Explore BrainMass

News Report Vs. Peer-Reviewed Article for a Recent Outbreak

Find a news report of a current outbreak or other health crisis (within a month) then search for a peer-reviewed scientific article on the same or closely related topic (does not have to be current). List similarities between the two situations and differences.

Solution Preview

Here is a link to a recent newspaper article (

And a link to a peer reviewed journal article (The New England Journal of Medicine):

Pertussis (commonly called whooping cough) is the public health concern that is described in both sources. Pertussis is a contagious disease caused by bacterial infection. In Canada, recent outbreaks of pertussis have received significant media attention. This particular news report focuses on pertussis outbreak in the province of New Brunswick.


1. Both sources stress the importance of immunization in reducing pertussis outbreaks.

"She credited the decline, in part, to a province-wide immunization program launched last year." (CBC)

"Pertussis vaccination resulted in a marked decrease in the incidence of disease" (New England Journal of Medicine)

2. Similar vaccination steps are described in the news report and academic article. The most commonly used vaccination programs were state/province wide, were composed of five separate doses, and ...

Solution Summary

This solution compares a news article and a peer-reviewed scientific article with respect to recent outbreaks of whooping cough. Similarities and differences amongst the articles are explained.