Headline RoundupJanuary 18th, 2022

Ally or Adversary? Perspectives on Dr. Anthony Fauci

Summary from the AllSides News Team

Two years into America's bout with COVID-19, White House coronavirus adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci remains one of the pandemic's most divisive figures.

Fauci has led the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984. He was named to the initial coronavirus task force in January 2020 and was named the Biden administration's top COVID-19 adviser in December 2020. Public opinion polls from earlier in the pandemic indicated widespread support for Fauci, but more recent polls suggest that support has waned. Fauci has been the face and voice of much of the government's COVID-19 messaging since early 2020, and at times has come under fire from Republican lawmakers and others over the origins of COVID-19, the U.S. role in controversial gain-of-function virus experiments in China and the effectiveness of federal pandemic policies and guidelines.

Criticism of Fauci from right-rated voices has grown stronger throughout the pandemic, with many accusing him of contradictory and confusing COVID-19 guidance that has undermined trust in the government's pandemic response. Some allege that he covered up and contributed to controversial virus work in China that purportedly led to the pandemic. Left-rated voices have generally been more supportive of Fauci and tend to analyze motivations behind criticisms of him, with some accusing conservatives of using him as a political scapegoat and lightning rod. Fauci's financial disclosures have also been covered recently across the spectrum.

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