Tucker Carlson blasted over claim that Jews were immune to Covid-19

The Anti-Defamation League denounced the exchange as ‘dangerous and disgraceful’ warning that it echoed conspiracy theories that once fueled mass violence against Jewish communities. 

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Tucker Carlson faced intense criticism this week after featuring a guest who repeated a conspiracy theory claiming that Jewish people were genetically less susceptible to COVID-19.

The comments came during an episode of The Tucker Carlson Show in which Carlson interviewed Dr. Andrew Huff, a self-described whistleblower and military veteran, about the origins of the coronavirus.

Near the end of the discussion, Huff endorsed an earlier statement made by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who had alleged that COVID-19 was engineered to affect some ethnic groups more severely than others.

Huff asserted that “a scientific publication” showed different effects on “two populations of Jewish ancestry,” adding that one group suffered more than the other.

Carlson interjected, clarifying that Huff meant Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews. Critics said Carlson appeared to validate the claim by engaging with it rather than rejecting it outright.

Public health experts have repeatedly rejected such assertions, saying there is no evidence that the coronavirus was designed to target or spare any ethnic group.

Historians note that myths about Jews being immune to disease have long served as antisemitic tropes, dating back to medieval accusations that Jews poisoned wells during outbreaks of plague.

Reaction to Carlson’s broadcast was swift and bipartisan. The Anti-Defamation League denounced the exchange as “dangerous and disgraceful,” warning that it echoed conspiracy theories that once fueled mass violence against Jewish communities.

Conservative voices also joined the condemnation. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas mocked the claim, asking whether “the Jews were running the Wuhan lab.” A RedState columnist dismissed the notion as “clownish,” while commentator Arynne Wexler said Carlson was “recycling blood libel” used to justify massacres centuries ago.

The controversy adds to a growing list of incidents in which Carlson has been accused of giving a platform to extremist rhetoric. Just weeks earlier, he drew criticism for promoting conspiracy theories about the killing of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.

Carlson has not responded publicly to the latest backlash.