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Visions of the residents of Mexico City wandering around with their faces covered with breathing masks led off all three newscasts. A previously unknown strain of the influenza virus--part swine 'flu, part avian 'flu, part human 'flu--had sickened some 1,000 Mexicans. ABC cited 16 deaths, CBS 20, NBC 60. Because it is a new strain no vaccine is available and antiviral medicines are the only available treatment. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control are investigating and the networks made their worry its Story of the Day.

Public health authorities in Mexico "closed schools, museums, libraries and other public facilities," noted NBC's Robert Bazell, warning residents "to avoid all large gatherings." Voicing over videotape from the Distrito Federal, CBS' Sandra Hughes showed us "the worried line up for testing, their faces covered with masks."

"There is reason for concern but absolutely, positively no reason to panic," declared CBS' in-house physician Jon LaPook (at the tail of the Hughes videostream), walking that fine line of risking invoking the very emotion he was warning against. ABC's John McKenzie explained the cause for concern: "None of the patients had any contact with pigs. This swine 'flu is spreading from person to person…Doctors are asking, 'Could this be the beginning of a much-feared global pandemic?'" As NBC's Bazell put it: "Any new virus to which humans have no natural immunity holds that possibility." What to do? "All you can do is wait."


Andrew Tyndall 4/27/09 11:22:40 pm

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