Kylie Jenner Can Urge Gen Z to Take Coronavirus Seriously, Surgeon General Says

Elizabeth Wagmeister
Updated ·3 min read

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Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams is urging Kylie Jenner to use her clout to help emphasize the seriousness of coronavirus to young people.

“We need to get our social media influencers out there in helping folks understand that this is serious. This is absolutely serious. People are dying,” Adams said Thursday on “Good Morning America.”

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Adams told “GMA” host Michael Strahan that influencers can help social media savvy generations to understand the heightened risk for young people. Strahan noted that some are still out enjoying spring break, rather than isolating themselves in their home.

“I have a 15 and a 14-year-old, and the more I tell them not to do something, the more they want to do it,” Adams said. “What I really think we need to do…is get our influencers out. We need to get Kylie Jenner.”

The surgeon general added, “Young people may be at higher risk than we previously thought,” pointing to Italy as an example.

Jenner, with almost 200 million followers across her social media platforms, is the one of the most influential members of the Kardashian-Jenner clan. The 22-year-old cosmetics billionaire could have real power when it comes to getting the word out. Over the past week, Jenner has been doing her part to post about the pandemic.

“I hope everyone is feeling well! It’s so important right now to self quarantine to ensure we aren’t endangering ourselves or anyone who can’t handle this virus,” Jenner wrote on Twitter earlier this week.

Another post on her Instagram story read, “Another daily reminder to take this social distancing serious and self quarantine.” She also posted a photo of doctors holding signs that say, “We stay here for you. Please stay home for us.”

Jenner said she has been self-quarantining for eight days. Her sister, Kim Kardashian West, who has 163 million Instagram followers, posted a photo with Khloe Kardashian, telling her followers that she hasn’t even seen her sisters because the family is taking their self-isolation seriously.

“[I] miss my sisters, but we are all social distancing and staying away from each other, all separately quarantined,” Kardashian West wrote. “It’s hard, but we have to do this for our safety and for everyone else’s. Please do not ignore the severity of the warnings to stay inside to stop the spread of the virus.”

When urging influencers like Jenner to help spread the word on “GMA,” Adams also mentioned basketball stars Kevin Durant and Donovan Mitchell, who both tested positive for COVID-19. Durant, who is one of four Brooklyn Nets players to test positive for coronavirus, has nearly 12 million Instagram followers.

Mitchell has been using his influential social media platform to encourage his followers to listen to the advice of health officials.

“I’m seeing people still out and going to bars clubs restaurants beaches etc,” he tweeted earlier this week. “As a country let’s help others and stay inside.” The Utah Jazz player has posted videos, while he’s been in isolation, and tweeted that his followers should be practicing social distancing.

“We are all learning more about the seriousness of this situation and hopefully people can continue to educate themselves and realize that they need to behave responsibly both for their own health and for the well being of those around them,” he wrote on Instagram.

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