CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta said an interview with former CDC Director Robert Redfield convinced him that the Wuhan lab-leak theory was worthy of consideration.
Gupta told Mediaite’s Aidan McLaughlin that Redfield, as an experienced virologist who had access to raw data in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, had a unique and possibly more informed perspective than many of those studying the origins of the novel coronavirus. (RELATED: Former CDC Director Is The Latest Former Top Official Supporting Lab Leak Theory)
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Chinese officials have continued to insist that the virus did not originate in a lab, and a number of media outlets in the United States have also attempted to discredit that theory.
A fringe theory suggests the coronavirus could have leaked from a lab at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, but there’s no evidence of this.
Here’s why an accidental lab leak is extremely unlikely.https://t.co/OtgLxI9PWr
— Business Insider (@BusinessInsider) May 2, 2020
NEW: The Wuhan “bat lady” denied that her lab, the Wuhan Institute of Virology, engages in secret projects with the Chinese military.
China’s denial of the covid lab leak theory hinges entirely on her credibility, says WHO’s @JamieMetzl https://t.co/VR5xv1Wa5x
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) March 24, 2021
#Gravitas | Nobel Laureate Luc Montagnier claims that the Wuhan Coronavirus leaked from a lab. China has dismissed it, denying all reports of a leak. Who is right? @palkisu assesses pic.twitter.com/fL473IHxPU
— WION (@WIONews) April 20, 2020
Redfield stated in a March interview with Gupta that he believed the virus originated in a lab — and Gupta argued that, of all people, Redfield may have had the most access to raw data about the virus’ origin and the most knowledge and expertise to interpret that data accurately.
“He’s an experienced virologist. He was also head of the CDC at the time this was happening, which means that in addition to everything that we know, he had access to raw data and raw intelligence that was coming out of China. My point is that it’s a much more informed sort of thing for him to be saying than for anybody who may have expertise in virology, because he has a lot more knowledge and information that he has that maybe he can’t share,” Gupta explained, noting that Redfield might not be at liberty to disclose the data informing his opinion.
Gupta went on to say that Redfield seemed certain that the lab-leak theory made the most sense, and argued that if one were searching for the simplest explanation, that would be it.
“Just from an Occam’s razor standpoint, finding the simplest explanation, it would make sense,” Gupta added, pointing out the fact that there was a virology institute in Wuhan that “just happened to be studying bat coronaviruses” at the time the virus first began to spread. But he was careful to note that, despite giving weight to Redfield’s “more informed” opinion, the origins of the virus are still not certain.
