Improving the Accuracy of COVID-19 Media Coverage

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Center for Health Research hosted 9 teleconferences featuring COVID-19 researchers as speakers and discussants on different aspects of COVID-19 of importance to journalists. The main goal of this project was to help journalists understand the nuances of often conflicting information about COVID-19 research, to help ensure accurate media coverage.

This series of free monthly 1-hour live online press teleconferences was part of a COVID-19 Enhancement to NCHR’s “Spreading the Word” Project. The projects were partially funded through a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute® (PCORI®) Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award (8598-NCHR). The COVID-19 teleconference series ran from 2020-2021 and we covered the following topics:

  1. On July 28, 2020 we hosted a teleconference on “What is known and not known about the accuracy of various coronavirus tests being used in the U.S.” The featured speaker was Dr. Steven Woloshin from Dartmouth. The discussants included Dr. Robert Kaplan (expert from UCLA), Katherine Leon (patient) and Alicia Mundy (journalist).  You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  2. On September 3, 2020, we hosted a teleconference on “Children and Covid-19 Transmission: What is Known and What Isn’t Known.” The featured speaker was Dr. Kristin Moffitt from Harvard, discussants included Dr. Vishakha Sabharwal (expert from Boston Medical Center), Rebecca Freeman (patient) and Roni Caryn Rabin (New York Timesjournalist). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  3. On September 25, 2020, we hosted a teleconference on “Immunity and Covid-19: What’s Known and Not Known.” The featured speaker was Dr. Matthew Memoli from NIAID, discussants included Dr. Susan Wood (expert from George Washington University), Crispin Goytia (patient and PCORI Ambassador), and Rita Rubin (journalist who writes for JAMA). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  4. On October 14, 2020, we hosted a teleconference on “The Benefits and Risks of Covid-19 Vaccines”. The featured speaker was Dr. Peter Doshi (BMJEditor), discussants included Dr. Peter Lurie (expert from the Center for Science in the Public Interest who previously worked at FDA), Libby Hoy (patient and PCORI Ambassador) and Alicia Mundy (journalist). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  5. On December 9, 2020 we hosted a teleconference on “Understanding the Pfizer Data and the Vaccine EUA Process”. Discussants included Dr. Peter Doshi (BMJ Editor), Dr. Robert Kaplan (expert from UCLA) and Dr. Susan Wood (expert from George Washington University). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  6. On February 17, 2021 we hosted a teleconference on “The Scientific Evidence Regarding Reopening K-12 Schools during the COVID-19 Pandemic”. The featured speaker was Dr. Vinay Prasad from University of California at San Francisco, discussants included Dr. Nathaniel Beers (expert from National Children’s Hospital and the American Academy of Pediatrics) and Dr. Ryan Padrez (school administrator who is also on the faculty at Stanford). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  7. On March 5, 2021 we hosted a teleconference on “COVID-19 Variants and Their Implications for Vaccines, Masks, and The Pandemic”. The featured speaker was Dr. Paul Auwaerter from Johns Hopkins and the discussant was Dr. Stuart Ray (expert from Johns Hopkins). Our originally planned additional discussants, patient partner Katherine Leon and New York Times journalist Roni Caryn Rabin were unable to join. You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  8. On March 30, 2021, we hosted a teleconference on “COVID-19: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Need to Know to Beat the Pandemic.” Discussants included Dr. Matthew Memoli from NIAID, Dr. Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez (Long COVID expert from University of Texas), and Dr. Caleb Alexander (public health expert from Johns Hopkins). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.
  9. On June 11, 2021 we hosted a teleconference on “COVID-19 medical products have been reviewed through Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) instead of FDA Approval. What does that mean for you and for the U.S.?” Discussants included Dr. Diana Zuckerman (NCHR), Dr. Susan Wood (George Washington University), Roni Caryn Rabin (New York Times) and Katherine Leon (patient partner). You can watch a recording of this teleconference here.

If you have any questions, please contact Nina Zeldes at nz@center4research.org.