Apple News In Conversation What happens when MAHA and public-health experts talk to one another?
Oct 9, 2025
Brinda Adhikari, a journalist focused on building trust, and Maggie Bartlett, a virologist from Johns Hopkins, discuss the declining trust in U.S. public health. They explore the Make America Healthy Again movement and the necessity of dialogue between grassroots supporters and health experts. The duo emphasizes the importance of humanizing conversations, clarifying that many MAHA supporters have nuanced views on vaccines. They also address the impact of COVID on public perceptions of health authority and advocate for transparent, empathetic communication in science.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Trust Begins With Real Conversations
- Building trust starts with getting people to sit at the table and feel heard.
- Brinda Adhikari says relationship-building before public conversations is essential to cross ideological divides.
Individual Vs Collective Framing
- Maha centers the individual while public health emphasizes the collective.
- Maggie Bartlett notes both sides often agree on the goal of improving health, offering a place to start collaboration.
Charisma ≠ Sound Public-Health Messaging
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is an effective communicator for his followers but harms public-health goals, Maggie Bartlett says.
- Bartlett trusts his intent less and worries his rhetoric moves health policy backward.