A Family Divided Over the COVID-19 Vaccine

The New Yorker Radio Hour

WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

Politics, Arts, News, Wnyc, Books, David, Storytelling, Society & Culture, Yorker, New, Remnick

4.2 • 6.2K Ratings

🗓️ 25 June 2021

⏱️ 20 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Across the country, COVID-19 vaccines are becoming available for teen-agers. But most states still require parental consent for minors to receive the shot. David Remnick spoke with a teen-ager who asked that we call him Aaron Williams. He is desperate to be vaccinated, but his parents are skeptical. “We waited three months, and, during the span of that time, they started going through all sorts of conspiracy rabbit holes,” reading fabrications about mRNA vaccines’ changing the recipient’s genetic code, he said. “They pushed it back to six months, to a year, to two years, until they just said, ‘You’re never getting the vaccine.’ ” Misinformation continues to pose a public-health risk around the world, but for this family the stakes are also personal. “I’m missing out on friends’ gatherings and other things at school,” Williams told Remnick. “But they’re saying that I’m hurting them because I’m causing stress.” Plus, Naomi Fry on a turning point for reality TV. As “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” comes to a close after almost a decade and a half, Fry talks with David Remnick about “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,” “90 Day Fiancé,” and other shows that look at real social issues in unique, dramatic ways.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This is the New Yorker Radio Hour, a co-production of WNYC Studios and The New Yorker.
0:09.7	Welcome to The New Yorker Radio Hour. I'm David Remnick. Just over half of us, 53% of Americans are now vaccinated, or at least partly vaccinated against COVID, which is fine, way better than we were,
0:22.5	but it's still a very long way from what we need for herd immunity.
0:26.9	And until we get there, the coronavirus can keep recirculating among us almost endlessly.
0:33.6	The CDC now recommends vaccination for everyone over the age of 12.
0:38.5	Young people rarely get severely ill from the virus, but of course they can transmit it along to others.
0:44.7	I recently talked about getting the vaccine with a teenager who, for reasons that will become
0:48.9	quite clear, didn't want his parents to find out that I was interviewing him.
0:54.1	Can you describe to me where you are right now?
0:56.2	What's your room look like?
0:58.5	You see a piano and a guitar, and then there's my bed.
1:02.4	Here's the rest of my desk.
1:03.6	It's like an L-shaped, and then two speakers, PC.
1:08.6	It's like, it's cozy.
1:13.7	Now, I know you want to stay anonymous, so what should I be calling you?
1:21.9	Um, I guess Aaron Williams. Aaron Williams, okay. I went on a random name generator,
1:27.2	clicked the button a bunch of times and that's what I got. Now, you're on summer break? Yes. That's why my parents are at home and I can do
1:29.5	this interview. I see. And so, Aaron, you weren't sure at first if you wanted to talk to us about
1:35.3	this. What were you worried about? I would say that my parents are good people, but I've really
1:43.4	kind of grown tired of all the fighting and issues that we've had over simple things such as a vaccine.
1:52.1	Now, you're 16, right, Aaron?
1:54.4	Yes.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from WNYC Studios and The New Yorker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of WNYC Studios and The New Yorker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.