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False belief in MMR vaccine-autism link endures as measles threat persists
A small child getting a Band-Aid on their arm from a doctor after receiving a vaccine.

Image: iStock/Jacob Wackerhausen

False belief in MMR vaccine-autism link endures as measles threat persists

As measles cases rise across the United States and vaccination rates for the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine continue to fall, a new survey finds that a quarter of U.S. adults do not know that claims that the MMR vaccine causes autism are false.

From the Annenberg Public Policy Center

How unflagged, factual content drives vaccine hesitancy
Many hands holding smartphones and other sources of information about COVID-19.

Image: iStock/zubada

How unflagged, factual content drives vaccine hesitancy

A new paper from computational social scientist Duncan Watts examines how factual, vaccine-skeptical content on Facebook has a greater overall effect than “fake news,” discouraging millions from the COVID-19 shot.

From Penn Engineering Today

Educate to Empower aims to break down barriers to breast cancer screenings
Penn fourth-years Simran Rajpal on the left and Gauthami Moorkanatst on the right pose outside Fisher-Bennett Hall on Penn campus.

“In Philadelphia, in particular West Philly, there’s a lot of communities that don’t have the access to health care that they need, even though Penn is right here,” says Moorkanat (right). “Our thinking behind this was that if we can deliver the resources to them, instead of making them come to Penn, maybe we can start to bridge that gap.”

nocred

Educate to Empower aims to break down barriers to breast cancer screenings

With the President’s Engagement Prize, fourth-years Simran Rajpal and Gauthami Moorkanat plan to deliver education and resources directly to community centers in Philadelphia, tackling medical mistrust, health literacy, and more.

Kristen de Groot

Collaborating to advance health communication
Mary Andrews (center)(L to R): Andy Tan, David Lydon-Staley, Emily Falk, and John B. Jemmott III.

Mary Andrews (center) successfully defended her dissertation in December. Her dissertation committee members included four health communication faculty (L to R): Andy Tan, David Lydon-Staley, Emily Falk, and John B. Jemmott III.

(Image: Courtesy of Annenberg School for Communication)

Collaborating to advance health communication

As a generation of pioneering scholars retired, several new hires are working together to continue Annenberg’s legacy as a leader in Health Communication.

Hailey Reissman