Questioning Fauci Led to Suspension: Brittney Hopper on CBS News Fallout During Pandemic

Independent journalist Brittney Hopper said she was temporarily pulled from broadcasting duties at CBS News after beginning to question Dr. Anthony Fauci’s handling of the pandemic, arguing that news organizations too readily accepted his guidance without sufficient scrutiny.

Speaking Wednesday on Australia’s News24, Hopper recalled spending years reporting extensively on COVID-19 and frequently interviewing Dr. Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

“I was out there on the front lines,” Hopper said. “After a couple of years of dealing with hearing this man and interviewing this man, and having to wear masks and having our kids out of school for years, I remember questioning what he was doing.”

Hopper stated that her skepticism led to consequences at CBS News.

“I got in trouble and was pulled off air for a couple of days because I started questioning him,” she said. She did not specify when the incident occurred or identify who decided to pull her from broadcasting duties.

Hopper hopes recent developments involving Dr. Fauci serve as a lesson for media organizations worldwide.

“I hope that this is somewhat of a wake-up call for news organizations around the world,” she said.

She criticized several public health recommendations issued during the pandemic, including social distancing and mask guidance, arguing that many questions about the policies were never fully addressed.

“The 6 feet apart thing that he made up, wearing masks outside with not a single soul around us, there were so many questions that were left unanswered,” Hopper said.

At the same time, Hopper expressed willingness to give public health officials the benefit of the doubt during the early stages of the pandemic, when little was known about the virus.

“That first year, many of us, we had no idea what was going on,” she said. “But then when we started to learn more and more and started to really use journalistic integrity … news agencies jumped on the bandwagon with him and just feared so many Americans.”

Hopper also referenced Dr. Fauci’s appearance before Congress, criticizing his repeated invocation of the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

“Look at what he was saying today, pleading the Fifth,” she said. “He couldn’t even answer what the color of his tie was.”