Health

It's the War, Healthcare and the Economy, Stupid

by Sheldon Rampton — January 19, 2008 - 12:12am

"Several of the leading presidential candidates have adopted 'change' as a campaign theme and have rushed to claim that they themselves are the candidates for change," notes Frank Newport of the Gallup polling organization. "But exactly what form that 'change' should take has been a little murky. Change is such a broad concept that -- like a Rorschach inkblot test -- an individual can read into it what he or she wants." To clarify things a bit, Gallup surveyed Americans to ask what type of change they wanted.

Main Source:

Gallup, January 17, 2008

More Selective Science from Pharmaceutical Front Group

by Sheldon Rampton — January 18, 2008 - 3:13pm

The Center for Science in the Public Interest is criticizing the Providence Journal for publishing an op-ed article by Robert Goldberg while failing to disclose that Goldberg and his organization, the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest,

Main Source:

Integrity in Science Watch, January 14, 2008

Drug Companies Dope Their Research -- It's All Good!

by Sheldon Rampton — January 17, 2008 - 4:58pm

The pharmaceutical industry is using a novel technique to cheer up people who suffer from clinical depression -- only publishing favorable studies about the effects of its antidepressant medications.

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Newswseek, January 17, 2008

Cigarette Pack-Shaped Books Get British American Tobacco Steamed

by Anne Landman — January 16, 2008 - 3:02pm

Capitalizing on the public's familiarity with cigarette brands, a publisher and design company in the United Kingdom has released a set of literary classics designed to look like cigarette packs.

Main Source:

The Guardian (UK), January 16, 2008

News Director Sickened by Proposed Hospital Agreement

by Diane Farsetta — January 15, 2008 - 1:36pm

"I could not with a clear conscience go into that newsroom and tell the staff that this was a good thing," explained former WEAU-13 news director Glen Mabie. Mabie resigned from the northwest Wisconsin television station "because of a disagreement ...

Main Source:

Leader-Telegram (Eau Claire, Wisconsin), January 15, 2008

Adults Still Don't "Get It" on Youth Smoking

by Anne Landman — January 14, 2008 - 4:54pm

Topics: Advertising, Corporate Campaigns, Corporate Social Responsibility, Children, Health, Marketing, Tobacco

A recent report issued by the American Lung Association gives the State of Virginia a "D" for its youth smoking prevention efforts.

Marketing Drugs for a Disputed Condition

by Diane Farsetta — January 14, 2008 - 12:59pm

"Fibromyalgia is a real, widespread pain condition," stresses a woman in a television ad for Lyrica, a Pfizer drug that recently became "the first medicine approved to treat the pain condition." But some doctors have their doubts. These skeptics "say vague complaints of chronic pain do not add up to a disease. ... The condition cannot be linked to any environmental or biological causes." Even Dr.

Main Source:

New York Times, January 14, 2008

Drug Ads Raise Legislators' Blood Pressure

by Diane Farsetta — January 11, 2008 - 3:51pm

The U.S. Congress is investigating "the pharmaceutical industry's use of celebrity endorsements in direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertisements." First up are ads for Pfizer's cholesterol drug Lipitor, which feature the inventor of the artificial heart, Dr. Robert Jarvik.

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PM (Pharmaceutical Marketing) Live, January 9, 2008

Cigarette "Taste Test" Snuffed Out

by Anne Landman — January 9, 2008 - 2:59pm

Australia's 1992 Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act prohibited most forms of tobacco advertising, making it more difficult for tobacco companies to promote their products. Despite the law, an Australian market-research firm called Feedback Plus was found to be distributing free cigarettes in a program it said was a "taste-testing survey" being carried out as part of a "marketing research" program.

Main Source:

Sydney Morning Herald, January 9, 2008

Drug Companies' R&D Spending Lags Behind Promotion

by Judith Siers-Poisson — January 9, 2008 - 11:21am

The pharmaceutical industry often uses the need for research and development funds as an excuse for exorbitant drug prices. But a new study by Marc-Andre Gagnon and Dr.

Main Source:

ScienceDaily, January 7, 2008