In contrast to reporting on pandemics in the 21st century, the Times did not provide daily reports on the federal response. President Woodrow Wilson never made a statement about influenza, a point some researchers cite as a negligent answer.
But “that’s honestly an undifferentiated view of what the president would do then,” said Dr. Markel. “One of the things that has stayed in the realm of states and communities is public health. At the time there was no national public health effort. There was no CDC ”
While the Times coverage included information about the disease in other cities, most of the coverage centered on the impact of the New York pandemic and the response of local officials. Dr. Royal S. Copeland, the city’s health commissioner, took center stage.
Under Dr. Copeland stressed the New York Health Department’s identification and isolation of closings and mitigated deaths that have failed many other local governments. But there have been setbacks and his leadership has been a point of contention. The paper reported a public spat between Dr. Copeland and a former health commissioner on the severity of the disease. An October 5 front-page article detailed closings in the city to reduce the crowd on the subways and a follow-up the next day reported mayhem after an explosion at a munitions factory in Sayreville, New Jersey, had caused further transit disruptions.
“Thousands of people who were forced to use the Brooklyn ferries were trapped in a huge jam on either side of the river and had to fight their way across,” the Times reported. “This created a worsening condition that Health Commissioner Copeland was trying to fix.”
The Times also reported on his hopes for a vaccine, which he claimed was more advanced than the surgeon general would admit. Dr. Blue was right to show restraint; The science of the time was fundamentally flawed, and no effective vaccine was developed during the pandemic.
When cases fell in November (they would rise again in winter, but the New York epidemic was over), The Times interviewed Dr. Copeland, to reflect on the lessons that would be drawn for the next time an epidemic broke out. He attributed the city’s success to decisions that kept schools open and small, overcrowded entertainment venues closed. However, he emphasized the importance of letting life go on as much as possible.
“I was trying to keep New York City morale up,” he said.
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