Why Should I Trust You?
Why Should I Trust You?
Podcast Description
Bold, unfiltered, and uncompromisingly honest, Why Should I Trust You? is a weekly podcast that looks at the breakdown in trust for science and public health. It drops every Thursday, with occasional additional special episodes sprinkled in. Hosted by Brinda Adhikari, the former executive producer of “The Problem with Jon Stewart” and a former TV news journalist; Tom Johnson, the former executive producer of “The Circus,” and also a former TV news journalist; Dr. Maggie Bartlett, a virologist and assistant research professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; and Dr. Mark Abdelmalek a skin cancer surgeon, a medical journalist and a dermatologist practicing in Philadelphia - each week we try to figure out what is behind this staggering collapse in trust and see if we can rebuild towards trust again. We hear from people who are wary about public statements, recommendations and studies coming from what they view as an elitist and conflict-riddled scientific establishment. And we hear from those in this establishment who fear the consequences of what they see as a dangerous trend towards anti-expertise. And then somehow, we will seek a path through all this!
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on the erosion of trust in science and public health, exploring themes such as vaccine hesitancy, conspiracy theories, and the political ramifications of scientific discourse. Specific episodes dive into topics like the lab leak theory of COVID-19 origins and the public health implications of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s political rise.

Bold, unfiltered, and uncompromisingly honest, Why Should I Trust You? is a weekly podcast that looks at the breakdown in trust for science and public health. It drops every Thursday, with occasional additional special episodes sprinkled in.
Hosted by Brinda Adhikari, the former executive producer of “The Problem with Jon Stewart” and a former TV news journalist; Tom Johnson, the former executive producer of “The Circus,” and also a former TV news journalist; Dr. Maggie Bartlett, a virologist and assistant research professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; and Dr. Mark Abdelmalek a skin cancer surgeon, a medical journalist and a dermatologist practicing in Philadelphia – each week we try to figure out what is behind this staggering collapse in trust and see if we can rebuild towards trust again.
Trust in higher education is slipping, with a growing number of Americans questioning whether universities are delivering value beyond their walls (and ivory towers).
Today, we’re joined by Daniel Crowley, who goes by Max. He is a behavioral scientist and endowed chair at Penn State. His argument: universities produce groundbreaking research, but too often it sits on a shelf, never reaching the decision-makers who could use it to improve lives.
That disconnect may help explain part of the decline in trust. Of course, many factors are driving that trend, from costs, to admissions practices, and perceptions of elitism, to name a few captured in a new report from Yale University.
Crowley believes that building better systems to translate research to everyone from members of Congress to local leaders to the public itself could help turn that trust slide around.
Hosts:
Brinda Adhikari
Tom Johnson
Maggie Bartlett (off)
Dr. Mark Abdelmalek (off)
Guest:
Daniel Max Crowley, director of the Prevention Research Center at Penn State University and a prevention scientist investigating how to optimize investments in healthy development and well-being.
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