Today on AirTalk, we update you on the latest COVID-19 news and answer your questions. Also on the show, we discuss people's ongoing struggles with zoom fatigue; talk about the tragedy of Kathy Fiscus and how it shaped news coverage; and more.
COVID-19 AMA: Are SoCal Counties Close To Wider Reopening? Plus Spring Break Surge Concerns
In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Timothy Brewer with UCLA.
Topics today include:
SoCal Counties moving toward wider opening
Many long-hauler patients didn’t have initial symptoms
Officials urge continued mask usage due to dangerous variants
Kaiser Permanente criticized over its vaccine program
Could spring break lead to another surge?
Study confirms higher risks for those with severe obesity
Are men still dying more than women from COVID-19?
Guest:
Timothy Brewer, M.D., epidemiologist and professor of medicine at UCLA’s school of public health; has served on the advisory boards of the World Health Organization, the National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention
As More People Become Eligible For The Vaccine, How Are You Dealing With Feelings Of Vaccine Envy?
More doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are slowly becoming available to more and more groups of people, but the majority of Americans are still waiting their turn in line to get vaccinated while others at higher risk of exposure to or serious illness from the virus are given their shots first. If you’re one of those people who is still waiting in line but have watched others in your orbit get the vaccine, you might have felt a twinge of potentially unwelcome vaccine envy if you started to think about the kinds of everyday things that someone who is vaccinated might be able to do again.
Today on AirTalk, we want to hear about how you’re handling vaccine envy, whether personally or within your family or friend groups. If you’ve received the vaccine already, have family members or friends expressed being jealous? Or have you dealt with your own feelings of envy towards someone else who already has the vaccine.
Guest:
Carla Javier, KPCC/LAist community engagement reporter who has been following vaccinations; she tweets
Professionals Advise on Ways to Conquer Zoom Fatigue, And How It Affects Introverts And Extroverts Differently
Zoom fatigue, or burnout resulting from excessive videoconferencing for work, quickly became a staple in the lives of those who have spent the last year working from home. Depending on a variety of factors, the impact of this emerging fatigue can vary from person to person.
According to reporting in the Wall Street Journal, some medical experts say the toll of these video tools might be harder on extroverted personalities who prefer socializing in person. Health professionals like Dr. Rita Burke emphasize the need to set aside time for self care in order to cope with new circumstances brought about by the pandemic.
Today, we are joined by Dr. Burke to discuss how to maintain motivation and mental energy in the midst of Zoom fatigue. Questions? Call us at 866-893-5722.
Guest:
Rita Burke, assistant professor of clinical preventive medicine at USC Keck School of Medicine; she tweets
Biden Revises Trump Administration Title IX Regulations
On International Women's Day, President Joe Biden issued an executive order directing the Education Department to reexamine Trump-era policies issued under Title IX that establish guidelines for campuses investigating sexual assault and harassment.
Under the previous administration, Secretary of Education Betsy Devos announced regulations last May that narrowed the definition of sexual harassment, limited the liability of investigating institutions, and granted the accused the right to cross-examine their accusers. Many critics argued that the latter would create a chilling effect and make victims reticent about making a formal report.
The executive order asks that all orders, guidances, and policies are consistent with his administration's policy to "guarantee education free from sexual violence," which was part of his 2020 campaign platform. Title IX, a federal civil rights law passed in 1972, prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or other education program that receives federal money.
Today, we discuss how these changes might be made and their potential impact with Laura Meckler, national education policy reporter for the Washington Post.
Guest:
Laura Meckler, national education writer at the Washington Post; she tweets
Lara Bazelon, Law professor and director of the Criminal & Juvenile Justice and Racial Justice clinics at the University of San Francisco Law School; she tweets
Southern California Historian’s New Book Explores Tragedy Of Kathy Fiscus And How It Shaped Future Breaking News Coverage
These days, for better or worse, TV news crews are often among the first to arrive on the scene of a breaking story. But it hasn’t always been that way. In fact, before one particular event in 1949 that took place right here in Southern California, there was no long form, on-site live coverage of breaking news events the way that we see it now.
In his new book, Southern California historian Bill Deverell goes back more than 70 years to a spring evening in April of 1949. 3-year-old Kathy Fiscus is playing with her 9-year-old sister and a cousin in a vacant lot in the city of San Marino. When Kathy missteps and falls down a dry well, the eyes of the world turned to SoCal for the next 48 hours, waiting with bated breath to hear the fate of little Kathy as rescuers worked feverishly to try and save her in an effort that would, ultimately and tragically, prove futile. But the incident marked a seachange in the way breaking news was covered on television and radio. Because the site of the accident was so close to Mt. Wilson, where several radio towers were set up, local news was able to set up and broadcast the rescue attempt as it was happening in real time, something that had never been done before. Angelenos who were lucky or wealthy enough to own a television set at the time sat in their living rooms glued to their sets while the rest of the city crowded around the windows of hardware stores where TV sets for sale were tuned to the coverage. But wherever they were watching, one thing was clear: the city, the nation and the world were transfixed on the rescue attempt happening live in real time, and both reality TV and long form breaking news coverage today are the results of what happened during those fateful few days.
Today on AirTalk, USC historian Bill Deverell joins Larry Mantle to talk about his new book on the Kathy Fiscus tragedy and how it changed the way breaking news is covered on TV and radio here in Los Angeles and across the nation.
Tomorrow, Wednesday, March 10th at 6:00 p.m., Bill Deverell joins Patt Morrison for a virtual conversation to celebrate the book’s launch. To sign up, click here.
On Tuesday, March 16th at 6:00 p.m. Vroman’s Bookstore is putting on a virtual discussion on the book with Bill and Los Angeles Times columnist Robin Abcarian. To reserve your tickets, click here.
Guest:
Bill Deverell, author of “Kathy Fiscus: A Tragedy That Transfixed the Nation” (Angel City Press, March 2021); he is professor of history at the University of Southern California and director of the Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West