The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Hantavirus Is Not the Next Covid, But Try Telling That to the News Media | Josh Tyrangiel

Episode Date: May 12, 2026

Jon Stewart dives into the hantavirus cruise ship panic sweeping the news cycle, the landfill visit that appears to have sparked the spread, whether we’re getting a pandemic sequel, and the media’s eagerness to sensationalize the virus while health experts urge calm. Plus, Trump gets his own version of the golden calf, and cruise ships offer free norovirus. Josh Tyrangiel, staff writer at The Atlantic and author of “AI for Good: How Real People Are Using Artificial Intelligence to Fix Things That Matter” joins Jon to discuss why there is a brief but closing window to use public pressure and political will to demand AI that actually works with human beings, and doesn’t replace them. Tyrangiel shares how teachers, doctors and caregivers are quietly using AI as a tool to change lives. They also discuss why Fortune 100 CEOs don’t want to talk about AI’s impact on their workforce and this idea of imagining “tech without the tech companies.” -- The Daily Show airs weeknights at 11/10c on Comedy Central. Stream full episodes on Paramount+ Follow TDS: YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You're listening to Comedy Central. From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central is America's only source for news. This is The Daily Show with your host, John. Once again to The Daily Show, my name is John Stewart. Great show for you tonight. And I don't say that every time. Later on, we're going to be joined by a journalist.

Josh Tirangal wrote a book about how AI can help solve the world's problems. And from what I understand, he wrote it with AI. But first I want to check in on the president. You know, his approval rating is currently lower than really ever, I think. It's really, it's not good. Really thanks to a combination of inflation

and he's a dick and the war in Iran, the ongoing energy crisis in his own body. Weekend the Donnie's. But as is always the case with Donald Trump, his MAGA base remains unfazed. Now, this week saw the formal dedication of a 22-foot gold statue of Trump at his Miami golf course by none other than evangelical Pastor Mark Burns. Pastor Burns must have known

that he might take some criticism for praying over a literal golden idol because he wrote on social media, quote, let me be clear, this is not a golden calf. It is not, but if I may say it is a full-grown cow. That is a golden cow with a gold load in its... I don't want to suggest this is actually a case of false idolatry. If it was, God would probably be punishing us the same way he did in the Bible with a plague. And I mean, that's not happening.

Breaking tonight, the deadly outbreak of a rare rodent, on board a cruise ship. The race to contain a suspected deadly virus outbreak. The public health threat so dangerous. Nightmare at sea. Cruise chaos. A cruise from hell. What?

Another pandemic? Are we going to have to start washing our hands again? Are freaking the f*** out in the target? Target? I'm not playing any other game. This shit's over. This shit's all. Although I have to say, on the plus side, I can't believe I still fit into my old hazmat suit.

Question here, though, are we all going to die? It's not like COVID. It's not like measles. It's not a very efficient transmission. The overall risk to the public is low. You don't need to be hysterical about it. I know we don't have to be hysterical about it. You know what?

It's a relief. I'm glad we don't have to be hysterical about it. COVID was a respiratory virus. Passes easily. Often when the person isn't symptomatic. It was a brand new virus. We had ever seen before, and we weren't allowed to know where it came from. I mean, we didn't know.

We were obviously allowed to know. We just didn't know. While the hanta virus is a known virus, it's difficult to transmit. It's mostly spread by rat infestation, which does raise the question. How did a cruise ship end up with hanta virus on it? A husband and wife who were the first to be stricken with the so-called rat virus reportedly went bird watching at a rat-infested landfill when their cruise ship was docked at a remote city in Argentina.

I have some questions. It's going to walk down the list. A, what cruise line offers day trip landfill excursions? Watcher and spend the whole day... Seagull. Sego. Sego. Sego. Seagot. Use condom.

Warbler. No, that's used condom. Sego, vulture, seagull, condom, vulture eating, seagull eating condom. In birdwatching lingo, that's known as a vulgoldom. A lot of people serve that on the holidays. The point is, some people may get pretty sick. But forget COVID, this ain't no pandemic. Hell, this haunt of virus, and not even in monkeypox territory.

But I guess reality don't sell papers. So boys, we learned that everything was okay on Tuesday. What are we doing Wednesday through Friday? The WHO has been vocal and saying this is not another pandemic or epidemic situation. Can they be so sure? Should people be worried? Is this another pandemic? Could the hentivirus mutate? People have a right to be nervous. You got a fight. Yes. Fight to be nervous. But I guess the question the news might want to ask is, do we have a reason? And your assignment, news, should you choose to accept it, is to help the public discern the difference.

So may we hear from the experts again? The potential to spread beyond an outbreak is very small. It should be pretty limited. Should keep it contained. Shouldn't really have any concern at all. I have no concern about that. I guess it's going to stick this time. I want to make the timeline clear to everybody.

Sunday, we found out Haunted virus had been on a cruise ship. Monday through Thursday, expert upon expert, scientists upon scientists, very transparently explained why this illness, while a serious illness, is a low-level public health threat. Their words went a long way to easing the concerns of a curious public, and Lord knows The news can't let that happen. So on Friday, after three days of reinsurance, I give you nightline. A dream vacation turning into a floating nightmare. Authorities now working to stop the spread and track down passengers who've already left the ship,

including to the U.S. The looming question, could this become the next pandemic? God damn it! Did you check out the percussion on that? Do-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-Q! The question of whether it was going to be the next pandemic had been asked and answered for three days. But apparently that was before the authorities decided

not to fire a torpedo and sink the cruise ship, burying its diseased passengers and cruise entertainers in a watery grave befitting their disease. That's right, folks. These people from this ship were going to be. Dukit-d-d-d-d-d-d-degg-deggat allowed to disembark. The deadly hanta virus is no longer contained to that cruise ship.

It is now literally flying around the world. Why they let them off the boat, releasing them off the boat, just creates new problems. Why did they get off the boat and then come back to America? How long people on the ship should be isolated before being allowed to leave and then walk among us? I don't think any of us are crazy about the... about the idea of people who take cruises walking amongst us.

I just don't think it's, and I respect that. But there's still people. They're just people who wanted to travel the world on a floating shopping mall. They can throw their fiance off. Body count than the hanta virus. Trust me. I could be convinced to be on Team Syncum all.

But again, let's listen to the experts that the news people themselves have vetted to answer these questions responsibly. Dr. Rasmussen, do you have any concerns about the process of the passengers returning to their home countries? So I don't actually have any concerns about this process from a scientific perspective because I actually think that the process itself is completely suitable for this virus. Oh, suitable for the virus, but not suitable apparently for this news cycle.

The news experts say stay calm, but the news media says, No, I believe we prefer panic. Right now we're in the port where the ship won't even be allowed to dock. You can have a look at what this looks like. That is the MV Hondias. Those are the Americans finally on board that evacuation boat. You can see there's a small group of them being ferried back and forth. Helping ferry passengers off the ship and onto some smaller boats to land.

Off of the ship on these little boats that bring them here through a tent. Within minutes, they are on a bus headed straight for the airport. We're looking at a portion of a bus that looks similar to the ones. that people have gotten on to. You're literally showing us a bus they're not on? You're just cutting to showing us what a bus looks like. Yes, Jim, the passengers are getting on, and I'm being told that the wheels on this bus go round and round,

where the wheels go round and round, Jim. I see, and can you ask, will that be all through the town? I believe it will, Jim. I believe they will be going all through the town on the bus. They were treating it like the OJJs. It was, that's the logistics of how you get from a boat to the fucking shore. But don't worry, the news media's high-level technology gets us access. We never could have gotten before.

These images just coming in, those Americans getting on buses and waving before boarding their flights. Drone video from Spanish authorities capturing the first passengers leaving. Drone video. Spectacular. Such good use of drones. Ukraine uses theirs to defeat Russia. But good on you, I still have not learned enough. I mean, I know they've gone from a boat to a smaller boat to a tent to a bus,

but at this point, I've somewhat lost the trail. Where will it end? Where will these who are supposedly to walk amongst us end up? Perhaps in a room? If so, what does the room look like? Is it furnished? If it has a bike, will that bike be stationary? Each person will have their own room.

Equipped with special ventilation system, private bathrooms, exercise equipment, and Wi-Fi. Bathrooms, exercise equipment, Wi-Fi! Oh, maybe we should all get the Haunted virus. It's actually not that luxurious. Only one of them will be given the password, which I believe is lowercase hanta virus, but the I is a one, and the S is a dollar bill, y'all. Look, we are now eight days into this non-pandemic,

and it's beginning to affect our Mother's Day coverage segways. It's a very happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there. This morning, that cruise ship hit by a deadly honta virus. The state of our union is calling our mom. This morning, 17. are beginning a trip back to the U.S. Happy Mother's Day, all the mom's watching. Let's kick this off.

Pandemic panic. You love her, but also keep your eyes on it. Because you don't know if she's got her or not. I'm going to tell you this. If she turns, you know what you have to do. No, she's not your mother anymore. She's more haunt her than woman. No matter how many times the question can be asked and answered,

it doesn't f***. doesn't matter for some people. And sometimes it's the same person. Does this have the markings of the next pandemic or no? No. Should we still not be sounding the alarm? I don't think we have to be very anxious about it. Should we be worried that we have an American here who's tested positive?

No, it's a low risk to Americans. Should we still not be worried by this here in America? Correct. I don't think that this poses any risk to the general public. Jesus, lady. Do you just want to work from home? Just work from home. Just zoom in. Jesus.

Although it is important to note, this virus can cause chronic fatigue syndrome, mostly amongst the experts who have to repeatedly answer the same questions. What is your message to Americans who are still scared? We have been repeating the same answer many times.

This is not another COVID. And the risk to the public is low. So they shouldn't be scared and they shouldn't panic. You f***ing idiot. Well, that certainly should put an end to it unless... So they shouldn't be scared and they shouldn't panic. And there is concern out there that more positive cases could pop up. So when they say, you shouldn't be scared, you hear, be scared!

It's like they're all trying to recapture that pandemic ratings magic. Remember the old big screen body counts? All the ways they scared us. Well, the counts are back. Obviously not as compelling. There's one person who tested positive. A separate person showed symptoms, but we don't have a positive test result for that person. One.

one positive and one runny nose what this thing is spreading like I don't know what's something that doesn't spread cold butter the legs of approved this all day so it's fine it's not a thing

go about your lives go on a cruise if you want meanwhile a norovirus outbreak on board a different cruise ship 102 passengers 13 crew members is sick on the Caribbean princess. People are using artificial intelligence to fix things that matter.

Please welcome to the program, Josh Terengal. You have taken on a task. AI for good. AI is reputational right now in the country, maybe in the world. People are very concerned. It is, I saw it booed at a graduation speech. The valedictorian said something about

AI being the new Industrial Revolution and the kids literally, just wanted to go up on stage and drag her out. Why take up the mantle of it to show, to take down the temperature? Yeah, I mean, I didn't do that intentionally. I was reporting on AI and a couple months into reporting,

this is early 2024, I was like, what the hell is this good for? Because I was talking to people who were telling me two things. One, it's going to cure cancer and mitigate climate change, okay? It's going to end human existence, right? And I was like, are those the only two options?

Like, is there anything in between? And so I was actually talking to a guy named Danny Hillis who invented cloud computing. And Danny's now in his 70s. And he's kind of like the Buddha of Silicon Valley. Like, he's just this lovely guy. And I'm complaining to him. I'm like, Danny, this is bullshit. Like, what is this good for?

And Danny just laughs. And he's like, you need to imagine the tech without the tech companies. And I was like, uh, I'm a little. I'm still embarrassed that I didn't realize one can do that. Can one do that? One can. You can separate AI and the technology from Palantir and Altman and Musk. You can.

And so one thing that's really important to know is like, AI is not one thing. So there are many things that are infuriating about AI. Yes. But one of them is the term AI, okay? So AI is actually a series of overlapping but different capabilities and techniques, right? So there's AI. There's AI that can predict behavior from patterns it sees in data. Right.

Those are the large language models or that's something different? There's a part of it that's large language. But not entirely, right? There's classifiers and what classifiers can do is like, you know, tag an image, sort your email, flag a tumor on an MRI. Okay, let's use that one. Yeah, yeah, exactly, right? Then there's optimizers and they work in logistics and they can change the direction of something

or change pricing really quickly. And then there's Gen. Generative AI, generative AI, which is really what has sparked this whole thing in the last three years. And that's AI that generates words and images and can create code. And so what they all have in common is speed. They process information faster than any human being possibly could

and with many fewer doubts. And so that's sort of the key. The lack of doubt. Both the speed and the lack of doubt. So what you do in the book, and I think you do it really well, is you show AI as a tool, whether it be in schools. There's a great chapter in there about some teachers in Indiana who are starting to use it with heart MRIs, which are apparently very difficult to get, but are diagnostically superior, nonverbal humans that communicate

and ways to help crack that code to bring those people in. But it's hard to imagine it will remain our assistant. Yeah, and I think what you're getting at is that we have all been focused on Gen AI and the people who are bringing it to us. Yes. And we're human beings. So we focus on human beings, which I think is very wise because the tech is complicated. And so what is the first thing we do? We assess the people who are bringing it to us. Right. Who are in control of it.

Who are control of it. And we don't like them. Thank you. Yeah. I didn't want to say anything. No, no, no, it's fine. It's fine. By the way, hard to like. Hard to like, okay?

Hard to like. I'm going to take a mildly unpopular stance and say, I'm not sure they're necessarily evil, but they're very alike. They're very similar. Yes. And so they're all kind of like racing each other, obsessed with each other,

intent on dominating. It doesn't help that they all kind of look like they could be in the Legion of Doom. Yes. Right? Like, you got the game. The guy who wants to colonize Mars, the guy who flies into his secret bunker in Hawaii. None of that's great.

You got a guy who literally had to pause when asked if humanity should continue. Right. Should humanity continue? And he was like, ooh, interesting question. Yeah. So, like, not great. No. Okay.

But at the same time, there's more than one baby with this bathwater. There's a lot of possibility in here. And we want to be really careful in our response to that, which I think. think is actually a response to capitalism and a skepticism of capitalism with what this stuff can actually do. But it's also, we have been hurt before. But let me take you then. We keep saying, well, it is really these five guys in these five companies.

It's Google OpenAI, AI, AIX, and Anthropic and Meta. Meta. Okay. Why did they get it? Why is it, why did all the profits of it? AI is, by necessity, a strip mining of us. It is, in fact, extractive in the way that oil companies, oil might be a resource. And you extract it from the ground and they did it and, okay, that's theirs.

But in Alaska, they get a dividend. Why does Palantir and Open AI and why do they get proprietary knowledge that is our knowledge that they stole from us that they used to make their, but they're the ones who get all the money? That makes no sense to me. Yeah, listen, I agree. And I actually think that politically speaking, there's movement on the far left and on the far right for the federal government to essentially nationalize these products

and basically say, look, you're going to have tremendous amounts of control, we're going to have all sorts of labor issues. You know, I did a story for the Atlantic about AI and the future of employment, right? Yes. Nobody in the middle knows what I'm talking about. They're not interested in AI. Right. Well, it's kind of on its way, right?

The two people who agreed, right, on the left, Bernie Sanders said, we need to tax it, we need a robot tax, we need a shorter work week, and we're going to need to nationalize it, right? And so then I went to Steve Bannon's townhouse. I sat with Steve Bannon. What that smell like? You know, we didn't get that close. This was not my first reporting trip, so I wasn't like, do we start by smelling each other?

I just thought it would be evidence. Yeah, no, no, no, right. So we're talking, and he says, I agree with Bernie Sanders. Right. And he said, but he doesn't go far enough. I think we should get 50%, and I think we need to have government control

over the boards of these companies. And he said, I know that's not going to be popular with the right, but that's what I believe. Right. And he doesn't believe it either, is my guess. And he certainly doesn't believe it if a Democrat is in office. I think they, you know, it's very consistent. for them to do the faux populism when it's really about control. But I wouldn't even think it's that radical.

It's the sense of this is a resource. Look, the guys from AI are the ones who agree with you that this is going to be incredibly disruptive for labor. This isn't something that populists have made up. No. Dario from Anthropic has said, yeah, this is going to be a bear. Yes. And what I found in my reporting on that

story is that the people who really didn't want to talk about it were the Fortune 100 CEOs. Oh, that's interesting. Yeah. Now, why do you say that? What do you think that's about? I think it's two responses. Yeah. The first is they're actually really scared.

Really scared. That it's going to come for them? They're scared that they look at their investments in AI and they know what Wall Street wants. Wall Street wants growth. And if they can't show growth through using AI in their products, they can grow by shrinking their workforce. And so they are desperately afraid that that's something that they're going to do and that it's going to be really, really unpopular. And what I would say is, like, I was impressed they were aware that they're not acting alone and that if all of them do this at the same time, the consequences for the country are going to be enormous.

However, if they don't do it, they're going to be the ones out of a job because the street expects certain things from these public companies. So they're incentivized to the breakdown of our social fabric. Correct. Through a great amount of unemployment. But the thing that I respond to is there's a sense of inevitability around all this as though we've created a tool that's unbelievably powerful, but we have no control over how it's deployed or how it's used. Imagine if Adam bombs were controlled by five capitalists in Silicon Valley,

and we were all like, they're probably going to start a war at some point, but what are you going to do, capitalists? Right. And so that's why I actually think it's really important to show people what the positive uses of AI are, because we're going to have this moment, and it's not going to last very long, when we can demand and insist on certain kinds of AI in our lives. If we try to take on all of capitalism, I got bad news for you. Like, it's had a 400-year head start, and that Boulder is rolling down the hill.

And sometimes we've directed it, and sometimes we haven't. But, like, I wouldn't take that on. I think right now, we have this brief period where if we can understand what we want from it, how it works, how to use it in ways that it works with human beings and doesn't replace human beings. Right. How it amplifies meaningful problems, doesn't create slop. We got a shot. And I would rather focus on the ways in which we have a shot than, as you say, like hunker down, curl up in a ball and just be like, ah.

Right. It's over. Yeah. But they're doing their best to prevent that process from happening. And as trillions get funneled into their coffers, millions, get funneled back into politicians' coffers to prevent that very thing from happening. They've created a machine that prevents us and is opaque.

And again, I go back to, but what is the fundamental driver of their product? Us. For sure. And so I don't understand how we're not, we have no shareholder voice. Right. And I think to me, that's why this moment matters.

Right. We actually, and I hate to say this. No. We're going to have to use the political system. Stop it. Wash your mouth out with soaking, man. One source of optimism. So up until like a week ago, I would have told you, well, that's just terrible, right?

So everybody's the booing at graduations, the fact that we're talking about this in such negative terms. So for the first 14 months of the Trump chew, a guy named David Sacks was in charge of AI. He also was the Cryptozar. I know. He also was an investor in all the AI company. So he's basically like the size spurling of AI, right? He's the president. He's the investor.

He stepped down about a month ago. And last week, you know, we reported other people reported. The Trump administration is thinking of suddenly regulating AI models above a certain power. And I think they're doing that because they know if there is an AI-related disaster, you know, there's photos of all these guys cozing up to Donald Trump. At the inauguration, they finally realized that. At the inauguration, at dinners, and they're like, well, that's not great for us. Yes. And so the political movement is having an impact.

And at the same time as that's working, people are actually making their point of view heard. We do need to demand that the people we elect to Congress have used AI. No, the basic functionality of technology. I'm sure they have. Oh, they all have. Yeah. I mean, they're all training their own models. What color tie makes voters most comfort of them?

So we do have that available to us, and I actually, for the first time, I'm like, oh, that lever is working a little bit. The problem is, again, I don't trust them to regulate it either because of the corrupt nature of their dealings. I mean, when your two kids suddenly have a multi-million dollar drone contract with the Pentagon, and, like, they ran golf courses. And you're like, I don't think that makes any sense. Like the corruption endemic to this administration doesn't give you. We need to establish some form of a way to adjudicate it that is apolitical. Right. And more akin to a commission of trusted advisors.

Yeah. And I think what's happening with the five guys, as we call them in charge, is that I don't think anybody wants to own the disaster. Right. And I think the more unpopular this gets. Right. There is more of an incentive for everybody to sit down and say, uh, how do we want to handle this?

And by the way, I would include the Chinese in this, right? From the beginning we've been told like, no, no, no, we have to beat the Chinese. That's why we can't regulate it.

Right. Oh, that's so interesting. So you think there's a self-preservation that has suddenly occurred to them that were at the forefront? Because I was up the impression that they felt immune

to the vagaries of accountability in our government and also in those Silicon Valley boardrooms. And I would not speak for them. I would only say the pressure has increased a lot. The consequences have suddenly become much more clear of what failure looks like. So I think there's a window here. Do I trust the Trump administration to push them through the window? No.

The metaphor has me confused. The window is good. Push them through the window, but then I can't help but think of like, isn't that how Putin gets rid of everybody? Let me ask you, though, because this is, and this is a purely philosophical question, because I understand the challenges that are had for us. But I think as human beings on this earth, the idea that we've designed something that's better than us throws into disarray our entire understanding of almost even faith.

Because what have we said about God? What do we say about the human eye? Well, the human eye couldn't have been created unless it was created by something greater than us. But we've just created something greater than us, and we're less. So does that mean, does that change almost, do they reckon with that? I don't think they do, but... Want to get high and reckon with that?

Do you know what I mean? Yeah, but I was it that a lesser being creates a better being. But I guess I look at it differently, okay? So remember a couple weeks ago, the robot that won the half marathon in China? And everybody's saying, oh, the robot beat the humans. I was like, that robot probably had 2,000 programmers and manufacturers who worked on it. So 2,000 people in a robot won that half marathon, in my mind. You just blew, oh, hold on.

It's a great point. I keep thinking of it as every iteration of it, blows my mind more than the next, and it's moving so quickly. I'll tell you a quick story before we go. I was at one of those, like, Illuminati get-togethers, like in the mountains of Colorado. Like, one of those things that you're like, that doesn't happen. But it happened.

It's always like a conference, you know, and they have like, it's like, Bill Gates and Musk and they're all in the room. And there's a good amount of security. and the food is fantastic. And so I thought, well, I'll get a chance. I go up to Sam Altman. And these guys are always like, you couldn't find a bag. You're like, I was dressed nicer.

And that never happens. You literally like, really, corduroy? Come on, dude. And I said, the Industrial Revolution displaced, the globalization displaced, but all those took place over decades. and America still, and the world still didn't adjust to it in the same way. AI may have that same level of displacement over three years. And we can't in any way be prepared for that kind of disruption in that kind of time frame.

And I laid it out so beautifully, Josh. I was sure that I was the one that he was going to be like, let's get some coffee and talk. And what did he say? He goes, we'll be good. And then he walked away. And I was like, huh. Okay. That sucked.

Yeah. Sorry. But thank you for wrestling with these questions. Man, this is going to be. This is going to be the book. Start to read how we can use this as a tool because you're going to need it. AI for good. Available now.

Josh Terringo. We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back. We're going to check in with your host for the rest of the week, Mr. Jordan. Klepper Jordan. What do you got for us next week? Well, John, air travel is a mess. Gas prices are surging, but don't worry, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, has a plan,

and you'll never guess what it is. How about he's going to fix the problems? Even better. He's launching a reality show. Road-tripping with his family across America. That's a very real thing he's doing. And I can't wait for it. This is the show that America. I think American needs really transportation

to be fixed. Come on, John. Don't you want to see if Sean will be voted out of the minivan? Well, one of his kids turn out to be cake. Will one lucky ice officer join him in the fantasy suite? I mean, tell me that's not something you want to watch on your seat back while your plane runs out of fuel. Wait, why is my plane running out of fuel?

Well, we'll find out in season two. For everybody, here it is your moment. I want you as the medical professional to lay this out for people. How concerned should the general public be? Yeah, the risk to the general public remains really low. Think of it this way. COVID was a wildfire.

It spread through the air. People who did not have symptoms could still infect other people, and the entire world was fuel for the COVID virus. Haunta virus is like, a wet log and a stone fireplace. Explore more shows from the Daily Show podcast universe by searching The Daily Show, wherever you get your podcasts. Watch the Daily Show weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central,

and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount Plus. This has been a Comedy Central podcast.