Telling the World about Measles: Case History in Government Information

Abstract

October 1962 representatives of the Colum¬ bia Broadcasting System called at the head

Measles and the Modern History of Vaccination

“…The specialists worked with CBS's reporter for weeks, giving him access to "all sources of information." 1 The resulting broadcast, "The Taming of a Virus," dramatized the development of 2 new measles vaccines and detailed the disease's toll in West Africa, where it killed 1 in 5 children younger than age 6. 2 In the United States, measles was far less deadly, with a mortality rate of 1 in 500 000 in 1960.…”

“…The producers reached out to the Office of the Surgeon General, whose information specialists were eager to help; after all, the US Public Health Service wanted publicity for the vaccine. The specialists worked with CBS’s reporter for weeks, giving him access to “all sources of information.” 1 The resulting broadcast, “The Taming of a Virus,” dramatized the development of 2 new measles vaccines and detailed the disease’s toll in West Africa, where it killed 1 in 5 children younger than age 6. 2…”