Media top headlines December 22
In media news today, longtime CNN producer John Griffin was ‘ashamed after arrest for child sex trafficking, the CDC director contradicts Biden’s omicron testing defense, and reporters ask Biden if testing shortage is a failure for his administration.
Residents of Washington, D.C., and frustrated observers in general were quick to tell Mayor Muriel Bowser what they thought of her new citywide COVID-19 vaccine requirements on Wednesday.
Bowser announced in a tweet that proof of vaccine will now be required at restaurants, bars, nightclubs, indoor entertainment facilities, gyms, and indoor meeting establishments, effective January 15. The news comes amid the rapid spread of omicron, the newest variant of the coronavirus that reportedly has milder symptoms than its predecessors.
Bowser's order reads that people 12 and older must have at least one dose of the vaccine, which will be upped to two doses by Feb. 15. Her order comes on the heels of similar policies in New York City, Chicago, and Boston.
Outraged social media users asked when the restrictions will end.
District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser speaks during a news conference on D.C. statehood in the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, June 16, 2020. (Photo by Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
CRITICS SLAM DC MAYOR MURIEL BOWSER FOR VIOLATING HER OWN MASK MANDATE
Other critics predicted Bowser's mandate will once again put businesses in unnecessarily rough shape. Charyssa Parent, director of Media Affairs at House Republican Conference, summed up the situation with caps locked.
City residents wait in a line extending around the block to receive free at-home rapid COVID-19 test kits in Philadelphia, Monday, Dec. 20, 2021. U.S. health officials are calling on Americans to get tested for COVID-19 before they travel and gather for the holidays. But what should you do if you test positive? (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
DC MAYOR BOWSER PHOTOGRAPHED MASKLESS AT WEDDING RECEPTION AFTER REINSTATING MASK MANDATE
Many of the same respondents noted that Bowser does not seem as intent on cracking down on violent crime in the nation's capital, which has skyrocketed in recent months. Two hundred homicides have been recorded so far in 2021. A number that tragically high has not been seen since 2003.
Several more announced their intentions to move, with the most popular destinations being Texas and Florida.
Bowser has been criticized in recent months for appearing to break her own COVID mandates. In August, she was photographed allegedly officiating a wedding without a mask, while other photos showed the mayor maskless along with hundreds of other wedding guests at The Line DC hotel in the district’s Adams Morgan neighborhood. At the time, the mayor had issued an order that reinstated that everyone over 2 years old regardless of vaccination status was required to wear a mask indoors.
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel has largely been given a pass by the mainstream media after she was spotted without a face mask during an indoor wedding reception Saturday night. (Photo: Tiana Lowe/Washington Examiner) (Tiana Lowe/Washington Examiner)
In addition, Bowser was featured in photos celebrating her birthday sans mask alongside comedian Dave Chapelle hours before that mandate was enacted.
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Fox News' Lindsay Kornick contributed to this report.
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