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Co-founder of Christian TV network that railed against vaccines dies of Covid-19

Marcus Lamb, 64, whose Daystar network reaches an estimated 2bn viewers worldwide, had pushed alternative therapies


Related: Rightwing radio host and anti-vaxxer dies of Covid

Marcus Lamb, the co-founder of the leading Christian TV network Daystar who railed against Covid-19 vaccines, has died of Covid-19. He was 64 years old.

Lamb, who was the chief executive of the conservative network that reaches an estimated 2 billion viewers worldwide, died on Tuesday, weeks after contracting the coronavirus.

“It’s with a heavy heart we announce that Marcus Lamb, president and founder of Daystar Television Network, went home to be with the Lord this morning,” the network announced in a tweet on Tuesday. “The family asks that their privacy be respected as they grieve this difficult loss. Please continue to lift them up in prayer.”

Related: Colorado radio host who urged boycott of vaccines dies of Covid-19

Under his leadership, Daystar aired repeated baseless anti-vaccine conspiracy theories and claims that vaccines were being used to take freedoms away from Christians. In July 2020, the network spent an hour of air time complaining about “censorship” around the pandemic and also gave an hour’s slot to Robert F Kennedy Jr, who has spread misinformation about the Covid vaccine.

Covid vaccines have been repeatedly found to be safe and effective at preventing severe illness from the virus. Evangelical Christians have been getting the vaccines at lower rates than the general US population, however, and several prominent Christian broadcasters have died of the virus in recent months.

Last month Lamb’s son Jonathan said that his father’s illness was due to sinister outside forces.

Related: Tennessee radio host who criticised vaccine efforts dies of Covid-19

“There’s no doubt in my mind that this is a spiritual attack from the enemy,” he said, adding that Lamb has pushed alternative therapies and that “there’s no doubt that the enemy is not happy about that. And he’s doing everything he can to take down my Dad.”

Daystar was founded in 1998 and has more than 100 TV stations around the world. Lamb’s wife Joni, appearing on the daily Ministry Show on Tuesday, said that he had “got the Covid pneumonia”.

“He 100% believed in everything we talk about here on Daystar, things that help so many people around the world with early protocol treatments for Covid,” she said. “We still stand by those obviously.”