Bill Gates calls coronavirus conspiracies ‘crazy and evil’
- Since the pandemic began, conspiracies have spread over the internet, many about Bill Gates himself
- Billionaire philanthropist praised Dr Anthony Fauci, the US government’s top infectious disease expert
Microsoft co-founder turned philanthropist Bill Gates says he has been taken aback by the volume of “crazy” and “evil” conspiracy theories about him spreading on social media during the Covid-19 pandemic, but said on Wednesday he would like to explore what is behind them.
In an interview with Reuters, Gates said the millions of online posts and “crazy conspiracy theories” about him and about top US infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci had likely taken hold in part because of the combination of a frightening viral pandemic and the rise of social media.
“Nobody would have predicted that I and Dr Fauci would be so prominent in these really evil theories,” Gates said.
“I’m very surprised by that. I hope it goes away.”
Gates, a billionaire who stepped down as chairman of Microsoft Corp in 2014, has through his philanthropic Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation committed at least US$1.75 billion to the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic. That includes support for some makers of vaccines, diagnostics and potential treatments.
Since the pandemic began a year ago, millions of conspiracies have spread over the internet, fuelling misinformation about the coronavirus, its origins and the motives of those working to fight it.