Comments on: What Do You Have To Be Sad About? Joe Pantoliano Opens Up About Depression

By: » Would Celebrity Mental Health Advocacy Make A Difference For Young Adults? - Celebrity Psychings

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 17:28:24 +0000

[...] Alicia Sparks: @ Katharine – Thanks for chiming in! When I read the original article, I raised an eyebrow at the… [...]

By: Alicia Sparks

Alicia Sparks — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:13:46 +0000

@ Katharine – Thanks for chiming in! When I read the original article, I raised an eyebrow at the first mention of BMS, too. I don’t know whether or not Pantoliano actually endorses BMS, or whether this press conference was just a platform to speak about mental health and he took the opportunity. Either way, Big Pharma is big business that’s not going away, so it’s our responsibility to separate the core message from the quasi endorsement. Let’s just continue to hope people actually make that separation.

By: Katharine

Katharine — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 10:06:52 +0000

Yah, I’m psyched to have a celeb come out and break some stigma, but I’m put off by his at least quasi-spokespersonness for BMSquibb. I don’t see any practical or scientific benefit to having what is essentially, at least a form, of celebrity endorsement/sponsorship of certain drugs. I have problems with direct to consumer advertising and drug reps and generally how meds are marketed, when it should really be a relationship between doctors, unbiased scientific researchers/their well documented studies, and patients. Adding a celebrity to the mix, in this context, I feel is inappropriate and counter productive.

So go Joe Pantoliano.. minus his at least quasi celebrity drug rep status (I saw quasi because I don’t know his official affiliation with BMSquibb.)