In the past week, we've seen the CDC pause distribution of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and new cases among the vaccinated in Michigan — coming together to paint a somewhat bleak picture of the state-of-our-vaccines. Or so it might seem. In the latest edition of our Breaking News Consumer’s Handbooks, we examine the fuzzy math and misleading language that can cloud media coverage of vaccines. Brooke speaks with Nsikan Akpan, health and science editor for the WNYC Newsroom, and Kai Kupferschmidt, a science journalist based in Berlin who writes for Science Magazine.
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1. Just because the story is everywhere, doesn’t mean the risks are.
2. In headlines about side effects, you see the alarming numerator, but not the contextualizing denominator. Do the math.
3. Learn the vaccine lexicon. “Pause” and “breakthrough infection” may not mean what you think they mean.
4. EVERY virus mutates, not necessarily for the worse. We vaccinate annually against descendants of the horrific 1918 flu.
5. Civilization’s greatest invention - yes! - is the vaccine. But the concept is abstractly terrifying. Identify your biases and filters.
6. ALSO -- Scrutinize how you assess risk. When facing patchwork or evolving vaccine news, it’s crucial to know thyself.
7. Analogies (“I’m more likely to be hit by lightning”) dramatically understate the complexity of the data.
8. Effectiveness in a lab and in the real world are two different numbers. Those numbers come later. They may actually be better.
9. Studies are not created equal! The latest may not be the best. Find a voice to help you through the weeds, or walk away.
10. Science is a process that never ends. As data flow in, advice will change. Sanitizer, anyone? One mask or two? Be flexible.
This is a segment from our April 16, 2021 program, You Better Work!
