Anthony Fauci on a medical career navigating pandemics and presidents

The Life Scientific

BBC

Technology, Personal Journals, Society & Culture, Science

4.6 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 27 May 2025

⏱️ 46 minutes

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Summary

Welcome to a world where medicine meets politics: a space that brings together scientific research, government wrangling, public push-back and healthcare conspiracies…

Dr Anthony Fauci was the Director of America’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for nearly four decades, during which time he not only helped study, treat and prevent viruses such as HIV/AIDS and Covid-19; he also advised seven US Presidents, from Ronald Regan through to Joe Biden.

Along the way, Tony Fauci's picked up a public profile and taken a fair amount of flack; not least because of his complicated relationship with President Donald Trump. But he's also made great strides in medical research and policy, from working with activists who initially challenged him on the government response to HIV/AIDS - to spearheading the USA's PEPFAR project to share vital medication with developing nations.

In a candid conversation with Professor Jim Al-Khalili, Tony discusses his childhood in Brooklyn, the dark early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, lessons from the Covid-19, his hopes and fears for the future of American health policy – and his reaction to that pre-emptive pardon from President Biden.

Presented by Jim Al-Khalili Produced for BBC Studios by Lucy Taylor

Transcript

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0:57.1	Today we're entering a world where medicine meets politics, a space that brings together
1:02.4	scientific research, government wrangling, public pushbacks and healthcare conspiracies.
1:07.4	My guest has not only helped prevent, diagnose and treat some of the world's
1:11.8	most dangerous infectious diseases, he's also advised seven US presidents from Ronald Reagan
1:17.4	through to Joe Biden. Dr Anthony Fauci was the director of America's National Institute of
1:23.0	Allergy and Infectious Diseases for four decades, during which time he was instrumental in developing
1:28.2	life-saving treatments for HIV patients and leading the United States through the COVID-19 pandemic.
1:34.6	Along the way, he's picked up something of a public profile and taken his fair share of flack,
1:39.6	not least because of a complicated relationship with President Donald Trump.
1:43.7	But Anthony maintains his greatest achievements are more about people than medicine.
1:48.4	From winning over activists who initially challenged him on the government response to the HIV-AIDS epidemic
	...

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