” journalist Glenn Greenwald tweeted. “Fact-checkers pronounced it false … Mainstream outlets are now forced to admit its viability. Any accountability?”