Fox News, which has in the past mocked the animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) as "People Eating Tasty Animals," now appears to have embraced the organization amid reports that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) funded a study that involves giving hormone therapy to monkeys.
The news outlet attacked NIAID, which is headed by Dr. Anthony Fauci, who has faced relentless criticism from right-wing news outlets that have undermined the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic response, accusing it of engaging in “cruel research on monkeys that eighth-grader could determine was bogus.”
Speaking on his program, Fox News personality Tucker Carlson claimed Fauci was "caught trying to create a transgender monkeys," a grossly misleading assertion furthered by PETA Vice President Kathy Guillermo, who said the study demonstrates Fauci is "not a very good human being."
Carlson did not invite an actual researcher on his program to explain why the study—which aims to help transgender women avoid HIV—might be necessary.
You can hear what they said in the video below.
Carlson thanked Guillermo for speaking on his program and went on to suggest that "so many of these animal experiments seem completely pointless":
"They're inflicting massive cruelty on animals who are helpless and they seem driven by research dollars... if you treat animals, particularly evolved animals like monkeys like they can't experience pain or their suffering has no meaning."
"I mean that's clearly their attitude and that's clearly the attitude of a lot of people in the scientific community, Tony Fauci included, honestly."
PETA also mischaracterized the study, claiming in a press release that the study amounted to little more than "a pointless, wasteful monkey torture experiment."
The study's authors note that their research "will investigate whether feminizing hormone therapy (FHT) can contribute to the high incidence of HIV infection among transgender women," adding:
"To that end, FHT will be modeled in male rhesus macaques to determine whether it increases the availability of HIV "target" cells in the gut mucosa and whether FHT interferes with a prophylactic immune intervention."
"Ultimately, this project will advance our understanding of the pharmacodynamics of FHT and how it affects immune responses in biological males."
PETA and Carlson have faced significant criticism in the wake of the interview.
And today, we have PETA using Tucker Carlson as a sourcehttps://twitter.com/peta/status/1481354180195401735\u00a0\u2026— Kodak Black Standing Lap Dance (@Kodak Black Standing Lap Dance) 1642025351
If this had nothing to do with Fauci, Fox News and their viewers wouldn\u2019t give a shit— dont be nice \ud83d\udc0a (@dont be nice \ud83d\udc0a) 1642017609
Fox— Jet (@Jet) 1642019731
Really @peta? Don't you know who @TuckerCarlson is? This won't help a bit— Polo G\u00fcido (@Polo G\u00fcido) 1642018015
"Fauci's transgender monkey experiments."\n\nThis is the kind of stuff you wish was coming from @TheBabylonBee.— Jason J. Bailey \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 (@Jason J. Bailey \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6) 1641954843
The only transgender animal that we know of is the clown fish.https://twitter.com/lgbtqnation/status/1481673909762027521\u00a0\u2026— Ami Mizuno's Lover (@Ami Mizuno's Lover) 1642096134
So now Tucker Carlson has enlistec the Left of the Left groups PETA to assist in his fanatical hateful Fauci obsession. Meanwhile Paul lied about the credentials of two of the signers of a declaration. He said they were three preeminent epidemiologists Two of them are not— Michael P. Tremoglie (@Michael P. Tremoglie) 1641951335
Conservatives are flipping out over a study "to create transgender monkeys"\n\nTucker Carlson called the study "awful" while talking with a leader of PETA, agreeing with the vegan organization just to spite Dr. Anthony Fauci.https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/01/conservatives-flipping-study-create-transgender-monkeys/?utm_source=LGBTQ+Nation+Subscribers&utm_campaign=4db4a7478e-20220113_LGBTQ_Nation_Daily_Brief&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c4eab596bd-4db4a7478e-431727945\u00a0\u2026— Jesus Chrysler Supercharged (@Jesus Chrysler Supercharged) 1642095021
Did anyone have Peta appearing on Tucker Carlson on their 2022 Bingo card?— Apu (@Apu) 1641965801
Fox News has previously run pieces mocking PETA, including one in which the news outlet made light of the organization's insistence that insults like "pig" and "chicken" hurt animals.
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