Dr. Fred Goodwin and The Infinite Mind
On May 9, 2008, Slate published a negative article about a program of "The Infinite Mind" in which psychiatric medications for depression were discussed, and where all the participants of the program, including Dr. Goodwin himself, had financial ties to pharmaceutical companies who produce depression medications. This conflict of interest was not disclosed by the producers of the show, Dr. Goodwin, or any of the people appearing on the show. This article led to the later New York Times report about the incident. Lichtenstein acknowledged the lack of disclosure that the experts on the show had each at one point worked on pharmaceutical company funded research.
On November 21, 2008, the New York Times reported that the host of "The Infinite Mind," Dr. Fred Goodwin, had received "at least $1.3 million from 2000 to 2007 giving marketing lectures for drugmakers, income not mentioned on the program." Goodwin also asserted that Lichtenstein was aware of this income, an allegation disputed by Lichtenstein.
However, a week after the New York Times article, the National Public Radio series, "On the Media," ran a story that an anonymous source had corroborated Goodwin's claim that Lichtenstein was aware of his income from drug makers. Three months later, on March 12, 2008, "On the Media" issued a correction to the story, in which they apologized for not contacting Lichtenstein prior to broadcast.:
"A lapse of journalistic judgment . . . that was a mistake." said NPR On The Media's Brooke Gladstone. "It wasn't fair and it didn't serve our listeners, so this week we did. Lichtenstein told us that he also spoke to that anonymous source, who said that she had no first-hand evidence that he knew of any fees. He emphasized that, in fact, he was not aware of Goodwin’s financial ties to drug companies and that The Infinite Mind had always adhered to standard journalism practice in vetting guests and disclosing conflicts of interest."
Read more about this topic: Bill Lichtenstein
Famous quotes containing the words fred, infinite and/or mind:
“Guilty. Guilty. My evil self is at that door, and I have no power to stop it.”
—Cyril Hume, and Fred McLeod Wilcox. Dr. Morbius (Walter Pidgeon)
“I feel that the Godhead is broken up like the bread at the Supper, and that we are the pieces. Hence this infinite fraternity of feeling.”
—Herman Melville (1819–1891)
“It matters little comparatively whether the fields fill the farmer’s barn. The true husbandman will cease from anxiety, as the squirrels manifest no concern whether the woods will bear chestnuts this year or not, and finish his labor with every day, relinquishing all claim to the produce of his fields, and sacrificing in his mind not only his first but his last fruits also.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)