Action Network is an open platform that empowers individuals and groups to organize for progressive causes. We encourage responsible activism, and do not support using the platform to take unlawful or other improper action. We do not control or endorse the conduct of users and make no representations of any kind about them.
It's the only platform I've been able to find that lets you send 5,000 free emails a month for a letter campaign. Are you aware of any others that are economical?
The big concern with many services, especially those with a particular political view (left, right, doesn't matter) is that they often collect email address and other contact information and use it for other purposes such as seeking out donors. It's just something to consider when you choose a mass mail service.
Banning would be best. One solution that occurred to me as an intermediate measure, though, if technology will allow it, is to require all broadcasters to include a “turn off switch“ for anything medical, the way there are turn off switches to protect children.
The insanity is present at Spotify (without subscription) and I go "mute" when it starts and I'm at my desktop; 3 songs and there it is pharma garbage! And then back on knowing that pharma is spending money that doesn't reach!
I heard that pharma ads are less designed to promote sales than buy media influence. Since cigarette and alcohol TV ads were banned, it seems that there's precedent to ban pharma ads on grounds of adverse health effects. Most ads include disclaimers of known adverse side-effects.
The rule is that if the ad is more than 30 seconds, they have to list the side effects. That is the reason why the ads are so long. It takes an additional minute to read of all the dangers. Including death.
The disclaimer are necessary, and exactly why you'll find SIDS, autism, seizures and other adverse effects on the package inserts (if you can find them). Disclosure is required to preserve legal immunity.
Agree, always good to have Big Media in your corner. (The Miracle is that, even as they flush themselves, Big Dem hasn't--yet--resorted to "interrupting this broadcast" to hose the viewing public with snake oil every five minutes. I would particularly relish hearing the Big Dem spokes"person" detail the risks associated with taking it as true. Too bad their BFF, Big Media, is more focused on whoring after Big Pharmadollars to concern itself with its First Love.)
This is incredibly important and I am glad that people have finally been waking up to the fact that Pharma advertising has never been about anything more than buying influence with media companies. If the ban does not happen this year, it will be a major disappointment, given the promises made by RFK, Jr. and DJT. This has been going on for far too long and is a needed step if mainstream media is to have any hope of regaining any of its lost credibility.
Agree, but since DTCA has been acceptable for decades, doubt we can stuff that genie back in the bottle. Isn't all advertising "influence peddling" of some sort?
“Acceptable” to whom? Those captured by big pharma $$$ in only two countries on the planet? No one else. And most advertisers actually do so to increase sales.
Ha, not me, but I'm not in charge. :) I still don't see a way, constitutionally, to fix this issue. Do you? EO won't do it. Congress too beholden to the $. Bans worked for tobacco, only after decades because of indisputable harms. As much as I'd like to, we can't prove indisputable harms, at least not yet. They're FDA approved, and that's where we need to start IMHO.
Just a little aside, Jenna. A friend of ours, in response to, “call your doctor if you have an erection lasting more than 4 hours”, said, “hell no, I’m calling my friends”.😁
Besides the "long lasting erection" side effect, my all-time favorite was "oily rectal discharge" from one of the early weight-loss medications. In the package insert, they recommended wearing dark pants just in case!
Ha, this was the most hilariously funny piece I’ve read for a long while. So to the point, it had me in stitches!
Well, first of all, all TV stations would suffer financially from a lack of advertising from Pharma. So they won’t want it.
How funny, and to the point of ads in the middle of the program making people believe they have some undisclosed ailment - hilarious, but sadly true.
Our bodies don’t suffer from a lack of chemicals, our bodies suffer from a lack of nutrients. When is that going to enter into the heads of people?
The Pharma industry starting with Rockefeller almost 100 yrs ago have done an excellent job of not only brainwashing the average person, but unfortunately, also our doctors who believe there is a chemical pill for every ill. How this will ever be undone - the million dollar question!
Jenna, the way you write is outstanding, funny, sarcastic, witty and to,the point! Keep it up!
Surely hope so. However, that was because tptb finally (after decades) admitted that tobacco products are dangerous to health. Pharma took its place in the revenue stream. No such proof exists on the pharmaceuticals, so would the courts uphold a ban based solely on influence peddling? IDK.
Honestly, it's going to be more difficult to remove tv ads from Pharma than it was to remove tobacco if only because Pharma is so much more entrenched in government than tobacco was. As big as tobacco was, it had nothing on Pharma. Maybe I'm just too optimistic about our chances of de-influencing Pharma; they own Congress, the media, and more than half the population.
So glad you're covering this, and in your usual delightful way. I watch a lot of shows on Prime, and by the end of a 45 minute show, I'm kinda feeling left out because I don't take (nor do I think I need) any of the 15 medicines being marketed. I'm wondering if I have a lot of these symptoms and perhaps I just don't recognize them - maybe there's a pharmacological answer for THAT?!
In light of the Kennedy Dynasty's mottled track record, I never thought I would be happy to see one of the clan in a position of governmental authority again. But I was wrong. Trump placed RFK in exactly the right position. This is his passion and it is clear that he is a man of integrity, Intelligence, and determination. That he is now reviled by the Democrat Party seals his credentials for me.
WE INTERRUPT THIS POST TO BRING YOU AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT:
Have you caught colleagues, friends, and relatives whispering in concerned tones that you've been "asking an awful a lot of questions lately?" Have you been plagued by doubt in the expertise and benevolence of the pharmaceutical industry, government agencies, and even your own doctors? Has your wife caught you at 2 AM staring at the computer, poring over vaccine-related mortality stats, and Reading posts by conspiracy theorists with Irish last names? Then you may be suffering from a dangerous and potentially life-threatening disease called hyperbrainosis, or, in layman's terms, TOO MUCH BRAINS! For the last several months, this disease has been spreading exponentially, and is well on its way to becoming the next global pandemic.
BUT NOT TO FEAR! The selfless Scientists at Pfizer labs have developed a vaccine, NOBRAINSATOL (TM)! Just one dose will not only eliminate all these distressing symptoms, but it will also prevent you transmitting it to others! And unlike other medications, NOBRAINSATOL IS right of EVERYONE! Get your jab today! In fact, to make sure you do, a helpful public healthbot Is standing outside your front door right now!
From what I can see, RFK Jr. is exercising wisdom in his approach. Haven't finished it completely yet (haven't listened to his rant), but I like Del Big Tree's view that he expressed so far on his podcast about the MAHA process - https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1yNxaLMYQQgJj
And you drove past it before you could figure out how to pronounce it and avoid hitting the car in front of you (whose driver has slowed down while also trying to pronounce it too). That might be why most medicine names come in 7 letters.
I always wonder who the marketing team who comes up with these names! There have been times that I have been out of the country for a month or so. When we return, there are so many new drugs that I have to learn about.
I don't know if you remember the first big push for "Nexium: The Purple Pill" about 20 years ago, with the teevees screaming "Ask YOUR doctor for 'THE PURPLE PILL'," for which an actual malady was not identified for months. No doubt vidiots streamed into offices demanding it, only to be asked, "For what?" and replying, "YOU TELL ME!"
Big Pharma ads are on teevee because, like scumbag spam cold-calling, it works--and...
THERE IS THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM THAT WILL NOT BE ADDRESSED--the STUPIDITY and CUPIDITY OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC.
What a fantastic article! I signed and shared the letter mentioned below also. This is gold. Pure gold. I pray that our President and Secretary Kennedy actually get this done! I absolutely hate (not exaggerating) PFIZER and pharma for destroying this country, our bodies, and our airwaves. Get them the heck off the television!
I'm so glad you're covering this. Please sign and share this letter campaign to ban DTC pharma ads. Letters will be sent to President Trump, Secretary Kennedy and the FDA Commissioner. https://actionnetwork.org/letters/ban-direct-to-consumer-pharma-ads?source=direct_link&
Done! ✅
From Action Network website (scroll down): https://actionnetwork.org/
Action Network is an open platform that empowers individuals and groups to organize for progressive causes. We encourage responsible activism, and do not support using the platform to take unlawful or other improper action. We do not control or endorse the conduct of users and make no representations of any kind about them.
It's the only platform I've been able to find that lets you send 5,000 free emails a month for a letter campaign. Are you aware of any others that are economical?
We don't use mass mail services, instead preferring Substack and occasionally Protonmail for smaller mailings.
You could search for low cost mass email marketing service, like this:
https://www.startpage.com/do/search?q=low+cost+mass+email&segment=startpage.brave
Here's a search result that evaluated several email marketing services: https://www.brevo.com/blog/cheap-email-marketing/
The big concern with many services, especially those with a particular political view (left, right, doesn't matter) is that they often collect email address and other contact information and use it for other purposes such as seeking out donors. It's just something to consider when you choose a mass mail service.
Banning would be best. One solution that occurred to me as an intermediate measure, though, if technology will allow it, is to require all broadcasters to include a “turn off switch“ for anything medical, the way there are turn off switches to protect children.
The insanity is present at Spotify (without subscription) and I go "mute" when it starts and I'm at my desktop; 3 songs and there it is pharma garbage! And then back on knowing that pharma is spending money that doesn't reach!
Sent my letter.
Done!
Thanks for including, signed!
I did it!
Done!
Done!
Thank you for the link. Sent my vote in and have passed the link on
But but but can Trump read ?
He appears to be able to read some writin on walls.
I see, he can read toilet walls….that makes sense
The media have been totally comprised by big pharma as a result of drug advertising.
I heard that pharma ads are less designed to promote sales than buy media influence. Since cigarette and alcohol TV ads were banned, it seems that there's precedent to ban pharma ads on grounds of adverse health effects. Most ads include disclaimers of known adverse side-effects.
The rule is that if the ad is more than 30 seconds, they have to list the side effects. That is the reason why the ads are so long. It takes an additional minute to read of all the dangers. Including death.
The disclaimer are necessary, and exactly why you'll find SIDS, autism, seizures and other adverse effects on the package inserts (if you can find them). Disclosure is required to preserve legal immunity.
Agree, always good to have Big Media in your corner. (The Miracle is that, even as they flush themselves, Big Dem hasn't--yet--resorted to "interrupting this broadcast" to hose the viewing public with snake oil every five minutes. I would particularly relish hearing the Big Dem spokes"person" detail the risks associated with taking it as true. Too bad their BFF, Big Media, is more focused on whoring after Big Pharmadollars to concern itself with its First Love.)
The same goes for medical journals. This is especially true of the five most recent US journals. They rely on pharmaceutical advertising.
Doctors who rely on this knowledge are inevitably brainwashed by the pharmaceutical industry.
Yep, and explains why every article published on AE's starts with, "it is indisputable that Covid vaccines have saved millions of lives..."
This is incredibly important and I am glad that people have finally been waking up to the fact that Pharma advertising has never been about anything more than buying influence with media companies. If the ban does not happen this year, it will be a major disappointment, given the promises made by RFK, Jr. and DJT. This has been going on for far too long and is a needed step if mainstream media is to have any hope of regaining any of its lost credibility.
Agree, but since DTCA has been acceptable for decades, doubt we can stuff that genie back in the bottle. Isn't all advertising "influence peddling" of some sort?
“Acceptable” to whom? Those captured by big pharma $$$ in only two countries on the planet? No one else. And most advertisers actually do so to increase sales.
Ha, not me, but I'm not in charge. :) I still don't see a way, constitutionally, to fix this issue. Do you? EO won't do it. Congress too beholden to the $. Bans worked for tobacco, only after decades because of indisputable harms. As much as I'd like to, we can't prove indisputable harms, at least not yet. They're FDA approved, and that's where we need to start IMHO.
Just a little aside, Jenna. A friend of ours, in response to, “call your doctor if you have an erection lasting more than 4 hours”, said, “hell no, I’m calling my friends”.😁
Besides the "long lasting erection" side effect, my all-time favorite was "oily rectal discharge" from one of the early weight-loss medications. In the package insert, they recommended wearing dark pants just in case!
🙈
🤣
It can't come soon enough! I'm over all of their advertising and Drug pushing 🫸
Yes. Needs to be done. No drug advertising. We don’t need to know (what is bad for us) what they are peddling. 🇨🇦🇺🇸
Ha, this was the most hilariously funny piece I’ve read for a long while. So to the point, it had me in stitches!
Well, first of all, all TV stations would suffer financially from a lack of advertising from Pharma. So they won’t want it.
How funny, and to the point of ads in the middle of the program making people believe they have some undisclosed ailment - hilarious, but sadly true.
Our bodies don’t suffer from a lack of chemicals, our bodies suffer from a lack of nutrients. When is that going to enter into the heads of people?
The Pharma industry starting with Rockefeller almost 100 yrs ago have done an excellent job of not only brainwashing the average person, but unfortunately, also our doctors who believe there is a chemical pill for every ill. How this will ever be undone - the million dollar question!
Jenna, the way you write is outstanding, funny, sarcastic, witty and to,the point! Keep it up!
A little judicious editing will bring this quote into line for competition for 2025 Bumper Sticker of the Year:
"Our bodies don’t suffer from a lack of chemicals, our bodies suffer from a lack of nutrients."
Thanks Eva! Day made. :)
If we can get ads for tobacco products off the air, we can rid the airwaves of drug ads. Step one: Peter Marks just "resigned."
Surely hope so. However, that was because tptb finally (after decades) admitted that tobacco products are dangerous to health. Pharma took its place in the revenue stream. No such proof exists on the pharmaceuticals, so would the courts uphold a ban based solely on influence peddling? IDK.
All advertising is influence peddling, right? Still hopeful...
Honestly, it's going to be more difficult to remove tv ads from Pharma than it was to remove tobacco if only because Pharma is so much more entrenched in government than tobacco was. As big as tobacco was, it had nothing on Pharma. Maybe I'm just too optimistic about our chances of de-influencing Pharma; they own Congress, the media, and more than half the population.
Frankly I don't know why "airwaves" aren't on the table.
So glad you're covering this, and in your usual delightful way. I watch a lot of shows on Prime, and by the end of a 45 minute show, I'm kinda feeling left out because I don't take (nor do I think I need) any of the 15 medicines being marketed. I'm wondering if I have a lot of these symptoms and perhaps I just don't recognize them - maybe there's a pharmacological answer for THAT?!
Ask your doctor - if you're dumb enough to have one. (a doctor).
🤣🙈
"I'll need to make an exam, please sit on the table and spread your billfold..."
I don't and won't. Natural remedies are much better.
No. It's not good for anyone but the doctors and pharmacists.
Amen!!!!
In light of the Kennedy Dynasty's mottled track record, I never thought I would be happy to see one of the clan in a position of governmental authority again. But I was wrong. Trump placed RFK in exactly the right position. This is his passion and it is clear that he is a man of integrity, Intelligence, and determination. That he is now reviled by the Democrat Party seals his credentials for me.
WE INTERRUPT THIS POST TO BRING YOU AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT:
Have you caught colleagues, friends, and relatives whispering in concerned tones that you've been "asking an awful a lot of questions lately?" Have you been plagued by doubt in the expertise and benevolence of the pharmaceutical industry, government agencies, and even your own doctors? Has your wife caught you at 2 AM staring at the computer, poring over vaccine-related mortality stats, and Reading posts by conspiracy theorists with Irish last names? Then you may be suffering from a dangerous and potentially life-threatening disease called hyperbrainosis, or, in layman's terms, TOO MUCH BRAINS! For the last several months, this disease has been spreading exponentially, and is well on its way to becoming the next global pandemic.
BUT NOT TO FEAR! The selfless Scientists at Pfizer labs have developed a vaccine, NOBRAINSATOL (TM)! Just one dose will not only eliminate all these distressing symptoms, but it will also prevent you transmitting it to others! And unlike other medications, NOBRAINSATOL IS right of EVERYONE! Get your jab today! In fact, to make sure you do, a helpful public healthbot Is standing outside your front door right now!
Haha, I’ve got that chronic condition! Now I know what it’s called! 🤣 Hyperbrainosis.
Is there an herb for that? I don’t take drugs. 😉
I am confident it will happen, Jenna! The momentum is in our favor.
🙏🙏🙏
From what I can see, RFK Jr. is exercising wisdom in his approach. Haven't finished it completely yet (haven't listened to his rant), but I like Del Big Tree's view that he expressed so far on his podcast about the MAHA process - https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1yNxaLMYQQgJj
I used to see a billboard for some kind of prescription drug with a ridiculous name. It didn't even say what it was for!
And you drove past it before you could figure out how to pronounce it and avoid hitting the car in front of you (whose driver has slowed down while also trying to pronounce it too). That might be why most medicine names come in 7 letters.
Lol. I saw it every day for several weeks. Just remembered the name; Farxiga... I don't know what it cures, but I'm going to see if I can get some! 😁
I always wonder who the marketing team who comes up with these names! There have been times that I have been out of the country for a month or so. When we return, there are so many new drugs that I have to learn about.
https://www.farxiga.com/side-effects/hero#sideEffects-item-e2c4248787
I don't know if you remember the first big push for "Nexium: The Purple Pill" about 20 years ago, with the teevees screaming "Ask YOUR doctor for 'THE PURPLE PILL'," for which an actual malady was not identified for months. No doubt vidiots streamed into offices demanding it, only to be asked, "For what?" and replying, "YOU TELL ME!"
Big Pharma ads are on teevee because, like scumbag spam cold-calling, it works--and...
THERE IS THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM THAT WILL NOT BE ADDRESSED--the STUPIDITY and CUPIDITY OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC.
What a fantastic article! I signed and shared the letter mentioned below also. This is gold. Pure gold. I pray that our President and Secretary Kennedy actually get this done! I absolutely hate (not exaggerating) PFIZER and pharma for destroying this country, our bodies, and our airwaves. Get them the heck off the television!