Marcus Lamb, head of televangelist network that spreads COVID misinformation, dies of COVID-19

Marcus Lamb, the founder and president of the controversial, conservative outlet Daystar Television Network, has died after a battle with COVID-19, his network and family announced on Tuesday. He was 64.

"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 tweeted on Tuesday.  "The family asks that their privacy be respected as they grieve this difficult loss." 

Lamb's son Jonathan and his wife Joni confirmed the news in a Daystar broadcast on Tuesday, saying that he had died at around 4 a.m.

"He was diagnosed with COVID and then got the COVID pneumonia. But he had pre-existing conditions," Joni said. "He had diabetes, but he kept it in check." 

She said that they attempted numerous "protocols," including unproven ones that the organization has touted on their broadcasts, but that they did not work. His heart eventually gave out, she added.

"It caused his blood sugar to spike and a decrease in his oxygen," she said. "He 100% believed in everything that we've talked about here on Daystar... we still stand by that, obviously."

"His life was truly well-lived and there's no doubt that he heard 'well done my good and faithful servant' when he entered heaven's gates," Jonathan Lamb tweeted, along with photos of him and his father. "I'm going to really miss Dad. We golfed together every week for the past 15 years. He impacted me by demonstrating a righteous way to live and helped me become the man I am today."

Last week, with his dad in the hospital, Lamb's son Jonathan discussed his father's COVID-19 battle. During the show, Joni Lamb called in from the hospital and said it was just "one foot in front of the other." 

"You take it day by day. Your dad is resting right now. He's been talking and he ate a big bowl of oatmeal this morning and now he's resting again. You know with this thing it's kind of like riding a rollercoaster honestly."

The Lambs and Daystar have made controversial statements regarding COVID-19 throughout the pandemic. On the November 23 episode of their Ministry Now program, Jonathan Lamb called his father's illness a "spiritual attack from the enemy." 

"As much as my parents have gone on here to kind of inform everyone about everything going on in the pandemic and some of the ways to treat COVID, there's no doubt that the enemy is not happy about that and he's doing everything he can to take down my dad," he said. 

Daystar's website offers a large amount of misinformation on COVID-19, calling the vaccines a "hidden crisis" and hinting at a "dangerous truth" about their efficacy and purpose. The network has hosted a series of videos and podcasts, including by Joni, speaking out against flu vaccines, HPV vaccines and others, and featured interviews with anti-vaccine advocates including Robert Kennedy Jr. and Simone Gold, who's a member of the controversial group America's Frontline Doctors.

The Lambs have also touted the use of unapproved treatments for COVID-19, including ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Institutes of Health have repeatedly warned against using these medications to treat COVID-19.

In:
• COVID-19