by | Dec 3, 2024 | The Hill
A consumer advocacy group wants the
(FTC) to open an investigation into whether Dr. Mehmet Oz violated
by promoting products from a wellness and supplement company across social media without appropriate disclosures.
In a letter sent to the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection Tuesday, Public Citizen said Oz regularly cross-posts content for iHerb among various platforms like X, TikTok and Instagram without disclosing his financial connections to the company.
“Disguised advertisements are inherently deceptive, because consumers do not know to apply appropriate screens,” Public Citizen said in the letter. “The issue is acute with disguised ads featuring paid endorsements, where deceived consumers believe admired celebrities are making genuine, self-directed and enthusiastic endorsements of brands, not realizing that those celebrities are instead paid and may not even use the touted brand.”
Oz, who was
by President-elect Trump to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has served as a “global advisor” for iHerb since 2023.
In an Instagram post the day before Thanksgiving, Oz
that they could reduce Thanksgiving stress “with adaptogens like ashwagandha from a trusted source like iHerb.”
Public Citizen noted Oz discloses that he is an “@iHerb Global Advisor & Stakeholder” but none of his video posts disclose his financial connections, nor does the accompanying text. The posts also lack other disclosures such as the hashtag #ad.
FTC guidelines say that advertiser disclosures should be placed with the endorsement message itself.
“The guidelines are clear that endorsement disclosures must be made in every promotion, not just generically,” the watchdog wrote. “Specifically, if a person is using their social media account to promote a product or service in exchange for compensation, they must note the paid relationship in social media post.”
Oz’s posts on TikTok do contain disclosures, which Public Citizen said are likely automated by TikTok’s content disclosure system. But it is not clear if they sufficiently disclose his interests, the group added.
by | Dec 3, 2024 | The Hill
Ex-White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci compared President-elect Trump’s pick of Kash Patel to
to the
of former Rep. Matt Gaetz’s (R-Fla.)
as
.
Gaetz, who
from consideration after speaking with
, was originally tapped to lead the Justice Department (DOJ). He faced an uphill battle for confirmation as he was under fire over a DOJ investigation and
into sex trafficking and misconduct allegations, as well as illicit drug use.
“It‘s the same thing with Matt Gaetz,” Scaramucci told CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Monday evening. “The president-elect feels he‘s got a slate of people that are MAGA people. He‘s going to put those up if they can get through.”
He also suggested that while Trump’s initial picks are likely to please his base, he likely has other allies lined up if they don’t get confirmed.
“He‘s doing that because he looks at his base and saying these [picks] are for you,” Scaramucci said, pointing to the president-elect’s
of former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi — who has
to the president-elect — as the top federal prosecutor instead.
“I think it‘s the same thing with Kash Patel,” he added. “I don‘t think the expectation is that he‘s going to get through.”
Patel is a
who has echoed the former president’s plans for retribution. He has focused much of his commentary on attacking the “deep state,” which he has blamed for “weaponizing the government for their own political and personal agenda.” He defended the president-elect during several investigations — including the impeachment inquiries and the Russia election interference probe — that he endured while in the White House, as well as following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
He faced pushback from the now-disbanded House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 riots, which asked him to sit for testimony. Patel, who held
during Trump’s first administration, was chief of staff to then-acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller.
In
, the committee wrote: “There is substantial reason to believe that you have additional documents and information relevant to understanding the role played by the Department of Defense and the White House in preparing for and responding to the attack on the U.S. Capitol, as well as documents and information related to your personal involvement in planning for events on Jan. 6 and the peaceful transfer of power.”
Patel has also been openly critical of the Biden administration’s handling of the cases related to Jan. 6 rioters.
by | Dec 3, 2024 | The Hill
Kash Patel, President-elect Trump’s choice to
, is needed more than ever, according to veteran news anchor Bill O’Reilly.
“The FBI knew what Joe Biden did and buried it,” O’Reilly told NewsNation’s “
” while discussing Hunter Biden’s
.
“We need Kash Patel in there to blow that place up,” he added.
O’Reilly said
is nothing new in America and that if he were Biden, he would have done the same thing and
his son as well.
Patel has
and restore trust in the federal agency that he’s described as “thoroughly compromised” while facing criticism from Democrats he is not qualified for the job.
Patel
by the U.S. Senate in order to secure the role, although some Washington insiders say he will face an
in landing the job.
If confirmed, Patel would replace the FBI’s current director, Christopher Wray, who was appointed by Trump and whose tenure wasn’t expected to end until 2027.
NewsNation is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill.
