"The former congressman who drew scrutiny for anti-vaccine views did not appear to have the votes for confirmation amid a measles outbreak, according to people familiar."
Anti-science policies are being instituted by the Trump administration at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other federal offices, reports the latest Backgrounder. That makes it especially challenging to keep politics out of decision-making around everything from natural disasters to public health. An examination of scientific integrity under Trump 2.0 and what environmental journalists should watch for.
"Utah could become the first state to ban fluoride in its drinking water, alarming public health experts and dentists who note the mineral’s role in reducing tooth decay across the nation. The Republican-controlled statehouse sent the legislation to Gov. Spencer Cox (R) last week after both chambers passed it largely along party lines."
"An unidentified illness has killed scores of people and infected hundreds in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the World Health Organization has reported, with preliminary investigations tracing the outbreak to three children who in January ate a bat and died."
"A child who wasn’t vaccinated died in a measles outbreak in rural West Texas, state officials said Wednesday, the first U.S. death from the highly contagious — but preventable — respiratory disease since 2015."
In the overview summary for our “2025 Journalists’ Guide to Environment + Energy” special report, we foresee the very real prospect that environmental protection and energy policies in place, in some cases, for decades could swiftly be swept aside by the Trump administration and a GOP-controlled Congress. Read our analysis, plus look back at more than three dozen stories gathered together in our ninth annual guide.
Contaminated water sickened thousands of residents near Mexico City for 40 years — even as officials knew they were being poisoned. Then, an investigative news team turned its attention to the polluted region, and produced multiple video and text versions of an award-winning feature focused on the residents’ health, poverty and more. Read a revealing Q&A with investigative producer Carlos Carabaña in the new Inside Story.
"The president, still angry about the pandemic response, may be cutting into the country’s fundamental ability to identify emerging diseases and head them off."
"A scientific report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published Thursday shows some veterinarians who provide care for cattle were unknowingly infected with the H5N1 avian influenza virus last year. ... The report is one of three about bird flu that were scheduled to be published three weeks ago in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). But the scientific publication was abruptly suspended when the Trump administration instructed federal health agencies to pause all external communications on Jan. 21."
