How to cover vaccines responsibly
September 16, 2025
Newsrooms face a significant challenge covering the effort to upend decades of rigorous vaccine science and the policies it has guided. Misinformation and disinformation about the development, effectiveness, and safety of vaccines are coming from the highest levels of government, and individual states are issuing their own vaccination guidance and changing their vaccine mandates.
This toolkit provides tips and resources for journalists covering vaccines in their communities, describing basic vaccine science, providing graphics to use in your stories, explaining causes of vaccine hesitancy, and more.
Disponible en español: Cómo abordar el tema de las vacunas de manera responsable
What causes vaccine hesitancy and how to cover it
How to cover a vaccine conspiracy in your community
Covering vaccines in religious and cultural communities
Vaccine safety tip sheet
With evidence, scientists cut through misconceptions about autism
Understanding vaccines: Use these free social-friendly graphics
Why it’s urgent that journalists understand the science behind vaccines, disinformation
For journalists covering vaccines, advice on understanding hesitancy
Reporting on common vaccine conspiracies and misinformation
Covering vaccine mandates and policy in a polarized community
Pulling back the curtain on religious and cultural resistance to vaccines
Covering vaccines: Understand the science, be thoughtful about framing
Toolkit contributors:
- Toolkit editor: Sara Whitlock
- Contributing editors: Matt DeRienzo, Karl Eisenhower, Becky Hazen
- Freelance contributors: Sheila Eldred, Tara Haelle
- Image editor: Elena Renken
- Marketing: Rebecca Elmuccio
Recent programming from SciLine, with video and transcripts
Dr. Sophia Newcomer: Updated CDC vaccine guidelines for kids
Group media availability: Hepatitis B birth dose safety
Dr. Peyton Thompson: Hepatitis B vaccine
Dr. Kawsar Talaat: Vaccine ingredients
Dr. David Higgins: Back-to-school vaccinations
Childhood vaccines: Schedule, hesitancy, and exemptions
Dr. Joshua Sharfstein: Whooping cough
Measles and public health: Risks, prevention, and response to current outbreaks
Dr. Yvonne Maldonado: Measles
Changes at CDC: Potential impacts on public health
Vaccines and public health: Development, regulation, and safety
