What happens when you bring a group of MAHA advocates together with journalists and public health communicators and ask: When it comes to the media, who do you trust for your information and why? What about doctors? What about Sec. Kennedy? This week, we found out.

The result is an intense, surprising, sometimes funny, often confounding conversation about trust, Big Pharma, censorship, facts, “misinformation” (one voice says, stop using that word, another asks, well, then what do we call it?), bias, doctors, plumbers, and what truth even means anymore.

In this special episode, we dig into how we might be able to rebuild trust when so many of us only listen to our own carefully curated echo chamber.

Joining us was a group of MAHA supporters: Elizabeth Frost (MAHA Ohio) Mark Harris (MAHA Ohio), Nancy Fuller (MAHA Ohio), Jacqueline Capriotti (Health Revolution USA, director of outreach during Kennedy campaign), and Aaron Everitt (Besides the Revolution Substack, contributor to House InHabit).  

From the science communication side: Jessica Grose (opinion writer, New York Times), Kristen Panthagani (You Can Know Things), Dr. Mati Davis (former health director, St Louis), Dr. Craig Spencer (Brown Univ, Doctors without Borders, columnist), Chelsea Cipriano (former deputy PIO for Dept of Health in NYC)

We launched a substack!! Want more reflections from the WSITY team on our conversations with public health and MAHA? Guest essays from diverse perspectives? Videos where we discuss what we thought after a particular podcast episode? Sign up for free or premium paid content now!
https://substack.com/@whyshoulditrustyou

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On today’s episode, we’re joined by Dr. Francis Collins, the former head of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Collins has spent his career pushing the frontiers of science — from discovering genes linked to deadly diseases to leading the historic Human Genome Project. And during COVID, he helped steer the government’s public health response, including the rapid development of the COVID vaccine — work that still puts him in the hot seat with communities who feel science betrayed their trust.

Now, as the Trump administration and the Make America Healthy Again movement tackle America’s chronic health crisis with a radically different approach, what does he make of what he’s seeing, from the sweeping shift in priorities to widespread cuts in research funding? Does he see common ground with the MAHA movement’s goals? And, after a lifetime devoted to advancing science and health, what does he believe is the best way to rebuild trust and make America healthier?

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Dr. Maggie Bartlett

Dr.Mark Abdelmalek

Guest:

Dr. Francis Collins, former director of the National Institutes of Health, author The Road to Wisdom

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When COVID hit, public health leaders often said, “There was no playbook.” But was that really true?

Decades earlier, during the AIDS crisis, America’s public health system went through a trial by fire—learning hard lessons about how to communicate amid uncertainty, adapt to evolving science, and work with communities instead of against them.

Flash forward to COVID, and many Americans say they lost trust after experiencing what they saw as a top-down, dismissive approach from public health leaders. They say their questions and concerns about mitigation efforts and science were often met with rigid messaging, outright dismissal, and even censorship.

In today’s episode, we sit down with Dr. Reed Tuckson, a public health leader and former Commissioner of Public Health for Washington, D.C., during the height of the AIDS epidemic. He reflects on what that era taught him—and what it might still teach us about rebuilding trust today.

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek (off this week)

Guest:

Dr. Reed Tuckson, former Commissioner of Public Health in Washington DC; founder, Coalition for Trust in Health and Science

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Why is a little-known CDC advisory committee meeting today making big headlines?

Because Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. just fired every single member—replacing them with his own hand-picked team.

The committee in question is ACIP, a group of independent experts that guides how vaccines are used by hundreds of millions of Americans. Kennedy called the shake-up a “clean sweep,” claiming the previous committee's work was just a rubber stamp for Big Pharma and couldn’t be trusted.

Many in the medical and scientific community warn that this move could dismantle the nation’s vaccine system, erode public trust, and drive up costs.

What should we trust? And can we trust that the health of Americans is not getting caught in the crossfire? 

Today, we speak with two of the fired ACIP members to hear their direct response to the accusations. Then, Dr. Michael Mina—physician, scientist, and critic of the firings—joins us to unpack the broader context of these sweeping changes to America’s vaccine policy, what concerns are real, and what might be overblown.

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guests:

Charlotte Moser, ex-ACIP, co-director, Vaccine Education Center

Dr Jamie Loehr, ex-ACIP, family physician

Dr Michael Mina; physician, immunologist; epidemiologist

Sources:
Michael Mina:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/11/opinion/rfk-vaccine-policy-changes.html

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In today’s episode, what do a group of MAHA, MAGA, and independent moms and dads of children with disabilities think about the changes Republicans in Congress are hashing out right now for Medicaid, as they push to pass President Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill”?

If a healthier America is your top priority, this is a red-alert moment. 

A nonpartisan Congressional estimate finds that the House-passed Medicaid changes would lead to millions of Americans losing health insurance. And just this week, the Republican-controlled Senate released its own draft, proposing even bigger changes that would result in deeper cuts.

With 71 million enrollees, Medicaid is the largest health insurance program in the country, a vital lifeline for both Red and Blue America. 

So what do these parents — who either depend on Medicaid now or expect to in the future — want Republican lawmakers and MAHA leaders to know about the realities of their daily lives? Is this what they voted for? And if not, what will they do about it?

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett (off this week)

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guests:

Jacqueline Capriotti, health coalition leader, substack author Health Revolution USA, mother of two kids with CF, MAHA advocate

James Cummings, digital engagement strategist, father to children with rare diseases

Sue Teitelbaum, mother of daughter with special needs

Nancy Fuller, MAHA Ohio grassroots, mother to son living with autism

Elizabeth Frost, MAHA grassroots leader Ohio

Dr. Megan Ranney, dean of Yale School of Public Health; ER physician

Dr. Craig Spencer, associate professor Brown University, ER physician, Doctors Without Borders

Dr. Reed Tuckson, founder of Coalition to Build Trust in Health and Science, physician. 

Resources:

https://5calls.org/

https://clairesplacefoundation.org/

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/odep/initiatives/saw-rtw/retain/phase-one

From Jacqueline Capriotti:

https://healthrevolutionusa.substack.com/p/when-trust-the-science-isnt-enough?r=5aqw38&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true

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It’s the four letters that changed our lives: M-R-N-A.
Hailed as a modern medical miracle that delivered the life-saving COVID vaccine in record time, mRNA now fuels one of the most polarizing debates in public health. Critics see it as a dangerous experiment that has turned deadly, a symbol of Big Pharma overreach, and a culture of corporate capture within our regulatory agencies that places profits over health and safety. Supporters call it our best hope against new viruses and possibly for the deadliest diseases we face—from cancer to diabetes, even Alzheimer’s.

Today, we unpack a growing backlash that is driving down childhood vaccination rates, leading to cuts in mRNA research, and prompting different states to pass laws restricting its use. The mistrust was on display this week as RFK Jr. fired a key committee of experts that evaluates vaccines.

Our guest today is Dr. Drew Weissman, who, along with Dr Katalin Kariko, won the Nobel Prize for revolutionizing mRNA technology. We’ll dive into why their breakthrough has become a lightning rod—and whether the controversy could derail our best shot at curing tomorrow’s worst diseases.

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On today's special episode, a raw and unflinching conversation between MAHA advocates from Georgia and a group of veterans from public health. 

The discussion dives straight into one of the biggest drivers of mistrust in public health today: the COVID vaccine. Is it a life-saving marvel of modern science or a dangerous technology imposed on the public with little regard for liberty and safety? 

The groups share profound concerns about where we’ve been and where we’re headed when it comes to Americans' trust in public health, medicine, and science. Many of them differ fundamentally on the promise of the vaccine versus what it delivered, on how the healthcare system delivered and failed at the same time, and on how that trust lost can be earned back.

Yet the discussion is grounded in respect, empathy, and a shared goal of healthier communities, which might just be the key to pulling us out of our spiral of mistrust. 

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Guests:

Joining the discussion from MAHA Georgia are Joey Fargar, Aaron Rossi, Christy Kennedy, Melinda Hicks, and from Ohio, Elizabeth Frost.

From public health, Paul Offit, Reed Tuckson, Anne Zink, and Ashwin Vasan. 

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We’ve heard it—and you’ve probably heard it too: critics of public health say the way health advice is delivered is a big part of why trust is plummeting. The critique goes like this: experts and institutions often take complicated, nuanced data and present it as all-knowing, black-and-white rules—“Vaccines are safe,” “Raw milk is bad,” “Fluoride in drinking water is essential.”

But too often, the public hears little explanation, context, or nuance—rarely an acknowledgment of what isn’t known, in the rush to declare what is. And when every message feels equally urgent, it’s hard to know what really matters most.

Is presenting complicated data with simple, unflinching certainty the best way to help people make healthy choices? In a busy world, does simplifying at the expense of nuance lead to better health—or to eroded trust? And how is public health’s mandate—to speak to the whole community, including large percentages of people who lack regular access to health professionals—different from the personalized advice of a one-on-one doctor’s visit?

In 2025, with endless information and competing voices, how must public health communication evolve to meet the times?

Today on Why Should I Trust You?, we’re joined by Emily Oster—economist, professor, health-data expert, best-selling parenting author, and founder of ParentData.org. We talk health, data, and how to communicate honestly about risk and benefit. Could a new approach to health guidance be the key to rebuilding trust? 

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guest:

Emily Oster, author, economist, founder ParentData (www.parentdata.org)

Books: Expecting Better; The Family Firm; Crib Sheet

Resources:

Emily Oster: There's a Better Way to Talk About Fluoride, Vaccines and Raw Milk

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/13/opinion/vaccines-fluoride-raw-milk.html

Emily Oster: Let's Declare a Pandemic Amnesty

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/10/covid-response-forgiveness/671879/

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Few topics crystallize our current breakdown in trust more than autism. And with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s renewed push to find its cause, autism isn’t just back in the national spotlight—it’s fueling a debate that’s dividing communities.

Supporters see Kennedy as a force disrupting the status quo, channeling money and fresh energy into the search for answers. Critics see a stunt that prioritizes personal belief over established science and may ultimately be about eroding trust in vaccines.

Either way, it exposes just how deep our mistrust runs: vaccine skeptics dismissing science based on who delivers it, while some in the scientific establishment hesitate to revisit old debates because of who’s asking the questions.

Caught in the middle? Millions of families living with autism.

Today, a candid conversation with Nancy Fuller, a MAHA mom navigating her son’s diagnosis—and insights from Alison Singer, co-founder of the Autism Science Foundation and mother of daughter with autism, on where the research stands today and where we go from here.

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guests:

Nancy Fuller, Make America Healthy Again (Ohio), mother of a son with autism

Alison Singer, Co-Founder/President, Autism Science Foundation, mother of a daughter with autism

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Today, we’re joined by CNN's Jake Tapper, who along with Axios' Alex Thompson, are authors of the new book Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again. Their reporting is sending shockwaves throughout Washington and beyond--its release landing the same week as the news of the former president’s aggressive cancer diagnosis. The result is a seismic reckoning with Biden’s decision to seek re-election despite visible signs of age-related decline. And Tapper and Thompson have been blasted over whether they did everything they could to hold the president and his team accountable. 

We ask: How much did the media know—and not report, including Tapper himself? Why did Biden, his top advisors, and Democratic leaders ignore the overwhelming concerns from the public about Biden’s frailty? And how did that denial deepen America’s distrust in its leaders, its institutions, and the press?

Yes, this is a story about health, aging, and what we expect from our leaders—but at its core, it’s about truth and trust. It is the kind of hard truth about aging and vulnerability that we -- and our systems --  often resist confronting 

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guest:

Jake Tapper, CNN, co-author, Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again.

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