

The Michael Lewis Story
Why The U.S. Performed Poorly
- The U.S. failed at COVID despite resources because public-health response is fragmented and under-resourced.
- The CDC morphed from battlefield command to academic caution, delaying action until data feels ironclad.
The 1976 Lesson That Changed CDC
- A 1976 swine-flu response shaped CDC behavior by punishing overreaction and politicizing leadership.
- That shift turned CDC chiefs into short-term political appointees, increasing risk aversion and political sensitivity.
How 2009 Shaped Future Caution
- The 2009 H1N1 response taught institutions to err on caution and avoid commotion, a lesson that backfired in 2020.
- A cautious first step can become an institutional memory that underreacts when swift, bold action is needed.
























Best-selling author Michael Lewis (“Moneyball,” “The Big Short”) joins us this week! His latest book, “The Premonition” (2:40), reveals how the U.S. mishandled the pandemic (5:05) and why the 2009 H1N1 virus was a precursor to 2020 (10:15). But to understand how Lewis tells his stories, we have to understand a bit of his story: how he grew up in New Orleans (20:48) and fell in love with writing at Princeton (26:20), before working as a bonds salesman on Wall Street (29:29). He also shares his approach to creating honest journalist-subject relationships (36:19), his six months covering President Obama (37:12), a favorite poem from his high-school baseball coach (43:02), and the role of luck in his career (48:49).
Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.