Matt and Dara are joined by Vox's Dylan Matthews to talk about the so-called "lab-leak" hypothesis for the origin of SARS-CoV-2, and to contrast it with the zoonotic origin theory. They discuss the potential policy consequences that ought to result if it turns out that either hypothesis is true, and talk a little bit about whether the global standards for virological research need to be revised. Then, some research is examined that casts "Voter ID" laws in a new light, and leads to some very interesting conversation about how the media should confront authentic challenges to American democratic governance.
Resources:
"The Lab-Leak Theory" by David Leonhardt (May 27, New York Times)
"The Biological Weapons Convention at a crossroad" by Bonnie Jenkins (Sept. 6, 2017; Brookings)
Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham (Simon & Schuster; 2019)
"The NPT [Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty]: Learning from a Longtermist Success" by Danny Bressler (May 19, Effective Altruism)
White paper: "Strict ID Laws Don't Stop Voters: Evidence from a U.S. Nationwide Panel, 2008–2018," by Enrico Cantoni and Vincent Pons (May 22; The Quarterly Journal of Economics)
"After Dramatic Walkout, a New Fight Looms Over Voting Rights in Texas" by Dave Montgomery and Nick Corasaniti (May 31, New York Times)

Hosts:
Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com
Dara Lind (@DLind), Immigration Reporter, ProPublica
Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), Senior Correspondent, Vox

Credits:
Erikk Geannikis, Editor and Producer

As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter.

The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production.
Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

About Vox
Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines.
Follow Us: Vox.com
Facebook group: The Weeds
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices