This was my go-to podcast during the worst of the pandemic. It really helped to put into perspective some of the conflicting news… but then they ended the podcast right before we had another full year of new variants and misinformation. It would’ve been nice if it hadn’t ended so soon!!

We need you, Jim!

We need you and Maeve’s humor more than ever!!

Please come back!! I’m sad to see this podcast end as we fight the Delta variant…..I stumbled upon this podcast just as my entire company went remote on March 12th - Catherine and Jim have casual but real conversations with each other, interview other experts and I not only was I validated over and over again I now know I am not the only one who have these questions...PLUS they are living it! In the current time.....sorta with me(!?) I have found this podcast not only informative (they do provide multiple links, resources, experts and more) but oh so validating. I genuinely look forward to it since it makes me feel less alone. I have to continue to rave and add that the conversations that both Jim and Catherine have resonate on multiple layers. They are just like your friends (or my friends?), colleagues, family members that have coherent real conversations about politics, economics.....what to do right now, what does one shop for, and go through emotions that you are probably also going through (ups and downs and then a roller coaster on some days). Could not be more thankful for this podcast!

Wait! I already have a new crop of questions! But, I respect that it was time to move on for all of you. Thank you so much for this podcast and the deep dive conversations simplified for the rest of us. The “vaccination is like a wetsuit/life jacket in the ocean” analogy is still one if my favorite conversations. Best wishes to you all. And I guess now I have to grow up and get an actual subscription to the Atlantic to get answers my questions.

I am so sad this podcast is finishing. The conversations were a great way to stay informed about more than just the pandemic, but of course everything relevant in the pandemic. I am so unreasonably sad :( to loose this companionship. However, happy that the pandemic and the pain is finishing.

Can not wait to hear your next project !

Thank you for being a constant companion throughout this ordeal! I will miss this podcast - happy as I am to be vaccinated and returning to normal, I am sad to say goodbye!

I’m crying. I’m going to miss you all and this podcast. Thank you so much for all you did to help us all move through this time.

Will miss this podcast. Thank you!

Oh my goodness I cannot believe this magnificent podcast is over. I learned so much from you all. You will all be so missed. You were such a great source of information with the correct amount of much needed calm. Thank you for everything Dr. James Hamblin, Katherine Wells, and Ms. Higgins. Best regards and most respect, Elizabeth S

Heavy on idle banter, like eavesdropping on the adjacent table’s mildly interesting brunch chat. Only way to get through it is to use the 2x or FF, liberally.

We love the podcast and feel it is better with Maeve replacing Katherine

Edited review: New host Maeve is not very interesting. I'm tired of all the giggling. Maybe it's just a reflection of the national situation but the show has lost all urgency and now is just chit chat. Original review: I love this podcast a lot. The hosts are chatty and have good chemistry. Host Katherine Wells has a lovely voice to listen to. There's also very good information in each episode. This may be my favourite podcast lately.

This Maeve lady would make a joke at her own grandmothers funeral.

I started listening to this podcast at the beginning of the pandemic and it was good for getting solid, science-based info from Jim. But now that Maeve has joined, I listen for their banter because they’re truly hilarious together!

Excellent listening for anyone who has Suffered any long term mysterious chronic symptoms As well as those who were unable To get tested early on and still managing Some Mysterious symptoms since last March ....

My wife and I listen to Social Distance while we have our breakfast on Sunday morning. We enjoy listening to the podcast because we feel both entertained and educated at the same time. Thanks for helping us through this pandemic. Ben B.

listening to an episode from may 2020, and katherine wells is being so pretentious, mean, and dismissive to her co-host. difficult to listen to

It’s like listening in on conversation of old friends enjoyed every minute.

I have been listening since the beginning and really appreciate Jim sensible observations, Maeve’s sense of humor, and all the informative guests. I miss Katherine, but really love Maeve’s sense of humor.

I have loved this podcast for months but it’s just not the same with the new co-host! Is Maeve her permanent replacement because if so I may have to stop subscribing. She does not seem as well informed as Katherine and not a good fit with Jim.

I’ve loved this podcast but I’ve taken off 1 star because I’m not enjoying it nearly as much since Maeve replaced Katherine. She’s nice and all and has a charming accent, but there is too much unfunny chit chat now and I don’t find she clicks with Jim. I find myself fast forwarding the beginning and ending of every episode.

Always an interesting take on the weeks COVID news and I’ve learned a lot but the real reason I choose this over other COVID podcasts is Maeve Higgins’ humor and the nice dynamic between her and the main host.

Have been listening since March 2020 and LOVE this pod. Informative, measured, and fact-based. This pod has helped me understand the tips and turns of the pandemic. Thank you Jim and Katherine for being an informative part of my week over this past year.

First and foremost, because Katherine asked: 1. Jim is hilarious and not obnoxious. Jim, your sense of humor has been cracking me up *and* teaching me cool stuff since I first saw your work on The Atlantic’s website—maybe it was a precursor to the If Our Bodies Could Talk series? (Which is itself gold!) Your dry, almost absurdist sense of humor combined with the super methodical and rational thinking, and a seemingly genuine care for his work and its effect on individual and public health is pretty dang special. I am here for it! Anyway. Never change, Jim! (You know, except for like personal growth & contributing to the ever expanding fount of human knowledge.) 2. But why is Katherine so mean to him? I admit the show needs a straight man (you know, in the comedy sense 😂), and you serve the job well, Katherine. You’re also funny, and I appreciate your banter. You’re too mean to Jim, though! If Jim’s super obnoxious at work and somehow deserves the seemingly over the line teasing, we don’t really know. So to us listeners who don’t know you all personally, it just sounds like you put down your cohost all the time. 3. Now on to the content! Thanks to everyone who’s put this show together for the past year. You all quickly became a trusted source of info on all things covid & pandemic for me, and one that I am constantly recommending. It literally helped keep me grounded in the early days of so much change (overnight switch to teaching 3-5year olds with disabilities remotely! Extroverted, anxious, and suddenly alone all the time!). I appreciate that you all do excellent deep dives, refer back to earlier conversations & previous understandings, and bring your listeners along as you keep track of how things are evolving. You all strike a consistently terrific balance in addressing the scientific, social, societal, global, and emotional aspects of covid itself and how it’s affecting us all—and weave them together in a coherent, accessible, and (dare I say) even enjoyable way. Keep up the great work, you all. Thank you. P.S. In case anyone missed my answer above, Jim is funny.

Love this show! The information is timely and on point. Jim is a wonderfully patient and effective host and can distill the scientific information in a an engaging, understanding way. I miss Katherine as co-host. Hoping she comes back. The new woman co-host isn’t a good fit.

She’s just too bubbly for a podcast about Covid. It was great when Katherine was Jim’s cohost.

Love your show. You make everything so easy to understand and you crack me up. Can you do an episode that explains the science of the J and J vaccine and how it differs from the other two vaccines that are currently approved in the US?

i am becoming more and more annoyed with all the giggling and laughing of Mave. To the point that i will stop listening.

I love the info I get from this show. One request: can we hear an extended loop of Maive laughing? So heartwarming. Puts me in a good mood every time I hear her joy in my ears.

I’m a longtime subscriber to The Atlantic, and I love to listen to podcasts, but somehow I discovered this only on the last day of 2020. It was perfect timing, though, as I binge-listened and it helped me remember and process the year. I really enjoy the combination of digging into technical questions, exploring the emotions of this time, and the conversational approach. I have learned a lot and felt less lonely as a result. Thank you for making this!

This is a great podcast, featuring Dr. James Hamblin giving us the latest covid updates/analysis. Not too crazy about his cohosts, they don’t seem to realize the show is not about them, but Hamblins insights shine through nonetheless.

The show has really grown on me! Maybe you’ve come into your stride. Anyhow, I’ve kept listening and have come to realize that the information feels so sane and reasonable, which is welcome in this weird time! Plus I love Maeve. Thanks!

Why are you leaving us for this new show? So sad.

I’ve gotten over her pausing between words and making fun of Jim, the doctor. In the beginning, her anxiety about the pandemic was a bit over bearing and self serving. And her lack of knowledge is the definition of smart but stupid. Like being book smart but not world smart. What keeps me listening is the content. Plus I love Maeve Higgins. I wish she took over permanently as host.

Now that some of us have received two doses of the vaccine, can you review the safety protocol we should continue to follow? In other words, please remind mom and dad (in their 90s) that they still need to stay out of stores, still need to wear a mask if they are near people outside their household pod, and still need to keep their distance from people. Thanks for a great (really, life-saving) podcast!

...can’t speak without 1000 “likes” a sentence. The Irish giggles...I’m deleting now.

How do we know another pandemic won’t happen in a few years time?!! Yikes!

Because of this podcast, I bought a subscription to the Atlantic. I don’t remember how I came upon it, but lucky for me it was very early on. Immediately was hooked. Personable hosts, they seem like people from my friendship circles. I missed them when they did that unannounced short (thank goodness short) break and was worried it’d been cancelled for some reason. I love the format of responding to questions that readers or people in their own circles have had. They strike an excellent balance of informative about serious and very scarey aspects of the pandemic but always with perspective of real life ways to cope, survive and be well. I cannot wait for this pandemic to be over but when it is I know the Social Distancing podcast will end. That will be the ONLY thing bad at the pandemic’s end. Meanwhile, my subscription to the Atlantic will continue beyond this podcast and the pandemic.

This show has been a lifeline for me since it began. I love the casual and human tone of the conversations, and I absolutely depend on the clearheaded analysis of what’s really going on with Covid. Thanks for your hard work on this show, Jim and Katherine. It truly is getting me through all of the craziness and uncertainty!

This podcast is great! The hosts are thoughtful and deliver straightforward answers to complicated questions we’re all asking about the pandemic. Now that we’re receiving more news about covid vaccines, I’d love to hear you 2 explain how messenger RNA vaccines work!

This podcast is truly amazing! I enjoy the dynamic between the hosts and it’s very informative. Been listening since March and it has kept me sane during this insane time. I’m always looking forward to new episodes. Great work!

Love this podcast, I have recommended it to many during the pandemic. I have been a fan of James' for many years. I work as a medical writer and have studied how effective science communication works when the speaker is both warm and competent. These two nail it!

I enjoy the dynamic between the hosts. The candid conversations make me smile while also providing useful information. Thank you so much for this valuable resource. I look forward to listening every week!

I love this podcast and really appreciate the combination of Katherine’s questions and funny quips and Jim’s expertise and level headed advice. I do have a question: some acquaintance we have have expressed their distain for wearing masks and have judged others for wearing them. They are willfully ignorant and I’m wondering if this is a good time to cut ties with this crew. It seems like a natural culling of the herd but I also surrounding myself with differing opinions (figuratively) is central to growth. Tl;dr: is now the time to cut off antimaskers who are willfully ignorant and gleefully antagonizing those trying to protect others?

Your recent episode — my heart needed it! Thank you to both of you. I so so so appreciate the facts and come here each week for my dose of reality and facts. But also can we have an episode ranting about dealing with rough family situations? Haha I’m kidding. Or am I.

I have been listening to the pod since March when I panicked called (and emailed) about being pregnant with COVID-19 and was worried about my Japanese husband being hospitalized since he was much sicker than I was and doesn’t speak English. Everything turned out fine in the end, and it’s been a relief to have two levelheaded dog owners navigating us through this pandemic. It puts me in an awkward position of wishing for the end of this pandemic but the continuation of this podcast.

Thank you for getting the best scientists and medical professionals to keep us all informed at a deeper level. Katherine asks the questions I could ask (for real!) and Jim is the kind of pragmatic doctor we all need in our lives. I know some of your reviews say stick to the news but I happen to love hearing about your dogs and hand sanitizer and travels (or lack there of in the early days) to break up all the awfulness. Keep on keeping on!

Love the down to earth, cheerful format. Yet, still extremely informative and empowering based on solid science and expertise. Gives me hope that good people are offering this.