90 Miles From Tyranny

Friday, April 24, 2020

‘Nice try, journo’: WaPo reporter deletes deceptive tweet that tried to pin price spike on Trump

William Bryan, a DHS senior official, detailed how COVID-19 was being studied at a biodefense center lab in Maryland and findings so far included that solar light, temperature, humidity and ultraviolet light kill the virus. In addition, Bryan shared that “bleach kills it in saliva or respiratory fluids in 5 minutes; isopropyl alcohol in 30 seconds. No rubbing. Just spray it.”

“Isopropyl alcohol, which the Trump administration is saying can kill the virus in 30 seconds on surfaces, for sale on Amazon right now for $2.375,” Phillips wrote in a since-deleted tweet. She included a screenshot from the site in her tweet which was suggesting the administration triggered a price hike in rubbing alcohol because of Thursday’s comments.

What Phillips failed to include, however, was the fact that the price she quoted was for a 55-gallon drum of laboratory-grade isopropyl alcohol.

Heavy demand for hand sanitizer amid the coronavirus crisis did drive up prices for the key ingredient which became harder to obtain, according to a Wall Street Journal report at the beginning of April. But the Washington Post blogger was obviously making a different point in her tweet and Twitter users quickly called her out for it.

Some wondered if she had ever purchased rubbing alcohol at her local CVS.

TheLastRefuge@TheLastRefuge2

(A) Do you think she knows that's a 55 gal drum? Or (B) do you think she's never bought Isopropyl Alcohol in the store before? ...Or (C) She knows and it just intentionally lying?

This should be embarrassing for @washingtonpost , but it won't be... because this is standard now. https://twitter.com/byamberphillips/status/1253449043063300101 …

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7:38 PM - Apr 23, 2020

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