Malcolm Gladwell

I recently called up my friend Safi Bakal. I wanted to see if he could correctly guess the answer to a puzzle. First of all, before we start, I just wanted to briefly establish your bona fides for this conversation. You have a PhD from MIT, is that correct? Stanford. Stanford, Stanford. And you went on to work on the development of a number of different drugs, is that correct? I did.

I recently called up my friend Safi Bakal. I wanted to see if he could correctly guess the answer to a puzzle. First of all, before we start, I just wanted to briefly establish your bona fides for this conversation. You have a PhD from MIT, is that correct? Stanford. Stanford, Stanford. And you went on to work on the development of a number of different drugs, is that correct? I did.

Safi ran a drug company for a long time that worked on some of the hardest problems in cancer treatment. In preparation for our call, I sent Safi the package insert for something called Rotatec. As I'm sure you've noticed, when you get a prescription drug, there's a leaflet inside the box, all folded up, tiny print. That's the package insert.

Safi ran a drug company for a long time that worked on some of the hardest problems in cancer treatment. In preparation for our call, I sent Safi the package insert for something called Rotatec. As I'm sure you've noticed, when you get a prescription drug, there's a leaflet inside the box, all folded up, tiny print. That's the package insert.

It tells you in great detail every benefit, every side effect, every clinical study associated with your medication. The Food and Drug Administration and drug companies spend years working out the exact wording of that leaflet. And I'm assuming you've never read this before. Never read it before.

It tells you in great detail every benefit, every side effect, every clinical study associated with your medication. The Food and Drug Administration and drug companies spend years working out the exact wording of that leaflet. And I'm assuming you've never read this before. Never read it before.

Rototec is a vaccine to protect babies against a very nasty intestinal bug called rotavirus. What Safi first noticed was how well it worked.

Rototec is a vaccine to protect babies against a very nasty intestinal bug called rotavirus. What Safi first noticed was how well it worked.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah. If I told you you had a drug under development that had efficacy data where there was a 50X difference between treatment and control, what word would come out of your mouth?

Yeah. If I told you you had a drug under development that had efficacy data where there was a 50X difference between treatment and control, what word would come out of your mouth?

And now that Safi knew what we were talking about, it was time to see if he could answer my little puzzle. A puzzle connected to the co-inventor of Rototech, a man named Paul Offit. I want to read to you, now that we've done this, I want to read to you from a book. I'm going to have to tell you who wrote it, but it's someone in a position of real authority in the world.

And now that Safi knew what we were talking about, it was time to see if he could answer my little puzzle. A puzzle connected to the co-inventor of Rototech, a man named Paul Offit. I want to read to you, now that we've done this, I want to read to you from a book. I'm going to have to tell you who wrote it, but it's someone in a position of real authority in the world.

The best evidence indicates that Dr. Offit's rotavirus vaccine causes negative net public health impacts. In other words, Dr. Offit's vaccine almost certainly kills and injures more children in the United States than the rotavirus disease killed and injured prior to the vaccine's introduction.

The best evidence indicates that Dr. Offit's rotavirus vaccine causes negative net public health impacts. In other words, Dr. Offit's vaccine almost certainly kills and injures more children in the United States than the rotavirus disease killed and injured prior to the vaccine's introduction.

Do you want to guess who wrote that?

Do you want to guess who wrote that?

Oh, Safi, you win the prize. My name is Malcolm Gladwell. You're listening to Revisionist History, my podcast about things overlooked and misunderstood. This episode is the very strange story of Rodotech, a vaccine that every American infant is supposed to get three times in their first eight months of life.

Oh, Safi, you win the prize. My name is Malcolm Gladwell. You're listening to Revisionist History, my podcast about things overlooked and misunderstood. This episode is the very strange story of Rodotech, a vaccine that every American infant is supposed to get three times in their first eight months of life.