Apoorva Mandavilli

Last updated

Apoorva Mandavilli
NationalityAmerican
Education
OccupationJournalist
Employer The New York Times
Known formedical science articles
Website apoorvamandavilli.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Apoorva Mandavilli is an American investigative journalist whose work has focused on medical science. [1] During the COVID-19 pandemic, she joined The New York Times as a health and science writer. [2] In the spring of 2019, she was writer-in-residence at the University of Wisconsin, where she joined a panel discussion on vaccine refusal while writing about containing a measles outbreak in Lowell, Massachusetts. [3] [4] [5]

Mandavilli is known for her work on autism, most notably being the founding editor-in-chief of Spectrum, an online publication that stemmed from the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative and is now part of The Transmitter . [6] She co-founded Culture Dish, an organization dedicated to enhancing diversity in science journalism, and is the founding chair of the Diversity Committee for the National Association of Science Writers. [7]

Mandavilli was the 2019 winner of the Victor L. Cohn award for scientific journalism. [1] She grew up in Southern India and speaks four Indian languages. She came to the United States to attend college at age 17. [8]

In May 2021, Mandavalli tweeted that the COVID-19 lab leak theory had "racist roots". After criticism, she deleted the tweet, stating it was "badly phrased". [9] [10]

References

  1. 1 2 "Apoorva Mandavilli | Tufts Office of the Vice Provost for Research". viceprovost.tufts.edu. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Apoorva Mandavilli Joining Health and Science". The New York Times company website (Press release). April 16, 2020.
  3. ↑ Jordan Schelling (April 4, 2019). "Award-winning science journalist is UW-Madison writer in residence". Wisconsin Newspaper Association.
  4. ↑ Chris Barncard (April 2, 2019). "Science journalist Mandavilli is UW–Madison writer in residence". University of Wisconsin–Madison.
  5. ↑ Apoorva Mandavilli (April 19, 2019). "When Measles Arrives: Breaking Down the Anatomy of Containment". Undark Magazine .
  6. ↑ Spectrumnews.org website
  7. ↑ Apoorva Mandavilli; Nidhi Subbaraman (October 15, 2014). "Culture Dish: Promoting Diversity in Science Writing". Scientific American Voices blog.
  8. ↑ Apporva Mandavilli nytimes.com
  9. ↑ Darcy, Oliver (May 27, 2021). "Taking a look at the media's role in the Covid-19 lab leak theory CNN Business". CNN. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
  10. ↑ "NY Times COVID Reporter Deletes Tweet Claiming 'Racist Roots' of 'Lab Leak Theory' After Backlash". The Wrap. May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 4, 2025.