The Media and Mad Cow Disease

The Media and Mad Cow Disease Mad cow disease or Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy is a disease that was commonly found in sheep until it recently crossed the species barrier into cows, where it began to infect people. At least that's what the media told us. Scientists like Joe Gibbs of the National Institute of Neurology in Bethesda, MD-on the other hand-are saying meat itself only carries a "minimal" risk of infection, and milk and dairy …

…on many people, scaring some enough to stop eating ground beef, and crippling the British beef market substantially. All of this was over a few coincidental cases of CJD seemingly linked to BSE and the "mad cow" prion. The prion is harmless, and resides in the cow's brain, not the muscle tissue, so no one even consumes it. So why all the fuss? It's a perfect example of science replaced by sensationalism in the media.