COVID Lessons Learned with Donald G McNeil Jr.

On with Kara Swisher

New York Magazine

News Commentary, News, Society & Culture

4.2 • 2.2K Ratings

🗓️ 8 January 2024

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Four years after the start of the global pandemic, COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency, but in the U.S., every week, the virus is still hospitalizing 15,000 people and killing a thousand. Today, we look back – and ahead – with former New York Times global health reporter Donald G. McNeil Jr., author of the new book The Wisdom of Plagues: Lessons from 25 years of Covering Pandemics. He and Kara discuss the conflicting findings surrounding the virus origin, including the lab leak theory currently being investigated by Congress, and grapple with whether we need a Pentagon for Disease in the future (addressing a question posed by former White House Chief of Staff and Obama Ebola Czar Ron Klain). Plus – McNeil speaks out about his own controversy: his 2021 departure from The New York Times. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	There's a big difference between talking and reporting, especially right now with a fire hose worth of news coming your way.
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0:30.0	Support for Today's show comes from Deloyne.
0:34.0	Here's the story of innovation told in five words.
0:38.0	Try, explore, connect, pivot, transform.
0:43.2	See what happened there?
0:44.4	As soon as Connect entered the story,
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1:04.0	slash US slash engineering advantage. From New York Magazine and the Vox Media Podcast Network, this is on with Kara Swisher and I'm
1:27.5	Kara Swisher. Today our guest is former New York Times science writer Donald G. McNeil Jr. He has a new book coming out
1:35.1	The Wisdom of Plagues, Lessons from 25 years of Covering Pandemics, which is due out
1:40.3	January 9th. The book is time to mark four years since McNeil's first article in The Times
1:45.4	about the COVID-19 outbreak, which soon turned into a devastating worldwide pandemic.
	...

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