Del Bigtree

Del Matthew Bigtree was born on April 15, 1970, in Boulder, Colorado. He studied at the Vancouver Film School and built a career as a television producer, working on shows including The Doctors and Dr. Phil. His pivot to anti-vaccine activism began when he produced the 2016 film Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe, co-created with disgraced former physician Andrew Wakefield. The film alleged a CDC conspiracy to hide a link between the MMR vaccine and autism and was rejected from the Tribeca Film Festival after widespread condemnation from scientists and public health officials.

In 2016, Bigtree founded the Informed Consent Action Network (ICAN), positioning himself as a 'medical journalist' despite having no medical training or scientific credentials. He hosts The HighWire, a weekly web show that amplifies vaccine misinformation, and has built a significant fundraising operation around anti-vaccine activism. His organization has pursued FOIA lawsuits against the FDA and CDC, which he presents as victories exposing government corruption, while scientific analysts note the released data does not support his conclusions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bigtree adapted classic anti-vaccine tropes to the new context, promoting claims that SARS-CoV-2 was laboratory-manufactured by the pharmaceutical industry, encouraging the public to allow COVID-19 to run its course without vaccination, and attacking federal health authorities. He spoke at the January 6, 2021, rally in Washington D.C. that preceded the storming of the Capitol. In 2019, he drew condemnation for wearing a yellow Star of David at anti-vaccine rallies, equating vaccination requirements with the Nazi persecution of Jews.

In early 2024, Bigtree joined Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign as communications director, bringing his anti-vaccine messaging to a national political stage. His influence has been identified by the World Health Organization as contributing to vaccine hesitancy, which WHO lists as one of the top ten global health threats. He has no medical license to lose, insulating him from the disciplinary consequences that have affected physician anti-vaccine advocates.

“The MMR vaccine causes autism, based on a CDC whistleblower cover-up”

The claim stems from the discredited work of Andrew Wakefield, whose original 1998 Lancet paper was fully retracted. Multiple large-scale studies, including a 2019 Danish cohort study of over 650,000 children, found no link between the MMR vaccine and autism. The alleged CDC 'whistleblower' William Thompson clarified he believes vaccines have saved countless lives.

“The hepatitis B vaccine is equivalent to 'injecting a sexually transmitted disease'”

The hepatitis B vaccine contains only a protein from the surface of the virus — it contains no live virus, no DNA, and cannot cause infection. The vaccine protects against a virus that causes liver disease and cancer.

“SARS-CoV-2 was manufactured in a laboratory by the pharmaceutical industry”

No credible evidence supports pharmaceutical industry manufacture of the virus. Scientific consensus, including analyses of the viral genome, is inconsistent with laboratory engineering for commercial purposes. Bigtree promoted this as established fact on The HighWire.

“Vaccines are not tested in combination before being added to the childhood schedule”

The CDC and FDA require combination testing and post-market surveillance. Studies routinely evaluate combinations of vaccines given at the same visit. The Vaccine Safety Datalink and PRISM networks actively monitor for adverse events across millions of doses.