Features In-Depth Analysis From “Pandemic Playbook” Authors & Reporting from NBC News’ Investigative Unit
“Dateline NBC” Special to Air Saturday, June 13 at 8pm ET/7pm CT
NBC News’ Lester Holt will anchor The Playbook, a Dateline NBC in-depth and comprehensive special look at whether the coronavirus pandemic that tore through the United States could have been contained or slowed had government agencies responded differently, this Saturday, June 13 at 8pm ET/7pm CT.
As cases in the U.S. top 2 million and the nation begins to reopen, Holt speaks with Dr. Beth Cameron, former head of the National Security Council’s pandemic response and preparedness team, along with Jeremy Konyndyk, an expert in international disasters who helped co-ordinate the Obama administration’s response to Ebola. They are two of the authors of the 2016 “Pandemic Playbook,” a step-by-step guide for White House officials to help them make decisions quickly in a crisis. To watch a preview of the special, click here.
During the one-hour broadcast, Holt sits down with HHS Secretary Alex Azar, who responds to criticism that the Trump administration could have done more to fight the pandemic and that it largely ignored steps outlined in the playbook, a notion Azar denies. The special alsofeatures NBC News’ extensive investigative reporting on the government’s response to the pandemic, as well as interviews with key experts including: Dr. Luciana Borio, an infectious disease expert and former member of the Trump administration’s National Security Council, and Eric Ries, an entrepreneur who worked to help connect PPE makers with those who needed it the most.
The program is produced by Liz Brown, Justin Balding, Tim Beacham, Dorothy Newell, Marianne O’Donnell, Sue Simpson, and senior producer Allison Orr.
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Dateline NBC is the longest-running series in NBC primetime history and is in its 28th season. Dateline is anchored by Lester Holt and features correspondents Andrea Canning, Josh Mankiewicz, Keith Morrison and Dennis Murphy. Airing Fridays at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT and Saturdays at 8 p.m. ET/7p.m. CT, Dateline is the #1 Friday newsmagazine and reaches more than 17 million people every week through its broadcast, and millions more through its social media platforms and podcasts. Additionally, Dateline closed out 2019 as the #1 Friday newsmagazine across the board. David Corvo is the senior executive producer, and Liz Cole is the executive producer.
