Polio Pulse

Polio Pulse provides social listening insights to support GPEI’s polio interventions on disinformation, crisis communication, and strategic communication. Data is monitored from polio-endemic and outbreak countries and geographies classified by GPEI, covering 12 major languages spoken in these regions. The platform is managed by the UNICEF Digital Community Engagement (DCE) team.

High Risk

They gave him 13 shots and killed him”: the ‘Bently’ tragedy story fuels polio‑schedule refusal

Geography
United States
Canada
United Kingdom
Germany
Japan
Israel
Australia
Themes
Safety and side effects

Analysis

A highly emotive case story circulates on X alleging that a 6‑month‑old child (“Bently”) was killed by vaccines after receiving “13 shots” at a single visit, explicitly including polio. The narrative frames clinicians as coercive and negligent, and the death as foreseeable and criminal. By embedding polio inside a broader ‘vaccine overload’ accusation, the storyline discourages routine immunization entirely while giving polio programs collateral reputational damage.

Recommendations

This narrative requires empathetic, non‑amplifying responses centered on child safety and informed consent. Trusted pediatric clinicians and nurses should explain how vaccination visits are structured, how dosing is determined, and how adverse events are monitored, without repeating the inflammatory framing.