EXCLUSIVE: The federal government paid hundreds of social-media influencers to convince their followers to take COVID…

EXCLUSIVE: The federal government paid hundreds of social-media influencers to convince their followers to take COVID vaccines. They even targeted children, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. While the project’s didn’t reveal the names of paid participants, I just unmasked dozens. 🧵

CDC/HHS poured $80 MILLION+ into the program. The influencer operation ran through El Beacon—a public-facing cutout created by Public Good Projects, which recruited 496 paid influencers. The ads disclosed El Beacon—not the government funding it.

Here are examples of what this taxpayer-funded vaccine campaign put inside Americans’ feeds. Tech creator Fabio Dias told followers: “Do your part, step up, get vaccinated and vaccinate your children!!” El Beacon’s official account reposted it with #ad.

In a paid partnership, Angelica Castaneda featured a vaccinated SIX-YEAR-OLD and said her family acted partly to protect a TWO-YEAR-OLD. A separate #ad from Ana Cruz urged children to “GET VACCINATED and become a superhero too.”

The pregnancy messaging was explicit. In a paid partnership, Mariza Dávila-Madwid said babies born to vaccinated mothers faced a lower risk of COVID hospitalization. She said she got vaccinated while pregnant to protect her daughter.

Paola V. Desideri invoked pregnancy, childbirth AND breastfeeding in an official repost carrying #ad. She called vaccination the “BEST decision” for herself and her daughter.

Gift cards were used to generate testimonials. Erica Marques promoted a $100 contest: say why you got vaccinated, follow El Beacon and join its volunteer network. El Beacon separately offered a $200 card and bonus entries for sharing a vaccination story.

This was an “anti-misinformation” campaign. Yet Juliana Separavic’s #ad said “over 678% of Americans over the age of 5 are fully vaccinated.” Thayna Beddes’s #ad described the vaccines as “completely safe.”

Here are all 57 names I uncovered: * Akinyi Ragwar — Fashion and personal-style creator. * Alejandra Arce — Marketing, yoga, technology and lifestyle creator. * Aline Freeman/USA Homemade — Home and lifestyle creator; real name unverified. * Amelia Valentin — Singer, editor and on-air host. * Ana Cruz — Bilingual journalist and founder of Rollos de Mujeres. * Ana Molina — Latina lifestyle creator. * Ana Victoria Perez — Fashion, shopping and lifestyle creator. * Andreia Leifer — Fashion, beauty and lifestyle creator. * Angelica Castaneda — Family, travel and lifestyle blogger. * Araceli Bindrup — Family, fashion, home and travel creator. * Awilda — Lifestyle creator; surname unverified. * Bianca Fortney — Fashion, beauty and lifestyle creator. * Carla Riojas — Singer-songwriter. * Carmen Alvarez — Latino-literature book creator and library advocate. * Carolina Abdala — Beauty, home, family and lifestyle creator. * Cynthia Pratt — Arizona lifestyle and travel creator. * Dalia Patron — Fashion, beauty and wellness creator. * Dani Lynch — Utah social-media creator. * David Tutera — Celebrity wedding planner and television host. * Edna Freeman — Actress, author and motherhood creator. * Erica Marques — Lifestyle, motherhood and sustainability creator. * Fabio Dias — Technology-unboxing and product-review creator. * Fridda Fernández — Latina lifestyle creator and communications professional. * Genesis Lagos — Disney, family and travel creator. * Guadalupe Ochoa — Fashion blogger behind Fellow Fashionista. * Gustavo Finol — Fashion producer, public-relations professional and actor. * Jennifer Lee, also known as Prickly Blonde — Thrift and sustainable-fashion creator. * Jessica Moore — Budget-fashion, beauty and travel blogger. * Juliana Separavic — Lifestyle and brand-content creator. * Julie Hauptmann, also known as Jules Cali — Luxury-fashion, beauty and travel blogger. * Karina Abdul — Fashion designer and founder of KABDUL. * Kelsey Kaplan — Petite-fashion and motherhood blogger. * Kristina Guerrero — Former E! News and Inside Edition correspondent. * Lesley Argotti — Bilingual fashion and lifestyle creator and visual artist. * Lisa Marie Borjas — Venezuelan fashion stylist and beauty creator. * Lisette M. — Lifestyle creator; surname unverified. * Lucas Labrador — Ballet dancer and dance entrepreneur. * Marcelli Rodrigues — Personal trainer and beauty and fitness creator. * Mariza Dávila-Madwid — Spanish teacher and lifestyle creator. * Melany Cortázar — Makeup artist and makeup-academy founder. * Meliza Vasquez — Photographer and lifestyle and fitness creator. * Karen Asencio Viera, also known as Miss Karenni — Fashion and lifestyle creator. * Noelia Alonso Duque — Model and content creator. * Nubia Figueroa — Beauty, fashion and skincare creator. * Omar Genao — E-commerce developer and digital-marketing consultant. * Paola V. Desideri — Fashion, beauty and family creator. * Parth Patel — Engineer and men’s-style and travel creator. * Perla Aguilar — Fashion, beauty and lifestyle blogger. * Ren, also known as Grunge Granny — Maker, small-business owner and lifestyle creator. * Stephanie Bradford — Four-time Emmy-winning bilingual journalist. * Stephanie Guerra — San Antonio culture creator and founder of Puro Pinche. * Thayna Beddes — Instagram creator; specialty unverified. * Thida, also known as Vibe in Style — Boston-area travel and lifestyle blogger. * Camila Verônica Souza Freire, also known as V de Veronik — Medical-research and academic-skills creator. * Vanessa Calderón — Actress, writer and filmmaker. * Will Jardell — Amazing Race winner and public-health professional. * Wilmarie Hernández — Life and career coach and travel creator.

The campaign reported 1,000 posts and a potential reach of 37.2 million—but did not name a single person. I traced paid-partnership labels, #ad captions, official reposts and archived ads to identify 57 accounts.

This was not a static ad buy. Behind El Beacon was a real-time social media monitoring operation designed to hone influencer messaging for maximum vaccine uptake. It captured 247.7 MILLION public messages.

Staff reviewed results every week for “trending” or “emerging misinformation.” The report says those findings “directly informed” influencer caption prompts. Prompts were updated throughout the year. Comments were monitored and counter-messaging supplied.

The government wasn’t merely buying posts. It watched public reaction in real time, rewrote influencer instructions and supplied rebuttals as the debate unfolded. Followers saw El Beacon—not the federal operation behind it. All 57 names and receipts: NatalieGWinters.substack.com