This is Part 1 of a two-part TEDMED Conversation with investigative journalist Katherine Eban.

Across these companion episodes, host Jay Walker and Eban explore what happens when the institutions we rely on to define truth, safety, and scientific credibility begin to falter.

In this first installment, the conversation opens with a wide-angle lens: how trust in scientific and medical institutions is built, how it erodes, and why that erosion carries consequences far beyond any single failure. Together, they examine the delicate balance between necessary scrutiny and systemic collapse, and the role individuals play when institutions drift from their purpose.

Part 2 continues the conversation, moving from theory into deeper real-world implications and case-specific insights.

In This Episode (Part 1)

At moments in history, institutions that once felt immovable begin to shift. This episode explores that unsettling transition, asking:

• What happens when trust in science begins to erode

• How institutional failures ripple across society

• The tension between healthy skepticism and total distrust

• Why individuals matter most when systems weaken

• What history reveals about collapse, recovery, and responsibility

Key Discussion Points + Timestamps

Opening frame: when once-stable institutions begin to shift (00:11)

Trust has cratered: naming the scale of institutional erosion (06:11)

Who gets to decide what is “safe” or “true” in a fractured system (08:32)

The core issue: where authority and accountability actually live (10:53)

Global reality check: looking outside the U.S. for standards and reliability (13:13)

A turning point: what kind of system we may be heading toward (17:40)

A note of tension and hope: the people still holding the line inside institutions (22:02)

Quotes of the Episode

“Trust has cratered in the institutions, the premier institutions that the US has relied on for a generation to keep us safe.” – Katherine Eban

“What we're seeing right now is this struggle over what is truth inside of the scientific and medical fields.” – Katherine Eban

“We’re now beginning to see what global health looks like without the bedrock of US support, and it’s a pretty frightening picture.” – Katherine Eban

References + Resources

Below are links to references, books, articles, and resources mentioned during the conversation.

• Bottle of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom— Katherine Eban

• Katherine Eban’s reporting on the Guinea-Bissau hepatitis B study

• Pew Research Center — Public Trust in Government

• Tuskegee Syphilis Study (Encyclopaedia Britannica overview)

• The Belmont Report — Ethical Principles and Guidelines for Research

• NIH — Clinical Trials Basics

More from Katherine and Jay

KATHERINE EBAN

Katherine Eban is an investigative journalist known for her work on public health, pharmaceuticals, and institutional accountability. She is the author of Bottle of Lies, a widely acclaimed exposé on the global generic drug industry, and has written for publications including Vanity Fair, The New York Times Magazine, and Fortune. Her reporting often examines the intersection of science, ethics, and systemic failure.

JAY WALKER

Jay Walker is the curator of TEDMED and a lifelong innovator focused on advancing ideas that improve health and medicine. Through TEDMED Conversations, he engages leading thinkers in deep, exploratory dialogue.

Connect with the Guests

KATHERINE

• Website: https://www.katherineeban.com/

• Twitter (X):https://twitter.com/KatherineEban

• Bluesky:https://bsky.app/profile/katherineeban.bsky.social

• Website: https://www.tedmed.com/about/ 

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jay-walker-5187453/ 

Join the Conversation

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