Getting the wording slightly wrong? The US Surgeon General was quite clear:

> "Seriously people- STOP BUYING MASKS! They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus"

I don't think typing "NOT" is a slight error in wording. The message was deliberate, and it wasn't just the US Surgeon General either. All the center/center-left media, which is what I read, was echoing the same message. Fox News and Trump telling lies is par for the course, but I don't consider that a license for everybody else to start telling lies as well.