Fact check: False claim that Dr. Fauci's sister wrote book on omicron variant
The claim: Dr. Anthony Fauci's sister published a book about the omicron coronavirus variant
Some social media users are claiming Dr. Anthony Fauci's sister published a book about the omicron variant of the coronavirus just as it started to spread around the world.
A Dec. 31, 2021, Facebook post shows a screengrab of a book titled "Omicron and the other Covid-19 variants: All you need to know about Covid-19 vaccines and variants." The purported author: "Dr. Angelique Fauci."
"Published on the same day the world health organization named it as a variant of concern," the post reads, citing a Nov. 26, 2021, publication date.
Another Facebook post claims the two Faucis are related.
"Yeah, think about that," the post reads. "Angelique is Tony's sister."
More: US coronavirus cases surge past previous records: How omicron is shaping the pandemic
The claim appears to stem from a Dec. 15, 2021, tweet, which received more than 500 retweets and 600 likes before it was deleted. But it's false.
Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, doesn't have a sister named Angelique – and there's no evidence his real sister has published a book about omicron. The book referenced in the posts was self-published and later removed from Amazon.
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Paste BN reached out to Facebook and Twitter users who shared the claim for comment.
Fauci's sister did not write book on omicron
The nation's top infectious disease expert has one sibling named Denise Scorce, according to several Fauci tributes. Paste BN could find no evidence she has published a book on omicron.
The Associated Press reported the 17-page book referenced in the social media posts was self-published to Kindle on Nov. 26, 2021, the same day the World Health Organization deemed omicron a "variant of concern." An Amazon spokesperson, Julia Lee, told Paste BN the book has since been removed from its platform.
NIAID confirmed to Paste BN that Fauci’s sister did not write a book about the omicron variant.
Fact check: Post about surgical masks' effectiveness against COVID-19 is missing context
Multiple news outlets and fact-checking organizations have reported on omicron books self-published on Amazon over the past several weeks. Paste BN has previously debunked false claims about books that purportedly predicted COVID-19.
Our rating: False
Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that Fauci's sister published a book about the omicron coronavirus variant. Fauci doesn't have a sister named Angelique, and there's no evidence his real sister published a book about omicron. The self-published book referenced in the posts has been removed from Amazon.
Our fact-check sources:
- Congressional Record (Bound Edition) Volume 153 (2007), Sept. 28, 2007, TRIBUTE TO ANTHONY FAUCI
- Journal of Clinical Investigation, Oct. 1, 2007, Introduction of Anthony S. Fauci, MD
- Associated Press, Dec. 22, 2021, Fauci’s sister did not publish book about the omicron variant
- Check Your Fact, Dec. 30, 2021, FACT CHECK: DOES THIS IMAGE SHOW A BOOK ABOUT THE OMICRON VARIANT THAT ANTHONY FAUCI’S SISTER PUBLISHED IN NOVEMBER?
- Amazon, retrieved Jan. 8, Page Not Found
- PolitiFact, Dec. 20, 2021, Self-published book on omicron was not copyrighted before variant was discovered
- Newsweek, Dec. 21, 2021, Bogus Omicron Variant Book by Fake Dr. Fauci One of Many Being Sold on Amazon
- Paste BN, June 2, 2020, Fact check: The 1981 Dean Koontz book ‘The Eyes of Darkness’ did not predict COVID-19
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