Jillian Michaels on Tuesday blasted a New York Times opinion video that grouped her with other supporters of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, calling the piece a "blatant hit piece" that mischaracterized her views and portrayed her as a dangerous conspiracy theorist.
The Times video essay, published Tuesday by New York Times Opinion, compiled clips of government officials, media figures and wellness influencers to argue that some pro-MAHA figures are persuading followers to distrust conventional medicine. The video quoted Times journalist Alexander Stockton saying the influencers were "radicalizing" their audiences and suggested wellness content was being used as a "Trojan horse for conspiracy theories." The essay showed clips of Michaels saying, "I don’t even take an Advil," and, later, "I don't think I'll take an mRNA vaccine ever," which Stockton used to illustrate the video's thesis.
Michaels, a long-time fitness and health commentator who has expressed support for MAHA policies, took to X to defend herself and question the Times' approach two weeks after she said the same newsroom had given her a "fair shake" in a profile published Aug. 25. In that profile by Molly Langmuir, the Times noted that Michaels is concerned some vaccines "haven’t been studied vigorously enough" but does not consider herself broadly anti-vaccine, that she opposes medicalizing gender transitions for children, and that she has "faith that both Kennedy and Trump are, for the most part, well-intentioned."
Michaels reiterated in her post that she has long advised weighing risks and benefits with a physician rather than embracing or rejecting treatments blindly. "For 30 years I’ve said the same thing: every medication and vaccine carries risks and rewards — the smart approach is weighing the cost-benefit with your doctor, not blind acceptance or blind rejection," she wrote. She also questioned why the Times would publish the video given the recent profile, asking, "So why the sudden smear campaign? Desperate to cover what?"
A New York Times spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the video is "a thorough look at the MAHA movement featuring dozens of clips of government officials, media figures and wellness influencers, including Ms. Michaels, using their own words for any viewer to plainly see." The spokesperson said the piece was built from reporting and fact-checking intended to help audiences "better understand the world around them."
The MAHA movement, identified with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is cited in coverage as leading the effort, has drawn attention from both supporters and critics. The Times video positioned influencers alongside public figures to show how messaging from different corners can converge to raise skepticism about the health care system. The debate highlights tensions between wellness influencers who question aspects of mainstream medicine and journalists who say such skepticism can feed into wider public distrust.
Michaels has defended her positions in public statements and in interviews, including her endorsement of measures she says would reduce exposure to toxic ingredients in food and expand focus on prevention in treating chronic disease. She has also publicly voiced support for some of the policy aims associated with MAHA. The Aug. 25 profile and Tuesday's video together illustrate the divergent ways mainstream outlets are covering personalities who complicate traditional health narratives.
Independent outlets and journalists continue to cover the MAHA movement and its backers, including debates over vaccine safety, health policy and the role of influencers in shaping public opinion. Michaels said she welcomed fair reporting but objected to what she described as a sudden shift in tone by a newsroom that had recently run a more sympathetic profile of her views.