The NDR podcast "The Coronavirus Update" continues. The virologist Christian Drosten gets female reinforcement in the new episodes.
For Christian Drosten (48), the podcast summer break will end on September 1, 2020. The head of virology at the Berlin Charité then goes on air again with "The Coronavirus Update" for NDR Info – and with Sandra Ciesek (42), he receives support from his own specialist area, as the NDR reports. She will take turns with her colleague Drosten on a weekly basis and talk to the science editor Korinna Hennig (46).
Ciesek is head of the Institute for Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt and has a professorship at the Goethe University. She is currently researching, among other things, effective drugs against Covid-19 and suitable test strategies. She is looking forward to "making a contribution for the listeners to a better understanding of SARS-CoV-2", says the doctor, who can be heard for the first time on September 8, 2020 at "The Coronavirus Update".
Sandra Ciesek is scientifically "set up differently" than Christian Drosten
Christian Drosten's support from his colleague comes in handy, he wanted to reduce his workload a little with the podcast. In his opinion, the commitment of the 42-year-old is an asset for the listeners, since they are "set up differently in their science" than he is. "She works more towards clinical observation, virological studies, while I'm a basic researcher," he explains.
Although he is now only a 50 percent member of the podcast expert team, the 48-year-old is still happy that "The Coronavirus Update" continues. For him, the format is "special", "because we have a certain focus on scientific aspects and thus also provide orientation for people who just want to know a little more".
New episodes every Tuesday
The NDR Info Podcast is one of the most successful of 2020. At the end of June it was honored with two Grimme Online Awards, in the "Information" category and in the public voting. He also received the Federal Press Conference Prize.
The new episodes with the two virologists will be available from September 1st at 3 p.m. on Tuesdays at www.ndr.de/coronaupdate, in the ARD Audiothek and wherever there are podcasts. In addition, the radio station NDR Info broadcasts a shorter version of the current issue every Tuesday at 12:35 p.m.