Kennedy, the Trump administration’s health chief, is set to roll out a new HHS-backed podcast next week, signaling a formal expansion of government messaging into a format increasingly clipped and shared online. The podcast, titled “The Secretary Kennedy Podcast,” will feature Kennedy in conversations with doctors, scientists and agency staff, with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services officials briefing The Associated Press about plans ahead of the launch.
HHS officials described the show as “a new era of radical transparency in government,” language Kennedy used in a teaser video obtained by The Associated Press. In the nearly 90-second clip, Kennedy appears in an HHS-branded studio with music playing, and he says the podcast will name the “forces that obstruct the paths to public health,” framing it as a way to expose corruption and lies that have made Americans sick.
The production will be handled through HHS communications, where Tyler Burger, the HHS digital communications manager and producer, said the set was assembled largely from items the agency already had. Burger also said the show’s setup is designed for a total of four people to sit in conversation together.
HHS officials said the podcast fits into a wider communications push focused on health topics they say matter to voters. Liam Nahill, the department’s digital director, said the effort is part of a strategy to bring the “Make America Healthy Again message” to “as wide an audience as we can,” adding that the show will address chronic disease and improving health.
The podcast announcement arrives as HHS has faced setbacks related to its vaccine policy changes, including criticism and a federal ruling last month blocking several of those moves, according to The Associated Press. The department has also faced resistance from Republican senators over President Donald Trump’s surgeon general pick, leaving the spotlight on broader messaging beyond vaccine policy as the administration prepares for the midterm elections.
Public health law expert Lawrence Gostin, at Georgetown University, said a podcast could further elevate Kennedy’s views, including views that contradict the scientific consensus, and that it could further erode HHS agencies’ reputation as a “safe harbor for information.” Gostin’s comments highlighted concerns that a regular, government-hosted format may shift how audiences encounter health information.
Officials also described the decision as a return to a communications approach Kennedy has used for years, including hosting his own podcast before taking office and appearing in longform interviews elsewhere. Burger said HHS officials believe Kennedy’s podcast will be the first to be hosted by a sitting cabinet secretary, and he pointed to the fact that podcasts can now be made in video form and spread rapidly across social media.
Critics, however, raised concerns that the show could function as a channel for misinformation. Grace Silva, spokesperson for 314 Action, said it would be “just another official channel to spread misinformation” that would “inject more dangerous conspiracy theories into the mainstream,” according to The Associated Press.
In a separate exchange, HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said the show will aim to cover affordability and other topics that he said polls show are salient for voters, and he said the podcast will address chronic disease, nutrition, food quality and lowering health costs. Burger said new episodes are expected to drop every other week, and Kennedy indicated he recorded an episode with Robert Irvine, the celebrity chef tasked with revamping U.S. Army meals, when he appeared as a guest on “The Bossticks,” according to The Associated Press.