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Alnylam’s John Maraganore isn’t the only CEO to leave his post; CRISPR’s chief commercial officer takes the helm at a protein degradation player

John Maraganore
The departure of a number of CEOs is the prevailing theme that kicks off this week’s installment: In a stunner, Alnylam CEO John Maraganore announced that Yvonne Greenstreet will be his successor at the end of the year. Maraganore, the…

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John Maraganore

The departure of a number of CEOs is the prevailing theme that kicks off this week’s installment: In a stunner, Alnylam CEO John Maraganore announced that Yvonne Greenstreet will be his successor at the end of the year. Maraganore, the Cambridge, MA biotech’s founding chief executive since 2002 who has helped invigorate the RNAi space, will step into a consulting role until March 31 and maintain his presence in the company as a member of the scientific advisory board.

Yvonne Greenstreet

Maraganore told our John Carroll a couple years back that retirement wasn’t on the table, but instead Alnylam will be led by Greenstreet, who replaced current Sage CEO Barry Greene as the company’s president in August 2020 and is also COO.

This week, Alnylam unspooled positive data for what the biotech hopes will become its fourth RNAi approval with its drug vutrisiran for polyneuropathy associated with hereditary transthyretin-mediated (hATTR) amyloidosis. Lumasiran (marketed as Oxlumo) was approved in November 2020.

Barry Labinger

Meanwhile, the search is underway for a permanent CEO to replace Barry Labinger at cancer-focused Checkmate Pharmaceuticals, while board member Alan Fuhrman steps up to the plate on an interim basis. Labinger succeeded founder and current CSO Art Krieg in December 2018 and steered Checkmate to a $75 million IPO in July 2020 with a heavy reliance on its TLR9 agonist vidutolimod (CMP-001), but the stock price has dwindled significantly since its Nasdaq debut. Fuhrman, the CFO for Amplyx from 2017-20, is a member of the board of directors at SpringWorks Therapeutics and Esperion.

Julie Eastland

Starting Nov. 8, there will also be a change at the top of South San Francisco T cell engager biotech Harpoon Therapeutics, with Julie Eastland succeeding Jerry McMahon as CEO. McMahon, who announced his resignation this week, had been Harpoon’s chief executive since December 2016 and presided over a company in decline after its prostate cancer candidate HPN424 massively underwhelmed in a Phase I/IIa study, gutting the stock price. Before accepting her first CEO job, Eastland held dual roles as COO and CFO at ReCode Therapeutics and currently has board seats at Graybug Vision and Dynavax.

Lastly in this group, Jed Latkin has resigned from his three-pronged responsibilities of CEO, CFO and COO at Dublin, OH-based Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, a biotech concentrating on precision immunodiagnostic agents. Navidea has set up an Office of the CEO until a successor is named, comprised of three board members and two execs: chairman Alexander Cappello, vice chair John Scott, Thomas Farb (who was just appointed to the board with Agnieszka Winkler effective Oct. 7), CMO Michael Rosol, and VP of finance and administration Erika Eves.

Philippe Drouet

→ CRISPR Therapeutics chief commercial officer Philippe Drouet has exited stage left to take on the CEO job at BioTheryX, a protein degradation outfit based in San Diego that gathered up a Series E round in May. Drouet didn’t stick around at CRISPR for very long — he was named CCO in February after five years at Merck, where he had been integral to the launch of Keytruda as the drug giant’s SVP, oncology global marketing & market access. While with Novartis, Drouet wore several hats, from head of oncology marketing in Canada to VP of the US hematology franchise.

Jens Lindberg

→ Swedish oncology player Medivir has tapped AstraZeneca alum Jens Lindberg as CEO while Magnus Christensen stays on as interim CEO until Lindberg takes over “within six months,” according to the release. Lindberg, the acting CEO and VP of commercial at Sedana Medical, held a series of posts in nearly a quarter century at AstraZeneca that culminated in his role as VP of oncology in the Nordic-Baltic region. There’s been a revolving door lately at the top spot at Medivir after Uli Hacksell replaced Christine Lind in 2018 and the company slashed 60 other jobs in the process. In September 2020, Yilmaz Mahshid became Medivir’s CEO but bolted abruptly to take the CFO job at Egetis Therapeutics.

Essra Ridha

→ The FDA’s approval of Fabrazyme in March forced lentiviral gene therapy outfit Avrobio to go back to the drawing board with its own Fabry disease drug, so it would seem the promotion of Essra Ridha to CMO is an important step toward giving AVR-RD-01 the sturdy footing it needs. Prior to her previous responsibilities as Avrobio’s VP, clinical development, Ridha was senior medical director, clinical sciences, gene edited cell therapy during almost two years at Sangamo. She also had a three-year run at GlaxoSmithKline, taking on the role of clinical development director, cell & gene therapy, rare diseases.

Loretta Itri

→ In another case of the band getting back together, Loretta Itri has been named CMO at Aadi Bioscience, which reverse merged with Aerpio Therapeutics in May and where ex-Immunomedics CEO Behzad Aghazadeh is a board member. Like Aadi’s newly-arrived COO, Brendan Delaney, Itri is an Immunomedics alum, having been CMO when Gilead opened up the pocketbook to purchase the biotech for $21 billion last year. She’s also served as EVP of global health sciences and regulatory affairs at The Medicines Company.

Daphne Karydas

→ Beginning its odyssey to solve the transcription factor puzzle with an $82 million Series A in May, Third Rock biotech Flare Therapeutics has selected Daphne Karydas as COO and CFO, while Michaela Bowden gets the nod as SVP of biology and translation. Karydas is an Allergan alum in corporate financial planning and investor relations who just completed a year as CFO of Syndax Pharmaceuticals, and Bowden spent the last three years at Bristol Myers Squibb, leaving the drug giant as executive director of translational biology.

Ottavio Vitolo

→ Lowell, MA neuro biotech Alcyone Therapeutics broke through in June with a $23 million Series A and a game plan to tackle Rett syndrome out of the gates. CEO PJ Anand has now surrounded himself with four new execs in this effort, with CMO and global head of R&D Ottavio Vitolo leading off. The former head of neuromuscular clinical research at Pfizer, Vitolio co-founded Vitem Therapeutics and was CMO and R&D chief at Relmada Therapeutics from 2018-20.

Who else is joining Vitolo? Credit Suisse and Cowen vet Ravi Mehrotra (CFO and head of strategy) recently worked with Umer Raffat and Josh Schimmer as senior managing director of Evercore’s healthcare research team. Susan D’Costa (EVP and global head of technology) comes to Alcyone from Thermo Fisher, where she was senior director, technical program design. And Rachel Salzman (EVP of portfolio, external affairs & development) founded and was president and CEO of CNS gene therapy outfit SwanBio.

Stéphanie Hoffmann-Gendebien

→ Making its push into the European market, Amylyx has appointed Stéphanie Hoffmann-Gendebien as head, general manager in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Hoffmann-Gendebien, a longtime Genzyme staffer, was a managing director and founding partner at GH Partners since 2019, when she left rare disease biotech Clementia Pharmaceuticals as VP, general manager, EMEA after Ipsen snapped it up for $1.3 billion. Co-led by Justin Klee and Josh Cohen, Amylyx said in April that they planned on submitting a marketing application to the EMA by the end of the year for its ALS candidate AMX0035, and after the FDA initially balked at an NDA, the agency did a 180 on the request in September.

Peter Tate

→ Focusing on the blood-brain barrier, Travecta Therapeutics named Charles Ryan president and CEO in June after helming Neurotrope. Ryan has now fleshed out his leadership team with a big batch of execs and board members, starting with CMO and head of R&D Donald Manning, a Novartis and Celgene vet who was CMO at Shionogi and then Adynxx from 2012-20. Peter Milligan (CFO) was previously the finance chief at Exelis, G&W Laboratories and most recently Melinta, a role currently held by Susan Blum. Peter Tate (head of Singapore operations and senior director, business development), a one-time Pfizer scientist, wrapped up a 10-year association with EMD Serono in 2020 as the Merck KGaA sub’s associate director, pharmaceutical technologies. Peter Honig jumps to Travecta’s scientific advisory board after retiring from Pfizer as head of global regulatory affairs and group head of development for China and Japan.

Finally, Ryan will occupy a seat on Travecta’s board of directors alongside former Allergan exec June Bray, Ivan Gergel, Pascal Heberling and Bob Huang.

Deyaa Adib

→ You may recall Triumvira’s leadership moves in April, when the Paul Lammers-led T cell biotech named Teresa McRoberts as CFO and promoted Andreas Bader and Jon Irvin to CSO and VP of finance, respectively. Triumvira has found a CMO this week, and it’s Deyaa Adib, who was just the acting CMO for Rain Therapeutics and has been VP of late-stage development at Blueprint Medicines. A Sanofi and Astellas vet, Adib served as Baxalta’s global therapeutics head for solid tumors. In August 2020, Triumvira nabbed $55 million in a Series A that “will give us a nice runway to do a lot of fun stuff,” as Lammers said at the time, with its T cell antigen coupler (TAC) technology.

→ Onchilles Pharma has hired a slew of new faces to its leadership team with the appointments of Christopher Twitty (CSO); Ingrid Joseph (SVP, preclinical development); and Sonia Feau (director of biology). Twitty brings with him experience from his time at Bayer, Cell Genesys, Tocagen and OncoSec Medical. Meanwhile, Joseph served as VP of pharmacology and toxicology at Synthorx; senior director of pharmacology and bioimaging at Astellas; and director of oncopharmacology at Biogen. Last, but not least, Feau joins from Oncorus, where she served as associate director of immunology. Prior to that stint, Feau was with Merck and Merrimack Pharmaceuticals.

Robert Panting

→ German CDMO Rentschler Biopharma, which will have a presence at the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult in the UK by next year, has appointed Robert Panting as general manager of Rentschler ATMP, Center of Excellence for Cell and Gene Therapy. Prior to Rentschler, Panting spent a decade at Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, where he most recently served as president for program management and sales & operations planning.

→ Bryan Jennings is making his way over to Noxxon Pharma as the company’s new CFO. Jennings brings aboard experience from his time as CFO at Peptilogics, KAHR Bio, Beren Therapeutics, Rational Vaccines and ChemomAb. In addition to those stints, Jennings was CFO and CEO at Vista Capital Advisors and was with Morgan Stanley as managing director, head of capital markets and risk management.

Terry Coelho

→ After just bringing aboard Mason Freeman as EVP, clinical development last week, CinCor Pharma has now added Terry Coelho to its ranks as EVP, CFO and chief business development officer. Coelho joins the Cincinnati-based biotech from BioDelivery Services International, where she served as EVP and CFO. Prior to that, Coelho was CFO of Balchem Corp, CFO and COO of Diversey, and held leadership roles with Novartis.

→ PepGen, the Boston-based Oxford spinout that received $112.5 million in Series B financing back in August for its lead programs in muscular dystrophy, has appointed Noel Donnelly as CFO. Donnelly has spent much of his career at Shire, where he has served as VP, R&D business and strategy and, most recently, as head of R&D finance.

Lotta Ferm

→ Whole Lotta love: Lotta Ferm will be an interim CFO no more at Swedish cancer biotech Immunicum, taking over on a permanent basis starting Monday. Ferm initially took the interim job on Feb. 1 after a string of CFO posts at such Swedish companies as Medivir and Doktor24. In March, Immunicum filled its CMO vacancy with ex-Kiadis medical chief Jeroen Rovers.

David Gray

→ Pfizer alum David Gray has signed on to be CSO at Inscopix, a company out of Palo Alto focused on treating neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases using its brain mapping platform. After 15 years at Pfizer, the last three of those as a senior director in neuro, Gray then moved to Cerevel as VP in charge of development for its Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s programs.

→ New Jersey drug discovery company Vyant Bio, focused on neurology and oncology, has pegged Robert Fremeau as CSO. Camp4 turned to Fremeau — a former scientific director in neuroscience during his decade at Amgen — to fill the role of senior director, translational sciences, neuroimmunology in 2019 and later became executive director, CNS discovery before his exit in January.

Eric Daniels

→ At the same time as completing its acquisition of Bayon Therapeutics, EyeGate Pharmaceuticals has tapped Bayon’s co-founder and director Eric Daniels as chief development officer. Daniels also comes aboard from OccuRx, where he was CEO. Prior to those roles, Daniels was co-founder and director of Okogen and served at Cytori Therapeutics among others.

→ Swiss-based Celonic has named Alexandre Pasini as COO, succeeding Vikalp Mohan — who will now be serving as CBO. Pasini joins the company after a stint as COO at SaniSure. Prior to that, Pasini spent over a decade at Lonza in roles ranging from site director to head of global bioscience operations.

Mohan Bala

→ Following the appointment of chief manufacturing officer Tushar Misra in August, Cambridge, MA antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) player Mersana Therapeutics has installed Mohan Bala as SVP, strategic product planning & program leadership. Fellow Tesaro alum Brian DeSchuytner, who once had strategic product planning duties, earns a promotion to SVP and CFO. Bala gets a fresh start here after less than a year as COO at Constellation Pharmaceuticals, and he also brings Big Pharma credentials from J&J (Centocor), GSK and Sanofi.

→ Doug Girgenti has taken over as VP of drug development at Melinta Therapeutics. Prior to joining Melinta, Girgenti led clinical development programs as senior medical director at Magenta Therapeutics. Girgenti has also supervised global development programs at Wyeth/Pfizer and Boehringer Ingelheim.

Dorothy Lou Bailey

→ Exo Therapeutics has brought on Dorothy Lou Bailey as SVP, corporate development and strategy. Most notably, Bailey has served as head of corporate development at Blackthorn Therapeutics. With its roots in David Liu’s Harvard lab, Exo — the exosite-focused biotech led by CEO Michael Bruce — made the news earlier this month with its $78 million Series B round.

→ Penny stock kidney disease player Unicycive Therapeutics, which priced its IPO at $25 million after originally filing for a $36 million offering, has lined up pharma vet Douglas Jermasek as EVP, corporate strategy. Jermasek writes a new chapter at Unicycive after his time at Akebia (then Keryx after the merger) as SVP, marketing and strategy, and to close out 12 years at Genzyme from 2014, he was Sanofi’s SVP and general manager, head of renal global business unit.

Pascal Bamford

→ Pascal Bamford is venturing off to Akoya Biosciences, which started a spatial biology partnership in June with AstraZeneca, as SVP, R&D and laboratory operations. Like Akoya’s COO, Frederic Pla, Bamford is a Genomic Health alum, serving as SVP of products and services R&D before and after Exact Sciences ponied up $2.8 billion to buy the company in the summer of 2019.

→ After nabbing regulatory affairs and CMC execs in March, San Diego oncology player Aptose has promoted Janet Clennett to VP, finance and picked up Roger Davies as VP, operations. Clennett originally moved on to Aptose as director of finance after her time in the same capacity and as acting CFO at ProMIS Neurosciences. With experience under his belt at CROs (Icon) and pharma giants (Novartis), Davies comes off a three-year stay with Intercept in clinical operations.

Joshua Young

→ Lumicks, a Dutch provider of single molecule and cell avidity analysis, has pulled in Joshua Young as VP of investor relations, communications and strategy. Once the head of investor relations at Merck KGaA, Young comes to Lumicks after a short tenure as the VP of investor relations at Everbridge.

Tal Zaks

→ What’s next for Tal Zaks after leaving Moderna and joining the board at Teva? He’ll be rolling in the Deep as he gets a spot on the strategic advisory board at Deep Genomics, Brendan Frey’s Toronto-based AI and machine learning shop that has a boatload of new cash in the form of a $180 million Series C from July to push its batch of RNA therapies to the clinic. Since Zaks’ departure as CMO, Moderna has taken more heat for the lack of availability of its Covid-19 vaccine in lower- and middle-income countries, which the biotech tried to ameliorate this week by ramping up production for the African Union.

Brent Saunders

→ Running alongside its $100 million Series C from earlier in the week, New York anti-aging biotech Cambrian Biopharma has welcomed one of its investors, ex-Allergan CEO Brent Saunders, to the board of directors. Saunders, who chairs the board at little-known OcuTerra, “hit it off” with CEO James Peyer, as our Jason Mast notes. Paul Farr, a partner at Anthos Capital — which co-led the round with SALT Fund — also takes a seat on Cambrian’s board.

Scott Myers

→ Scott Myers is having himself a week. Not only has he been named chairman at Harpoon, he has replaced Andrew Hack as chairman of the board at Dynavax — since May 2020, Hack had chaired the vaccine biotech on an interim basis. Myers, the CEO of AMAG Pharmaceuticals for a hot second until it was acquired by Covis last fall, is on the boards of Selecta Biosciences and Trillium Therapeutics, which Pfizer bought out for $2.3 billion in August.

Hannah Valantine

→ Neil Kumar’s crew at BridgeBio, which is partnering with Bristol Myers to explore a drug combo involving Opdivo and SHP2 inhibitor BBP-398, has named Hannah Valantine to the board of directors. Valantine, a professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine, was the first chief officer for scientific workforce diversity at the NIH from 2014-20.

Rupert Vessey

→ Bristol Myers’ global R&D chief Rupert Vessey has been elected to the board of directors at Nereid Therapeutics, part of a biomolecular condensate field that also includes Dewpoint and Faze Medicines. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital EVP and COO Laura Forese is joining Vessey on Nereid’s board.

→ Boston-based BYOMass has recruited Declan Doogan and Stephen Hoffman to its board of directors. Doogan is the CMO and co-founder of Juvenescence, while Hoffman most recently served as CRO of Aerpio Pharmaceuticals. Besides his stint at Juvenescence, Doogan is the chairman and co-founder of Biohaven Pharmaceuticals and previously worked with Pfizer and Amarin. Meanwhile, this isn’t Hoffman’s first board appointment. He also sits on the boards of AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Danforth Advisors, and Apic Bio.

→ Verastem Oncology has made room for Michelle Robertson on the board of directors. Robertson, the CFO for Jim Mullen at Editas Medicine, has also been CFO for Momenta before it was sold to J&J in 2020.

Bernadette Connaughton

→ Speaking of Editas, Bernadette Connaughton has joined the board of directors — one that also includes C4 CEO Andrew Hirsch and Legend SVP Meeta Chatterjee. Connaughton, a longtime Bristol Myers exec who left in 2017 as president, intercontinental, has board seats at Syneos Health, Zealand Pharma and Halozyme.

→ Hanmi Science CEO Jong-yoon Lim has been tapped as a registered director of Oxford Vacmedix. Prior to his current role at Hanmi Science, Lim was CEO of Hanmi Pharmaceuticals and head of Beijing Hanmi Pharm.

→ HCW Biologics has brought on Lisa Giles and Gary Winer to its board of directors. Giles is the managing director and CEO of Giles & Associates Consultancy and currently sits on the board of Milestone Pharmaceuticals. Earlier in her career, Giles served at Abbott Laboratories. Meanwhile, Winer previously served as president and CEO of Orgentec Diagnostika. Earlier in his career, Winer held stints at Abbott and was VP of global commercial strategies at AbbVie and president and CEO of AbbVie Japan.

→ Jonathan Arnold, Catalent’s president, oral and special delivery, has joined the board of directors of ANGUS Chemical Company. Prior to his current position at Catalent, Arnold served as VP and general manager of the company’s drug delivery solutions business unit. Prior to Catalent, Arnold was with Pantheon.

→ Synendos Therapeutics has appointed the following members to its scientific advisory board: Karl-Heinz Altmann, Anahita Bassir Nia, Graeme Bilbe, Jürg Gertsch, and Kirsten Müller-Vahl. In November of last year, the Swiss-based startup raised $21.85 million in Series A financing to develop therapies for neuropsychiatric disorders.

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‘Excess Mortality Skyrocketed’: Tucker Carlson and Dr. Pierre Kory Unpack ‘Criminal’ COVID Response

‘Excess Mortality Skyrocketed’: Tucker Carlson and Dr. Pierre Kory Unpack ‘Criminal’ COVID Response

As the global pandemic unfolded, government-funded…

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March 14, 2024

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'Excess Mortality Skyrocketed': Tucker Carlson and Dr. Pierre Kory Unpack 'Criminal' COVID Response

As the global pandemic unfolded, government-funded experimental vaccines were hastily developed for a virus which primarily killed the old and fat (and those with other obvious comorbidities), and an aggressive, global campaign to coerce billions into injecting them ensued.

Then there were the lockdowns - with some countries (New Zealand, for example) building internment camps for those who tested positive for Covid-19, and others such as China welding entire apartment buildings shut to trap people inside.

It was an egregious and unnecessary response to a virus that, while highly virulent, was survivable by the vast majority of the general population.

Oh, and the vaccines, which governments are still pushing, didn't work as advertised to the point where health officials changed the definition of "vaccine" multiple times.

Tucker Carlson recently sat down with Dr. Pierre Kory, a critical care specialist and vocal critic of vaccines. The two had a wide-ranging discussion, which included vaccine safety and efficacy, excess mortality, demographic impacts of the virus, big pharma, and the professional price Kory has paid for speaking out.

Keep reading below, or if you have roughly 50 minutes, watch it in its entirety for free on X:

"Do we have any real sense of what the cost, the physical cost to the country and world has been of those vaccines?" Carlson asked, kicking off the interview.

"I do think we have some understanding of the cost. I mean, I think, you know, you're aware of the work of of Ed Dowd, who's put together a team and looked, analytically at a lot of the epidemiologic data," Kory replied. "I mean, time with that vaccination rollout is when all of the numbers started going sideways, the excess mortality started to skyrocket."

When asked "what kind of death toll are we looking at?", Kory responded "...in 2023 alone, in the first nine months, we had what's called an excess mortality of 158,000 Americans," adding "But this is in 2023. I mean, we've  had Omicron now for two years, which is a mild variant. Not that many go to the hospital."

'Safe and Effective'

Tucker also asked Kory why the people who claimed the vaccine were "safe and effective" aren't being held criminally liable for abetting the "killing of all these Americans," to which Kory replied: "It’s my kind of belief, looking back, that [safe and effective] was a predetermined conclusion. There was no data to support that, but it was agreed upon that it would be presented as safe and effective."

Carlson and Kory then discussed the different segments of the population that experienced vaccine side effects, with Kory noting an "explosion in dying in the youngest and healthiest sectors of society," adding "And why did the employed fare far worse than those that weren't? And this particularly white collar, white collar, more than gray collar, more than blue collar."

Kory also said that Big Pharma is 'terrified' of Vitamin D because it "threatens the disease model." As journalist The Vigilant Fox notes on X, "Vitamin D showed about a 60% effectiveness against the incidence of COVID-19 in randomized control trials," and "showed about 40-50% effectiveness in reducing the incidence of COVID-19 in observational studies."

Professional costs

Kory - while risking professional suicide by speaking out, has undoubtedly helped save countless lives by advocating for alternate treatments such as Ivermectin.

Kory shared his own experiences of job loss and censorship, highlighting the challenges of advocating for a more nuanced understanding of vaccine safety in an environment often resistant to dissenting voices.

"I wrote a book called The War on Ivermectin and the the genesis of that book," he said, adding "Not only is my expertise on Ivermectin and my vast clinical experience, but and I tell the story before, but I got an email, during this journey from a guy named William B Grant, who's a professor out in California, and he wrote to me this email just one day, my life was going totally sideways because our protocols focused on Ivermectin. I was using a lot in my practice, as were tens of thousands of doctors around the world, to really good benefits. And I was getting attacked, hit jobs in the media, and he wrote me this email on and he said, Dear Dr. Kory, what they're doing to Ivermectin, they've been doing to vitamin D for decades..."

"And it's got five tactics. And these are the five tactics that all industries employ when science emerges, that's inconvenient to their interests. And so I'm just going to give you an example. Ivermectin science was extremely inconvenient to the interests of the pharmaceutical industrial complex. I mean, it threatened the vaccine campaign. It threatened vaccine hesitancy, which was public enemy number one. We know that, that everything, all the propaganda censorship was literally going after something called vaccine hesitancy."

Money makes the world go 'round

Carlson then hit on perhaps the most devious aspect of the relationship between drug companies and the medical establishment, and how special interests completely taint science to the point where public distrust of institutions has spiked in recent years.

"I think all of it starts at the level the medical journals," said Kory. "Because once you have something established in the medical journals as a, let's say, a proven fact or a generally accepted consensus, consensus comes out of the journals."

"I have dozens of rejection letters from investigators around the world who did good trials on ivermectin, tried to publish it. No thank you, no thank you, no thank you. And then the ones that do get in all purportedly prove that ivermectin didn't work," Kory continued.

"So and then when you look at the ones that actually got in and this is where like probably my biggest estrangement and why I don't recognize science and don't trust it anymore, is the trials that flew to publication in the top journals in the world were so brazenly manipulated and corrupted in the design and conduct in, many of us wrote about it. But they flew to publication, and then every time they were published, you saw these huge PR campaigns in the media. New York Times, Boston Globe, L.A. times, ivermectin doesn't work. Latest high quality, rigorous study says. I'm sitting here in my office watching these lies just ripple throughout the media sphere based on fraudulent studies published in the top journals. And that's that's that has changed. Now that's why I say I'm estranged and I don't know what to trust anymore."

Vaccine Injuries

Carlson asked Kory about his clinical experience with vaccine injuries.

"So how this is how I divide, this is just kind of my perception of vaccine injury is that when I use the term vaccine injury, I'm usually referring to what I call a single organ problem, like pericarditis, myocarditis, stroke, something like that. An autoimmune disease," he replied.

"What I specialize in my practice, is I treat patients with what we call a long Covid long vaxx. It's the same disease, just different triggers, right? One is triggered by Covid, the other one is triggered by the spike protein from the vaccine. Much more common is long vax. The only real differences between the two conditions is that the vaccinated are, on average, sicker and more disabled than the long Covids, with some pretty prominent exceptions to that."

Watch the entire interview above, and you can support Tucker Carlson's endeavors by joining the Tucker Carlson Network here...

Tyler Durden Thu, 03/14/2024 - 16:20

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Delta Air Lines adds a new route travelers have been asking for

The new Delta seasonal flight to the popular destination will run daily on a Boeing 767-300.

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March 14, 2024

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Those who have tried to book a flight from North America to Europe in the summer of 2023 know just how high travel demand to the continent has spiked.

At 2.93 billion, visitors to the countries making up the European Union had finally reached pre-pandemic levels last year while North Americans in particular were booking trips to both large metropolises such as Paris and Milan as well as smaller cities growing increasingly popular among tourists.

Related: A popular European city is introducing the highest 'tourist tax' yet

As a result, U.S.-based airlines have been re-evaluating their networks to add more direct routes to smaller European destinations that most travelers would have previously needed to reach by train or transfer flight with a local airline.

The new flight will take place on a Boeing 767-300.

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Delta Air Lines: ‘Glad to offer customers increased choice…’

By the end of March, Delta Air Lines  (DAL)  will be restarting its route between New York’s JFK and Marco Polo International Airport in Venice as well as launching two new flights to Venice from Atlanta. One will start running this month while the other will be added during peak demand in the summer.

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“As one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Venice is hugely popular with U.S. travelers, and our flights bring valuable tourism and trade opportunities to the city and the region as well as unrivalled opportunities for Venetians looking to explore destinations across the Americas,” Delta’s SVP for Europe Matteo Curcio said in a statement. “We’re glad to offer customers increased choice this summer with flights from New York and additional service from Atlanta.”

The JFK-Venice flight will run on a Boeing 767-300  (BA)  and have 216 seats including higher classes such as Delta One, Delta Premium Select and Delta Comfort Plus.

Delta offers these features on the new flight

Both the New York and Atlanta flights are seasonal routes that will be pulled out of service in October. Both will run daily while the first route will depart New York at 8:55 p.m. and arrive in Venice at 10:15 a.m. local time on the way there, while leaving Venice at 12:15 p.m. to arrive at JFK at 5:05 p.m. on the way back.

According to Delta, this will bring its service to 17 flights from different U.S. cities to Venice during the peak summer period. As with most Delta flights at this point, passengers in all fare classes will have access to free Wi-Fi during the flight.

Those flying in Delta’s highest class or with access through airline status or a credit card will also be able to use the new Delta lounge that is part of the airline’s $12 billion terminal renovation and is slated to open to travelers in the coming months. The space will take up more than 40,000 square feet and have an outdoor terrace.

“Delta One customers can stretch out in a lie-flat seat and enjoy premium amenities like plush bedding made from recycled plastic bottles, more beverage options, and a seasonal chef-curated four-course meal,” Delta said of the new route. “[…] All customers can enjoy a wide selection of in-flight entertainment options and stay connected with Wi-Fi and enjoy free mobile messaging.”

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Shakira’s net worth

After 12 albums, a tax evasion case, and now a towering bronze idol sculpted in her image, how much is Shakira worth more than 4 decades into her care…

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March 14, 2024

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Shakira’s considerable net worth is no surprise, given her massive popularity in Latin America, the U.S., and elsewhere. 

In fact, the belly-dancing contralto queen is the second-wealthiest Latin-America-born pop singer of all time after Gloria Estefan. (Interestingly, Estefan actually helped a young Shakira translate her breakout album “Laundry Service” into English, hugely propelling her stateside success.)

Since releasing her first record at age 13, Shakira has spent decades recording albums in both Spanish and English and performing all over the world. Over the course of her 40+ year career, she helped thrust Latin pop music into the American mainstream, paving the way for the subsequent success of massively popular modern acts like Karol G and Bad Bunny.

In late 2023, a 21-foot-tall bronze sculpture of Shakira, the barefoot belly dancer of Barranquilla, was unveiled at the city's waterfront. The statue was commissioned by the city's former mayor and other leadership.

Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images

In December 2023, a 21-foot-tall beachside bronze statue of the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer was unveiled in her Colombian hometown of Barranquilla, making her a permanent fixture in the city’s skyline and cementing her legacy as one of Latin America’s most influential entertainers.

After 12 albums, a plethora of film and television appearances, a highly publicized tax evasion case, and now a towering bronze idol sculpted in her image, how much is Shakira worth? What does her income look like? And how does she spend her money?

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How much is Shakira worth?

In late 2023, Spanish sports and lifestyle publication Marca reported Shakira’s net worth at $400 million, citing Forbes as the figure’s source (although Forbes’ profile page for Shakira does not list a net worth — and didn’t when that article was published).

Most other sources list the singer’s wealth at an estimated $300 million, and almost all of these point to Celebrity Net Worth — a popular but dubious celebrity wealth estimation site — as the source for the figure.

A $300 million net worth would make Shakira the third-richest Latina pop star after Gloria Estefan ($500 million) and Jennifer Lopez ($400 million), and the second-richest Latin-America-born pop singer after Estefan (JLo is Puerto Rican but was born in New York).

Shakira’s income: How much does she make annually?

Entertainers like Shakira don’t have predictable paychecks like ordinary salaried professionals. Instead, annual take-home earnings vary quite a bit depending on each year’s album sales, royalties, film and television appearances, streaming revenue, and other sources of income. As one might expect, Shakira’s earnings have fluctuated quite a bit over the years.

From June 2018 to June 2019, for instance, Shakira was the 10th highest-earning female musician, grossing $35 million, according to Forbes. This wasn’t her first time gracing the top 10, though — back in 2012, she also landed the #10 spot, bringing in $20 million, according to Billboard.

In 2023, Billboard listed Shakira as the 16th-highest-grossing Latin artist of all time.

Shakira performed alongside producer Bizarrap during the 2023 Latin Grammy Awards Gala in Seville.

Photo By Maria Jose Lopez/Europa Press via Getty Images

How much does Shakira make from her concerts and tours?

A large part of Shakira’s wealth comes from her world tours, during which she sometimes sells out massive stadiums and arenas full of passionate fans eager to see her dance and sing live.

According to a 2020 report by Pollstar, she sold over 2.7 million tickets across 190 shows that grossed over $189 million between 2000 and 2020. This landed her the 19th spot on a list of female musicians ranked by touring revenue during that period. In 2023, Billboard reported a more modest touring revenue figure of $108.1 million across 120 shows.

In 2003, Shakira reportedly generated over $4 million from a single show on Valentine’s Day at Foro Sol in Mexico City. 15 years later, in 2018, Shakira grossed around $76.5 million from her El Dorado World Tour, according to Touring Data.

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How much has Shakira made from her album sales?

According to a 2023 profile in Variety, Shakira has sold over 100 million records throughout her career. “Laundry Service,” the pop icon’s fifth studio album, was her most successful, selling over 13 million copies worldwide, according to TheRichest.

Exactly how much money Shakira has taken home from her album sales is unclear, but in 2008, it was widely reported that she signed a 10-year contract with LiveNation to the tune of between $70 and $100 million to release her subsequent albums and manage her tours.

Shakira and JLo co-headlined the 2020 Super Bowl Halftime Show in Florida.

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

How much did Shakira make from her Super Bowl and World Cup performances?

Shakira co-wrote one of her biggest hits, “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” after FIFA selected her to create the official anthem for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. She performed the song, along with several of her existing fan-favorite tracks, during the event’s opening ceremonies. TheThings reported in 2023 that the song generated $1.4 million in revenue, citing Popnable for the figure.

A decade later, 2020’s Superbowl halftime show featured Shakira and Jennifer Lopez as co-headliners with guest performances by Bad Bunny and J Balvin. The 14-minute performance was widely praised as a high-energy celebration of Latin music and dance, but as is typical for Super Bowl shows, neither Shakira nor JLo was compensated beyond expenses and production costs.

The exposure value that comes with performing in the Super Bowl Halftime Show, though, is significant. It is typically the most-watched television event in the U.S. each year, and in 2020, a 30-second Super Bowl ad spot cost between $5 and $6 million.

How much did Shakira make as a coach on “The Voice?”

Shakira served as a team coach on the popular singing competition program “The Voice” during the show’s fourth and sixth seasons. On the show, celebrity musicians coach up-and-coming amateurs in a team-based competition that eventually results in a single winner. In 2012, The Hollywood Reporter wrote that Shakira’s salary as a coach on “The Voice” was $12 million.

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How does Shakira spend her money?

Shakira doesn’t just make a lot of money — she spends it, too. Like many wealthy entertainers, she’s purchased her share of luxuries, but Barranquilla’s barefoot belly dancer is also a prolific philanthropist, having donated tens of millions to charitable causes throughout her career.

Private island

Back in 2006, she teamed up with Roger Waters of Pink Floyd fame and Spanish singer Alejandro Sanz to purchase Bonds Cay, a 550-acre island in the Bahamas, which was listed for $16 million at the time.

Along with her two partners in the purchase, Shakira planned to develop the island to feature housing, hotels, and an artists’ retreat designed to host a revolving cast of artists-in-residence. This plan didn’t come to fruition, though, and as of this article’s last update, the island was once again for sale on Vladi Private Islands.

Real estate and vehicles

Like most wealthy celebs, Shakira’s portfolio of high-end playthings also features an array of luxury properties and vehicles, including a home in Barcelona, a villa in Cyprus, a Miami mansion, and a rotating cast of Mercedes-Benz vehicles.

Philanthropy and charity

Shakira doesn’t just spend her massive wealth on herself; the “Queen of Latin Music” is also a dedicated philanthropist and regularly donates portions of her earnings to the Fundación Pies Descalzos, or “Barefoot Foundation,” a charity she founded in 1997 to “improve the education and social development of children in Colombia, which has suffered decades of conflict.” The foundation focuses on providing meals for children and building and improving educational infrastructure in Shakira’s hometown of Barranquilla as well as four other Colombian communities.

In addition to her efforts with the Fundación Pies Descalzos, Shakira has made a number of other notable donations over the years. In 2007, she diverted a whopping $40 million of her wealth to help rebuild community infrastructure in Peru and Nicaragua in the wake of a devastating 8.0 magnitude earthquake. Later, during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Shakira donated a large supply of N95 masks for healthcare workers and ventilators for hospital patients to her hometown of Barranquilla.

Back in 2010, the UN honored Shakira with a medal to recognize her dedication to social justice, at which time the Director General of the International Labour Organization described her as a “true ambassador for children and young people.”

On November 20, 2023 (which was supposed to be her first day of trial), Shakira reached a deal with the prosecution that resulted in a three-year suspended sentence and around $8 million in fines.

Photo by Adria Puig/Anadolu via Getty Images

Shakira’s tax fraud scandal: How much did she pay?

In 2018, prosecutors in Spain initiated a tax evasion case against Shakira, alleging she lived primarily in Spain from 2012 to 2014 and therefore failed to pay around $14.4 million in taxes to the Spanish government. Spanish law requires anyone who is “domiciled” (i.e., living primarily) in Spain for more than half of the year to pay income taxes.

During the period in question, Shakira listed the Bahamas as her primary residence but did spend some time in Spain, as she was dating Gerard Piqué, a professional footballer and Spanish citizen. The couple’s first son, Milan, was also born in Barcelona during this period. 

Shakira maintained that she spent far fewer than 183 days per year in Spain during each of the years in question. In an interview with Elle Magazine, the pop star opined that “Spanish tax authorities saw that I was dating a Spanish citizen and started to salivate. It's clear they wanted to go after that money no matter what."

Prosecutors in the case sought a fine of almost $26 million and a possible eight-year prison stint, but in November of 2023, Shakira took a deal to close the case, accepting a fine of around $8 million and a three-year suspended sentence to avoid going to trial. In reference to her decision to take the deal, Shakira stated, "While I was determined to defend my innocence in a trial that my lawyers were confident would have ruled in my favour [had the trial proceeded], I have made the decision to finally resolve this matter with the best interest of my kids at heart who do not want to see their mom sacrifice her personal well-being in this fight."

How much did the Shakira statue in Barranquilla cost?

In late 2023, a 21-foot-tall bronze likeness of Shakira was unveiled on a waterfront promenade in Barranquilla. The city’s then-mayor, Jaime Pumarejo, commissioned Colombian sculptor Yino Márquez to create the statue of the city’s treasured pop icon, along with a sculpture of the city’s coat of arms.

According to the New York Times, the two sculptures cost the city the equivalent of around $180,000. A plaque at the statue’s base reads, “A heart that composes, hips that don’t lie, an unmatched talent, a voice that moves the masses and bare feet that march for the good of children and humanity.” 

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