ITV issued Ofcom warning over Dr Hilary's false Covid claims

Ofcom has issued a warning to ITV following claims Dr Hilary Jones made about Covid on morning show Lorraine.

Ofcom has issued a warning to the broadcaster following claims Dr Hilary Jones made about Covid on morning show Lorraine, telling ITV to take “greater care” after inaccurate vaccine statistics were shared in December.
The programme saw 3,833 complaints from viewers over the segment which discussed the number of unvaccinated Covid patients in hospitals.
The segment, which was broadcast on December 6 2021, saw host Lorraine Kelly and resident medical expert Dr Hilary encouraging viewers to get vaccinated.
Two days later, a clarification was broadcast on the show explaining that the statistic related to people in intensive care and not the number of unvaccinated Covid patients in hospital.
Dr Hilary said: “Those people who haven’t been vaccinated, we’d really love you to think again and be vaccinated because 90% of people in hospital are unvaccinated right now with Covid.”
On Monday, January 10, Ofcom ruled it would not launch a formal investigation but has issued a warning to ITV.
In a statement, Ofcom said: “This programme incorrectly referenced the proportion of unvaccinated Covid-19 patients in hospital.”
“We have told ITV that greater care should be taken by trusted medical experts when presenting facts and figures on public health issues.”
“However, given official statistics and research have consistently shown that vaccination against Covid-19 offers greater protection against serious health consequences, we do not consider that the error was sufficient to materially mislead viewers on this main point of discussion.”
Meanwhile, a US Supreme Court judge has been called out for stating that 100 thousand children are suffering severely with Covid.

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