Recap: Author Seth Mnookin Discusses Vaccine-Autism Controversy

Madison, Wisconsin - Seth Mnookin's latest book, "The Panic Virus: A True Story of Medicine, Science, and Fear," describes the hysteria and controversy surrounding the false claim that vaccines cause autism.

Mnookin discussed the book on Thursday, Jan. 27, in a public presentation at the Health Sciences Learning Center (HSLC) at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

In his book, Mnookin covers topics such as:

• How dishonest doctors have taken advantage of desperate parents
• Why people are willing to believe things that are false
• How the media have contributed to prolonging the myth
• How declining vaccination rates have led to increased infections and deaths
• How online communities can perpetuate misinformation and disbelief

Mnookin, a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and former senior writer for Newsweek, is also the author of "Feeding the Monster" and "Hard News."

His Wisconsin talk is part of a series called Authors@HSLC. Last spring the series featured Rebecca Skloot discussing her latest book, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks."

Live Coverage

View a recap of our live blog of Mnookin's discussion. You can also watch the discussion in our Video Library.