A White House hot mic picked up someone —
whom Mediaite has learned was New York Times photographer Doug Mills —
apparently joking with Fox News White House correspondent John Roberts that
“We’ve all been vaccinated” against the coronavirus “around here.”
As conspiracy theories about the
coronavirus pandemic abound, a hot mic exchange from before Monday’s White
House coronavirus task force briefing could contribute to a surge in tinfoil
protective headgear if it’s taken seriously.
When White House briefings are streamed
live, some outlets carry the feeds — with audio and video — long before the
events start. On Monday, one such feed caught a sardonic masked White House
denizen — who has now been identified as Mills — greeting Roberts as he emerged
from the lower press office.
“What do you know, buddy?” Mills asks
Roberts, who tells him “You can take off the mask, the case fatality rate is
0.1 to 0.3 according to USC.”
Roberts was referencing a study that
evaluated tests on a representative sample of 863 L.A. County residents.
Roberts’ offhand advice — also potentially exaggerated for humorous effect — to
“take off the mask” is not included in L.A. County public health officials’
findings from the study, which include the need to continue “broad social
distancing measures.”
“Really? That’s reassuring,” Mills tells
Roberts, then cracks “Everybody here has been vaccinated anyway.”
Without missing a beat, Roberts details
some of the study’s findings, telling him “USC and LA County public health came
out with a study that found that there are 7,000 cases in California but they
really believe there are anywhere from 221, 000 to 442,000 people who are
infected.”
As they both walk out of frame, Mills jokes
“So it was a hoax,” to which Roberts replies “No, I don’t think it was a hoax.”