Health

Pharmaceutical Industry Taps Edelman to Handle Bioterrorism

by Sheldon Rampton — November 19, 2001 - 1:00am

The Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers Association (PhRMA) has hired Edelman Public Relations Worldwide to help position the pharmaceutical industry as a "leading source of information to the public" on the issue of bioterrorism. For the other side of the story, check out what Corpwatch.org has to say about wartime profiteering by drug companies and the controversy on patented drugs which started when the first signs of anthrax attacks appeared in the US.

Main Source: 
Holmes Report, November 19, 2001; PR Week, November 26, 2001

Bristol-Myers Partners with Hollywood to Push Pravachol

by John Stauber — November 13, 2001 - 12:02pm

Cholesterol lowering drugs are a ten billion dollar per year market and Bristol-Myers wants a boost to gain market share for its drug Pravachol. To do so it has partnered with Hollywood, dumping a large contribution into the non-profit Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) to enlist celebrities in advertisements subtly pushing Pravachol. The EIF tells the New York Times that the ads are not really ads at all, but a public service. The campaign will include celebrity interviews on talk shows and brochures in doctor's offices and pharmacies.

Main Source: 
New York Times

Warning: Industry PR Smears Good Science As "Junk Science"

by John Stauber — November 7, 2001 - 11:43am

Public health scientists Samet and Burke issue a strong warning in the current American Journal of Public Health about "the tobacco industry's attempt to discredit the scientific evidence on passive smoking, particularly the industry's use of the label 'junk science.' ... Unfortunately, 'junk science' has now become an ingrained pejorative. The public health community will need to be watchful in other arenas where the "junk science" gambit will be used. ... Trust Us We're Experts offer(s) a popular and cautionary account.... The lessons learned from this episode ...

Main Source: 
American Journal of Public Health

Dirty Tricks for the Pharmaceutical Industry in Australia

by Sheldon Rampton — November 7, 2001 - 1:00am

An Australian public relations company working for the pharmaceutical industry has been accused of running a secretive dirty tricks campaign to discredit an industry critic. Sydney-based Susan Andrews Communications Group, which helped promote arthritis pill Celebrex for Pfizer and Pharmacia, was named in last week's Medical Observer magazine as the source of leaked documents attempting to smear former Government drug adviser Professor David Henry.

Main Source: 
Financial Review (Australia), November 7, 2001

Pharma Buys a Conscience

by Sheldon Rampton — September 18, 2001 - 11:39am

"The pharmaceutical and biotechnological industries are funneling more and more cash into the pockets of academics who teach and study ethics," observes philosophy professor Carl Elliott, who works at a bioethics center. "Bioethicists have written for years about conflicts of interest in scientific research or patient care yet have paid little attention to the ones that might compromise bioethics itself," he notes, pointing to several cases in which companies like Eli Lilly have used funding to pressure ethicists into censoring or changing their views.

Main Source: 
American Prospect, September-October 2001

Junkman Seeks Human Guinea Pigs

by Sheldon Rampton — August 30, 2001 - 2:11pm

Steven Milloy, the industry lobbyist and Cato Institute staffer who calls himself "the junkman" at www.junkscience.com, is going to be getting a lot of publicity in the coming months. He has a book coming out in September titled Junk Science Judo: Self-Defense Against Health Scares and Scams, which he is already promoting on the radio talk show circuit.

Drug Firms Pay for AMA's Ethics Campaign

by Sheldon Rampton — August 30, 2001 - 12:00am

The American Medical Association is mounting a $1 million campaign to educate doctors about its ethics guidelines against accepting gifts from drug companies -- with most of the funding for the effort coming from drug companies.

Main Source: 
Washington Post, August 30, 2001

Journalism for Hire?

by Sheldon Rampton — August 24, 2001 - 1:14pm

The National Association of Science Writers (NASW) is debating the ethics of a job advertisement sent to its members from Chicco Chandler, a PR firm that "works exclusively with the pharmaceutical/biotech industry" and boasts of past involvement in PR for Viagra, Celebrex and Zoloft, with clients including Agouron, Amgen, Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, Novo Nordisk and Pfizer.

Wisconsin County Hires PR For Help With E. Coli Outbreak

by Laura Miller — August 22, 2001 - 12:00am

As the number of people sick from E. coli strain O157:H7 in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, climbed past 150 last Friday, public officials hired the PR firm Zigman Joseph Stephenson to help with media and an anticipated crush of lawsuits. The outbreak is being blamed on children not washing their hands after visiting the petting zoo at the Ozaukee County Fair. The Ozaukee County Board's Administrative Committee approved hiring the PR firm for up to $12,000 in expenses.

Main Source: 
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, August 17, 2001 & August 22, 2001

Jackie Joyner-Kersee Plugs GlaxoSmithKline

by Sheldon Rampton — August 14, 2001 - 12:00am

The New York Times ran an op-ed piece written by six-time Olympic track and field medal winner Jackie Joyner-Kersee about her struggle with asthma. The paper failed to note that Joyner-Kersee is part of an "asthma education program" program supported by GlaxoSmithKline, which makes an inhalation aerosol for asthma.

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's Online Daily, August 14, 2001
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