BY Lee Fang and Jack Poulson<\/p>\n\n\n\n Novak Djokovic\u2019s victorious return to the US Open this year was heralded as the triumph of an \u201cageless<\/a>\u201d athlete. His \u201cgreatness\u201d, The Guardian<\/em> reported, \u201chas been defined by his ability to rise from difficult losses stronger than before\u201d. But for the pharmaceutical giant Moderna, it came as something of a blow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDjokovic Crowned Anti-vaccine Hero after US Open Win,\u201d howled the title of an internal report. It continued: \u201cThe optics of Djokovic, whose vaccine opposition barred him from competing in the 2022 US Open, returning to and winning the Moderna-sponsored competition bolsters anti-vaccine claims that vaccines \u2014 and mandates \u2014 are unnecessary.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The report rated news surrounding Djokovic as \u201chigh-risk\u201d, noting that \u201cvaccine opponents are celebrating\u201d the tennis champion and that some on social media \u201cmockingly point out that Moderna is a US Open sponsor\u201d. Other alerts, produced by a partnership blending marketing executives with former FBI and Secret Service analysts, also cited concerns around drug industry profits as a source of misinformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Far from viral deception, much of the content flagged by Moderna as \u201cmisinformation\u201d and a supposed danger to public health was nothing of the sort, it was legitimate discussion of vaccine-related issues. But the Moderna misinformation reports, reported here for the first time, reveal what the pharmaceutical company is willing to do to shape public discourse around its marquee product. And, even affect policy-making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moderna did incredibly well out of the pandemic. It was shot from a fledgling biotech firm to a household name, having created one of the most effective vaccines during the outbreak. The mRNA Covid-19 vaccine catapulted the company to a $100 billion valuation and minted five new billionaires, including the chief executive, St\u00e9phane Bancel, its chairman, Noubar Afeyan, co-founders, Noubar Afeyan and Robert Langer, and Timothy Springer, a Harvard Medical School professor and early investor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But as demand for its vaccinations has diminished, inevitably, so too have its earnings. This year, its only marketable product lies unused and the company has recorded steep losses. Moderna has also been forced to pay royalty payments to NIAID, the US government agency that helped produce the basic research that underpins the mRNA vaccine technology. As a result, in January, Bancel announced a price hike of up to $130 a dose, far higher than the $15-26 for American federal contracts, according to the Wall Street Journal<\/em>. \u201cWe\u2019re expecting a 90% reduction in demand,\u201d Bancel said, when he was asked to defend the decision. \u201cAs you can see, we\u2019re losing economies of scale.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With its profits evaporating, Moderna embarked on a flashy new marketing campaign<\/a> that features a child chasing a red string that transforms into a ribbon, which the narrator explains is an mRNA strand that could unlock cures for all types of diseases. And its latest television advert depicts the company\u2019s coronavirus vaccine as emblematic of a healthy lifestyle. Over some cool music, the narrator says, \u201cmake vaccination against Covid-19 a part of your health routine: Spikevax that body\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most important thing for Moderna is that people keep having their jabs. Smart ads are part of that. But more important is to push back aggressively against any prevailing anti-vax narrative and engage where possible in any discussions around vaccine policy. That\u2019s where the Moderna disinformation department comes in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Behind the scenes, the marketing arm of the company has been working with former law enforcement officials and public health officials to monitor and influence vaccine policy. Key to this is a drug industry-funded NGO called Public Good Projects. According to documents we have seen, PGP works closely with social media platforms, government agencies and news websites to confront the \u201croot cause of vaccine hesitancy\u201d by rapidly identifying and \u201cshutting down misinformation\u201d. A network of 45,000 healthcare professionals are given talking points \u201cand advice on how to respond when vaccine misinformation goes mainstream\u201d, according to an email from Moderna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moderna\u2019s disinformation arm is perpetuating the public discourse wars that have been raging since early in the pandemic, aimed at shutting down anything that might undermine Covid-19-related policies, including lockdowns and efforts to encourage mass vaccinations. These documents provide a new window into the process that has roiled speech debates over the last three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With PGP, Moderna is monitoring a huge range of mainstream outlets, as well as unconventional ones, such as the Steam online gaming community and Medium. Meanwhile, Moderna also retains Talkwalker which uses its \u201cBlue Silk\u201d artificial intelligence to monitor vaccine-related conversations across 150 million websites in nearly 200 countries. Discussions around \u201ccompetitor\u201d issues, including discussions of Pfizer are flagged as well as vaccine hesitancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Their monitoring team includes Moderna\u2019s global intelligence division, which is run by Nikki Rutman, who spent nearly 20 years as an analyst with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Rutman was working from the FBI\u2019s Boston office during the COVID-19 effort known as \u201cOperation Warp Speed\u201d, which involved the FBI conducting weekly cybersecurity meetings with the Boston headquartered Moderna. She is among many former law enforcement agents now with the vaccine maker. The involvement of former law enforcement reflects a wider trend in the misinformation-space, as the Department of Homeland Security and FBI have increasingly leaned on social media platforms to shape content decisions as a national security issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The reports issued by the department, which are circulated around staff, include colour-coded warnings about the severity of various anti-vaccine narratives. The high and medium alerts include explanations of the news source and why it matters, followed by a listing of \u201clow-risk narratives we are monitoring\u201d that \u201cdon\u2019t currently warrant any action\u201d. If and when a response is needed, \u201cour team will notify the appropriate stakeholders with recommendations\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/image-5.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/image-4.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n