Slack / Private Message Drop — page 654

[Kristian Andersen] It's the same BS machine over and over again. Both of them seemed very convincing on 60 Minutes though - and it's clear it's part of their training in politics (the big giveaway is the smiling every time they make a point - I remember Matt Stremlau always did the same (from his years in politics...) and it's a very very effective way to build a human connection and get a point across. Peter D. totally outmatched here - with his serious stare and demeanor) [2021-03-29 16:00:43] [Robert Garry] I almost felt sorry for PD - but he was not very well prepared for obvious questions and he also likely got heavily edited. [2021-03-29 16:02:12] [Kristian Andersen] He got edited for sure, but one thing that stuck with me - he wasn't over-claiming anything. "Yup, we don't know", "Yup, that's to be done". Doesn't work to convince a lay audience, but it's sticking to what we know and what we don't. [2021-03-29 16:04:14] [Robert Garry] Stahl had follow-up for each PD question designed to put him off balance and admit stuff he shouldn't have admitted. Surprising with all the media that he's not better at it. The follow-up to JM and MP were shocked looks on her face and gasps. [2021-03-29 16:06:36] [Kristian Andersen] Yup - she clearly drank the Kool-Aid before the interview. Also, 2 lab leak 'theorists' vs 1 scientist. Fair balance? Nope - should have been 0 vs 3. [2021-03-29 16:15:37] [Eddie Holmes] Annex D7 is very interesting [2021-03-29 16:22:36] [Eddie Holmes] Had a long chat with Dominic: (i) he thinks that it could well be raccoon dogs or mink neither of which have been tested and that there was great push back from the Chinese about even investigating this idea. So, these animals have not been tested; (ii) he said that the WIV staff came across as totally open and honest. He said that privately Shi told them she was very worried about a lab escape and they did 2 internal audits and found nothing. [2021-03-29 16:22:43] [Kristian Andersen] This? [shared file(s): Screen Shot 2021-03-29 at 4.22.14 PM.png] [2021-03-29 16:23:42] [Kristian Andersen] "Shi told them she was very worried about a lab escape and they did 2 internal audits and found nothing". This bit bothers me - and I mentioned this back when she made a similar comment to SciAm. It clearly shows she found it a likely explanation. [2021-03-29 16:24:13] [Kristian Andersen] ... but they again, she _would_ need to consider it a possibility - we did. [2021-03-29 16:25:03] [Eddie Holmes]