The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest (a.k.a. Drug Wonks) have a catchy little video about Michael Moore that has people talking. What started as a publicity stunt has launched a wave of criticism for the video’s makers. See the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Motiv5-3AME
They ask people on the street if they would trust their health to Michael Moore. Obviously, the resounding answer is no. [I’ll wait to comment specifically about the content of Moore’s film until after I’ve seen it.]
What’s surprising is that the CMPI folks use are using the same arguments as the people who criticize DTC advertising (and they are being criticized for it in return). Would you trust your health to a one-page advertisement from a drug company? Would you trust your health to an overweight man who makes movies? The answer to both questions should rightly be no.
Frankly, what did the CMPI folks expect from Moore? Journalism? You know what you’re going to get—one-sided voyages into the gluttonous side of Marx. Entertaining? Hell yes. Factual? Sometimes. Accurate? Usually not. But we’re not going to stop watching Moore’s movies. His like a very big Paris Hilton—you just can’t stop watching and asking yourself if this guy is for real.
Your health is your health. Pharma companies will try to influence it. HMOs and the Government will try to ration it. And Michael Moore will make money off of it by exploiting the plights of the unfortunate. But what you ultimately do about it should only be between you and your doctors.
Photo: REUTERS/Rebecca Cook
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Motiv5-3AME
They ask people on the street if they would trust their health to Michael Moore. Obviously, the resounding answer is no. [I’ll wait to comment specifically about the content of Moore’s film until after I’ve seen it.]
What’s surprising is that the CMPI folks use are using the same arguments as the people who criticize DTC advertising (and they are being criticized for it in return). Would you trust your health to a one-page advertisement from a drug company? Would you trust your health to an overweight man who makes movies? The answer to both questions should rightly be no.
Frankly, what did the CMPI folks expect from Moore? Journalism? You know what you’re going to get—one-sided voyages into the gluttonous side of Marx. Entertaining? Hell yes. Factual? Sometimes. Accurate? Usually not. But we’re not going to stop watching Moore’s movies. His like a very big Paris Hilton—you just can’t stop watching and asking yourself if this guy is for real.
Your health is your health. Pharma companies will try to influence it. HMOs and the Government will try to ration it. And Michael Moore will make money off of it by exploiting the plights of the unfortunate. But what you ultimately do about it should only be between you and your doctors.
Photo: REUTERS/Rebecca Cook
2 comments:
What a load of industry funded bullshit this site is.
Thank you for your truly insightful comment.
Just curious what makes you say that? The fact that I don't swallow everything Michael Moore says? Read the post again... I'm saying you need to be just as distrustful of one-page ad from a drug company as you should be of an entertainer who makes money off people's suffering. That's "industry funded bullshit" in your view?
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