By Lauren Giella and Graham McNally
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The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact people across the country, with about 25 million cases and more than 400,000 deaths as of January 25, according to the CDC.
The pandemic has been politicized since it hit the U.S. last year, as pundits and politicians debate over state lockdown policies, wearing masks and even media coverage.
The Claim
Fox News host Tucker Carlson predicted last Thursday that CNN would remove its COVID-19 tracker after President Joe Biden took office.
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Carlson said, "It is Joe Biden's first day in office, and you know what that means? CNN can finally take that COVID death ticker off the screen. There's no reason for it now. It's not like you can blame Joe Biden for some Chinese virus that escaped from a lab in Wuhan. It wouldn't be fair. Come on now. CNN dutifully removed it this morning. COVID deaths, settle down, America. It's just a bad flu season."
His claim sparked outrage on Twitter, as many users called out CNN, claiming its COVID-19 tracker was not displayed for every segment.
Writer Amelia Hamilton tweeted that CNN's COVID tracker disappeared. She followed up with a tweet saying that she sees it's up when discussing COVID.
The Facts
CNN's Public Relations Twitter account responded to Carlson's claim the following morning with time-stamped screenshots of segments that had aired the previous day. According to the images, the tracker ran when discussing the pandemic and the Biden administration. They called the claim from Carlson a lie and asked him to issue a correction.
The tracker is prominently displayed during segments directly related to COVID-19. On the day in question, the tracker was on screen at different points from 6:14 a.m. to 4:59 p.m.
As of this morning, the COVID tracker still was in use during segments related to COVID-19 and Trump's impeachment.
There also is a live interactive COVID-19 tracker on the CNN.com that monitors cases and deaths across the country and links to up-to-date coverage of the pandemic.
CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale also shared a tweet that shows screenshots of the tracker on screen after Biden took office.
After the election, Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) tweeted that CNN removed the tracker, joking that COVID was cured after the race was called for Biden.
CNN reporter Oliver Darcy responded by tweeting saying that CNN uses the tracker when discussing the coronavirus.
Following the election, CNN continued to cover the pandemic with the on-screen tracker.
Even GOP pollster Frank Luntz chimed in to disagree with Cruz.
The Ruling
False.
The claims, sparked by Tucker Carlson, that CNN removed its COVID-19 tracker the morning after Biden took office are false.
The COVID-19 tracker has been displayed on screen after the election and after the inauguration during segments related to the pandemic.
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Graphic courtesy of Statista: https://www.statista.com/chartoftheday/
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