Google Doodle promotes COVID-19 prevention w/ masks and vaccinations [Updated]

Kyle Bradshaw | Aug 4 2021 - 8:18 am PT

Google has launched a fantastic animated homepage Doodle featuring the letters of “Google” practicing COVID-19 prevention methods, including wearing masks, staying socially distant, and getting vaccinated.

Update 8/4/2020: After originally going live a week early, then being taken down, Google has now formally relaunched its “Wear a Mask. Save Lives.” Doodle.

Update 4/5/2021: Eight months after its initial debut on the Google homepage, the “Wear a Mask” doodle has been updated and will be displayed for the entirety of April 6, 2021. The updated Doodle prominently features one of the more recent COVID-19 prevention tips, which is to wear a cloth mask over a disposable mask. According to the CDC, this should provide a better fit and as well as better protection for you and those around you.

Update 8/4/2021: To help encourage more people to get vaccinated, Google has launched another animated Doodle keeping in theme with past designs. In it, we see the first four letters of Google, each celebrating the bandage on their arm. The letter “l” can then be seen receiving a COVID-19 vaccine — as illustrated by a bandage — from the letter “e” who is dressed as a medical professional.

The Doodle is visible in various parts of the world, including North America, much of South America, parts of Europe, and Russia. Clicking the Doodle brings you to a tool that helps you locate your nearest COVID-19 vaccination location and, if the information is known to Google Maps, whether or not they have appointments available.

Original 7/28/2020: As the COVID-19 pandemic has gone on far longer than anyone would have liked, it continues to be critically important to do everything we can to prevent the spread, if not for our own sake, than for the sake of others.

Google is already doing what they can to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among their own employees by maintaining their work from home protocols until next summer. Now the company is taking it a step further by replacing its homepage logo nearly worldwide with an animated Google Doodle encouraging people to “Wear a Mask. Save Lives.“

The cutesy animation shows the letters of the “Google” logo sprouting legs, donning masks with a flourish, and spreading to a safe social distance. Check it out!

Just like the letters, please wear a mask when going out of your home, keep six feet away from others whenever possible, and wash your hands frequently.

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, everyone should:
• Clean your hands often, either with soap and water for 20 seconds or a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Put distance between yourself and other people (at least 6 feet).
• Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces daily.
• CDC recommends that people wear cloth face coverings in public settings and when around people outside of their household, especially when other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.
• Cloth face coverings may help prevent people who have COVID-19 from spreading the virus to others.

To learn more about what you can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19, along with the latest information from experts, be sure to check out Google’s COVID-19 resource hub.

Of course, this is not the first time that Google has used its homepage to promote COVID-19 prevention methods. Back in March, Google gave us all a free lesson in how to effectively wash our hands while simultaneously honoring Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis, a pioneer in disease control.