Guo Wengui, a wealthy businessman who fled China in 2014 and is linked to several prominent far-right figures in America, used his online network to promote unproven drugs to treat Covid-19 all spreading misinformation about the vaccines used to fight the disease.

As late as Sunday during a live broadcast, Guo used his show on the online platform GTV to promote ivermectin, which is used to treat parasitic infections, and artemisinin, a drug against malaria, as a means of combating the coronavirus.

Neither the Food and Drug Administration nor the World Health Organization have approved either of these drugs to treat Covid. The FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have warned against the use of ivermectin to treat and prevent Covid infections.

Guo on Thursday equated vaccinating children with murder. “Please don’t take your children to get vaccinated anymore. It is not about getting vaccinated so simply but tantamount to murder,” he said in a translated video post on the platform. – Gettr social media form. “Those who have been vaccinated could face a serious unintended consequence.”

The CDC recommends that people aged 12 and over get vaccinated against Covid, which has been shown to be very effective in reducing the risk of hospitalization and the spread of the disease. Authorities are expected to approve the use of the vaccine for young children later this year.

GTV, which regularly features Guo himself, has been described by researchers at Graphika as part of the businessman’s largest media empire and disinformation network.

Guo is part of a group of mostly conservative voices pushing for ivermectin and other unauthorized Covid treatments as President Joe Biden’s administration and state governments struggle to persuade more Americans to get vaccinated. Sixty-two percent of people 12 and older are fully vaccinated in the United States, according to CDC data.

NBC News reported that a pro-Trump telemedicine website and right-wing organizations have been among the biggest providers of fake news about unproven coronavirus treatments.

Guo has been close to former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon for years. A foundation linked to Guo recently hosted an event featuring remarks from Bannon and others linked to former President Donald Trump, including lawyer and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, the former councilor in the national security Michael Flynn and MyPillow CEO and conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell.

Guo fled China in 2014 on charges of corruption. After Guo criticized the Chinese leadership, arrest warrants were reportedly issued against his arrest on charges of corruption and bribery. Guo denied the charges. He has since been sued by GTV investors. His lawyers called the accusations of the plaintiffs “unfounded”.

“Remember, artemisinin, ivermectin, dexamethasone, oxytetracycline, hydroxychloroquine and zinc are the drugs needed to fight PCC [Chinese Communist Party] virus. These few drugs will eradicate the virus, ”Guo said on Sunday’s GTV episode, according to an official translation of the show found on the GNews affiliate website. “In addition, artemisinin is effective for those who received a vaccine injection, but not the second or third shot,” he added.

This GTV stream has racked up over 7 million views. GTV did not respond to a request for comment after CNBC sent a note to the company through its comment portal.

Despite warnings from health officials, those who oppose Covid vaccines have turned to ivermectin, which is often used as a deworming medicine for horses, although it can also be used to treat parasitic infections. in humans.

Heavily popular podcast host Joe Rogan, who has been accused by federal health officials of pushing vaccine misinformation, announced last week that he had fallen with the virus and was using ivermectin, among others, to treat his disease.

“The FDA has not licensed or approved ivermectin for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19 in humans or animals. Ivermectin has not been shown to be safe or effective for these indications,” he said recently the FDA in a statement. “There is a lot of misinformation around, and you may have heard that it is normal to take high doses of ivermectin. It is not good.”

Beyond Guo and Rogan, others have pushed ivermectin to Covid patients. Conservative radio host Dennis Prager said on his podcast in late July that he was using ivermectin as a prophylaxis and, after the FDA came out against the use of ivermectin to treat Covid, the agency charged to “kill tens of thousands of Americans with this statement.”

“I’m telling you pretty clearly. Either the FDA is misleading you or I’m misleading you,” Prager told his audience.

Progressive media watchdog Media Matters said other conservative figures at Fox News have encouraged the use of ivermectin.

Guo has also focused on artemisinin in his recent episodes.

A translation of Guo’s August 30 live broadcast has a headline that reads, “Artemisinin is the antidote to the CCP virus,” said Mr. Miles Guo. Miles Guo is one of Guo’s pseudonyms, as is Miles Kwok. The translation on the GNews website shows an image of an artemisinin capsule container with text saying: “Covid-19 Here Comes the Cure – Artemisinin”.

“Mr. Miles Guo claimed that artemisinin, discovered and extracted by Nobel Prize winner Tu Youyou, is more than 99% effective in curing the CCP virus,” the translation said. “He also reiterated that all chapters should stock up on ivermectin, azithromycin and oxytetracycline.” The August 30 livestream had 6 million views.

The WHO has said that artemisinin, which is an antimalarial drug derived from the artemisia plant, will be tested on hospitalized Covid patients. The WHO has said there is no evidence yet for the effectiveness of artemisia-derived products in treating Covid-19, the BBC reported.

Guo’s campaign to push ivermectin and artemisinin is the latest example of his disinformation tactics, according to a new study from Graphika.

“To promote artemisinin, Guo and his media network are leveraging tactics Graphika and Project Virality observed in amplifying other unproven Covid-19 treatments,” the researchers said in a blog post. . “These include ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, both of which are promoted by Guo’s network alongside artemisinin. “

Translations of Guo’s articles on Gettr, which is led by Trump adviser Jason Miller, show that the Chinese businessman has also used this medium to promote similar concepts about unproven Covid treatments. Miller said Gettr is funded in part by a foundation linked to Guo.

In a video post from Gettr on Saturday, Guo repeatedly touts artemisinin and ivermectin as a Covid treatment.

“Artemisinin is the best, and it definitely works for those who were vaccinated with the first shot,” a translation of her post said. “Ivermectin is so far almost 100% effective. All patients who have used it are cured,” Guo added later in the post.

He made similar statements in his video article Thursday on Gettr.

As for the likelihood of contracting Covid after receiving a vaccine, data reported by the New York Times gives odds of around 1 in 5,000 per day. It’s based on information from Utah, Virginia, and a county in Washington state. For areas with higher vaccination rates, such as the Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco areas, the Times data puts the odds at 1 in 10,000.