Imagine a study of people’s self-reported mask compliance compared to the same people’s rates of positive test reports. You can imagine that those who “test positive” for COVID-19 are likely to come up with an explanation of how they might have contracted the dreaded germ. Perhaps they might say they failed to properly social distance, or failed to wear their masks in every situation. Perhaps those who “test negative” for COVID-19 might be inclined to say they have properly complied with government COVID-19 protocols.
We can imagine other potential problems with such a study. Skeptics of the COVID-19 panic might be less likely to participate in the study at all. True believers, who are more likely to get tested in the first place, might be overrepresented.
But the CDC relied heavily on just such a questionable study to promote mask mandates. Despite the study specifically warning that the results were “not statistically significant.”
Beginning in September of 2021, every major mainstream media outlet trumpeted the flawed study as “proof” that masks—and therefore, mask mandates, work.
Nature reported that “Face masks for COVID pass their largest test yet:
A rigorous study finds that surgical masks are highly protective.” LiveScience ran the headline “Huge, gold-standard study shows unequivocally that surgical masks work to reduce coronavirus spread.” The Washington Post pronounced “We conducted the largest study on masks and covid-19: They work.” WebMD claimed “Large Study Confirms Masks Work to Limit COVID-19 Spread.” An ABC affiliate announced “Yale study of Bangladesh shows the ‘effectiveness of masks.'”
Steve Kirsch carefully examined the data behind the study. “When you actually look at the data, the study showed masks make NO difference.”
“The data makes it clear that virtually the entire mainstream medical community and mainstream media are spreading COVID misinformation and they need to be arrested by the DHS as domestic terrorists per their new guidelines.
These people are deluding the public into believing masks work, endangering lives.”
