media - The 1918 influenza and SARS


I'm listening to a great interview with John Barry, author of the award-winning book The Great Influenza. He describes the way how the USA dealt with the disease and makes great comparisons with SARS in China in 2003, including the harsh way the US administration at the time dealt with dissent and public health information. Compared to the legislation at the time - remember the First World War was going on - "the Patriot Act reads like a manifest of free speech organizations," Barry says at one moment.
Well, the US has recovered from that period of repression, there should be hope for China too. I got it as a podcast, will save it. When you are interested, I can forward you the 9 MB mp3 file.

Update: It is actually much easier when you download it directly from the great site IT Conversations. You can chose between different formats and have a look at their other great interviews.