1. Provide the title of your story or series and the names of the journalists involved.
Hepatitis B: A Silent Killer
Spencer Michels: Correspondent/Producer Catherine Wise: Reporter/Producer Sarah Varney: Health Reporter, KQED Radio Jason Lelchuk: Cameraman/Editor
2. List date(s) this work was published or aired.
3-Jun-10
3. Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
One in ten Asian Americans have chronic hepatitis B, but few are aware of it. The disease can cause liver cancer which is rarely detected until it’s too late. As many as 2 billion people worldwide may be infected, and yet there is little public awareness about hep B and not much media attention. The PBS NewsHour, as part of its commitment to global health reporting, delved into the large numbers of Asians in the Bay Area who have hep B. Many, like Greg Zhang whom we profiled in our report, were infected at birth from their mothers. In front of photos of his brother who died of liver cancer, Zhang spoke to correspondent Spencer Michels about his family’s sad battle with the disease. Our report highlighted the new efforts by Stanford’s Dr. Samuel So and the San Francisco Department of Health to bring attention to this often hidden, deadly
4. Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
We read medical papers and other information available about the disease on the internet. The Hep B Foundation has a helpful website: http://www.hepb.org/ The San Francisco Department of Health and Dr. Samuel So also provided us with background material on the disease.
5. Explain types of human sources used.
Our team relied on the expertise of local health officials who are leading efforts to raise awareness of the disease in the Bay Area. Stanford’s Dr. Samuel So and Janet Zola from the San Francisco Department of Health provided a great deal of guidance and introduced us to patient Greg Zhang.
6. Results (if any).
The NewsHour teamed up with NPR on this project. KQED radio health reporter Sarah Varney collaborated with us and produced a report on hep B for NPR’s Morning Edition on June 4th. We believe the NewsHour’s report, coupled with NPR’s coverage, reached a substantial audience and hopefully raised awareness of this deadly disease.
7. Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
One sad follow-up to our story: We recently learned Greg Zhang, whom we profiled in our report, died several weeks ago after his liver cancer spread. The Zhang family has now lost two sons to hep B.
8. Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
Dr. Samuel So and Janet Zola at SF Dept of Health are terrific local resources and on the national level, Joan Block from the Hep B Foundation is a great contact.