ABC Sticks to It's Guns: Plans to Air Drama Focused on Autism and Vaccines
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The ABC network said on Monday it will go ahead with plans to air an episode of its new legal drama "Eli Stone" despite objections from pediatricians who say the show may discourage parents from having their children immunized.I'd love to say that I think ABC is right. I'd love to say that David Kirby, in denouncing the APA as demanding censorship, is right. And, even though I'm unconvinced that vaccines cause autism, I'd love to say it's a great idea to run the show - and keep the debate alive.The debut episode features the show's title character and hero, a trial lawyer for big corporations who decides to fight for the little guy, convincing a jury that a mercury-based preservative in a vaccine caused a child's autism.
On the show, a jury awards the boy's mother $5.2 million in damages after it is revealed the CEO of the vaccine maker kept his own daughter from getting the company's vaccine because of autism concerns.
The truth is, though, that I don't think ABC is right. Should they air shows in which researchers debate the vaccine/autism connection? Absolutely! But as soon as an idea is committed to fictionalized television or movies, it changes context. Instead of being a medical question, or a question of public health, it becomes a personalized conversation revolving around a pretend (but realistic) family, a make-believe child, and a fairy-tale lawyer. People - even smart people - can't help but see themselves in the characters, and feel a sense that they, too, could get that $5.2 million if only they had the right lawyer.
At this point in history, though, the courts in Maryland have already turned down a case based on a vaccine/autism connection - because so much of the research seems to refute a connection between thimerosal (mercury) in vaccines and autism. The "Vaccine Courts" are still considering cases that were brought before them nearly a year ago. As I understand it (and please correct me if I'm wrong), the Vaccine Courts were created specifically to protect pharmaceutical firms from just this sort of lawsuit - meaning that an "Eli Stone" type of suit cannot even be brought before the courts until the Vaccine Courts rule in favor of parents in the test cases still under consideration.
In short, Eli Stone is fiction. Most well-regarded research suggests that thimerosal is not the primary culprit behind a rise in autism diagnoses. It also seems that the legal thinking behind the show may be wrong. But because it's fiction (and taking poetic license) - it's more compelling than talk shows. More engaging than articles. And because autism and vaccines is such a hot issue, the show won't just air and disappear - it will become a major focus of national interest (in fact, it already is!). As a result, the show is likely to start families down expensive, painful paths toward legal action that will almost certainly hit a cul de sac.
Families with children on the autism spectrum don't have the time or money to spend on lawsuits that are likely to go nowhere. They're already overwhelmed with expenses and exhausting treatment regimens. In short, I think ABC sees where the money is - but I'm not at all sure they're doing anyone a great service.
Update: 10:30 a.m., January 29:
The New York Times notes:
ABC will present a written notice and voice-over saying: “The following story is fictional and does not portray any actual persons, companies, products or events.” A second card will direct viewers to the Center for Disease Control’s autism Web site, www.cdc.gov/autism.
Comments
Well, maybe if more real life attorneys who had brain aneurysm and hallucinations, they’d more take the cases of parents who have no money. And where does that $5.2 million settlement come from? Just who pays that?
I could be wrong, but I had thought the vaccine courts, if there was a settlement those funds would come from a source set aside for vaccine injured people of which that ‘injured’ term would have to be proven directly related to vaccines. I had thought these vaccines courts sort of fell into that loophole of vaccine injury with hopes of proving their cases.
Quoted from this show ““have you ever believed in anything or anyone without absolute proof?” (meaning they really had no scientific proof) the attorney in this show asks this. We should believe in it because there IS scientific proof. Any court in the USA should base decisions on ‘beyond a shadow of doubt and preponderance of evidence”. This show states otherwise, and a win. What if this was a murder trial with a death sentence and the culprit was innocent? A scenario could be the combination of vaccines and the Tylenol or Motrin given prior to the vaccines caused an allergic toxic reaction = autism. One or the other alone = no autism. A scenario could be exposure to germs at the clinic the day of vaccines = autism. But lets believe in something without absolute proof.
You can if you want to, I wont.
Preponderance of evidence is not there for any of us.
My impression of “Eli Stone,” from what I’ve read about it and the clips I’ve seen, is that it is in no way intended to be a straightforward and serious legal show in the “Law and Order” vein, but a somewhat fanciful comedy-drama about a legal shark who has either a medical or a spiritual crisis and starts to fight for faith vs. reason. If you want to pluck a story from the headlines to illustrate that, the vaccine-autism one is a pretty good choice.
I’m going to reserve judgment on this until I actually see the entire episode, and I wish the AAP had done so, too — it sounds like they’re condemning the show based on the Times article, and I think that’s probably a bad idea. I also think it’s a bad idea to be putting any topics off-limits to fiction. If the criteria for TV programming becomes, “You can’t depict anything that might give people the wrong idea and cause them to do something dangerous,” I think we’re going to be watching a lot of test patterns.
Does it bother anyone else that the studies cited by the CDC, IOM, AAP, etc. are epidemiological studies which may be susceptible to manipulation? I would feel much more assured if there were studies, funded and executed by independent sources with no ties to the gov’t, big pharma, or the various opposition groups like SafeMinds & Gen Rescue, which examined the toxicology of mercury and the effects of aggressive vaccination on immature and developing immune systems. Is it possible that these types of studies might finally give us unbiased answers? From what I’ve read, I’m not convinced that either side has settled this debate, but I’d really love some answers based on science, not population surveys. And isn’t it conceivable that all “autism” is not alike? Some may be born with it and others who are genetically predisposed may be vaccine-injured. One size does not fit all.
Generation Rescue inflates the truth as well, and it can probably still be seen on there sites today. SO anything they report is unreliable. I believe Generation Rescue actually did a phone survey as well, which proves nothing.
I doubt there’ll be any study all will agree on.
And as of today, no one knows what one size they fit into, based on all studies of today.
Sandy,
I think I worded my comment poorly. I didn’t mean to suggest that Gen Rescue’s phone survey or list of studies was necessarily reliable. What I’d like to see are toxicology studies funded and executed by researchers who have no direct or indirect link to any group on either side of this argument –groups with no stakes at all in the outcomes of the studies.
Well, I think I understood what you were saying
Other countries have conducted studies which would have no ties to our CDC or FDA or government. Almost all studies say at the very end something to the effect of ‘this is a link’. No one is ever real happy with any study that comes out.
Fact is to this topic- it’s a fictional show that depicts some what real life and I’d bet they’re airing it for the debatable ratings than to actually bring real attention to the debate in a meaningful manner (since it is fictional). It really depicts a sterotypical ’suing’ parent.
What the autism community get’s out of this will be one thing;
What the general public will get out of it is parents of a special ed child, one with autism, suing and the public in the end pays for it. This will fuel that debate of parents w/o special needs children and their debate of how they are sick of forking over fund for our kids.
This show will not do any good to autism awareness or causes. JMO
I find it unconscionable to think that the viewing public is so gullible as to believe that they have a chance to sue a company based on what very tenuous links there are currently linking autism to actual vaccines. If the public is that gullible, they shouldn’t watch TV at all. TV is meant to entertain, that’s all. Take the drama for what it is, and not a thing else. Eli Stone is meant to provoke thought, not incite baseless lawsuits. And if anyone out there is willing to do this, being the parent of an autistic child, then I would have to say you have either a ton of money already and way too much time on your hands.
PS. I should mention my nephew is autistic, and with proper care and assistance, he is thriving.
I applaud them for resisting censorship. My son is autistic and I have never found the evidence pertaining to mercury/thimerosal as causal agents of autism to be persuasive. But free discussion, even in the form of fiction, should be quashed, especially in discussion of autism issues where so many persons feel that they have a monopoly on truth and where there is a concerted effort to suppress any depiction of autism disorder’s negative realities.
I myself disagree. Television has always influenced people right down to the hair styles, home decor and the phrases said. TV and fiction has also resulted people doing or attempting to do the exact same thing, and then you see it on the news. It’s not so much people are gullible, but hopeful. TV also isn’t the only thing that influences parents, but it is a large contributor.
It all depends on who the viewer is as to what they get out of it. Obviously docs are worried about the impact it will have on vaccines of the general public. I happen to see much more come from it than that and worry more about the typical parents thoughts to those with kids who have autism.
Sandy, To which studies are you referring? The only studies conducted outside of the US (of which I am aware) were epidemiological.
As for the censorship, I tend to favor free and open discussion. I’m glad ABC isn’t backing down.
Sandy,
Yes TV influences people. So do “experts” who often say things like ” studies have proven there isn’t a link between autism and vaccines.” However, when you try to get them to be specific, they end up citing a few weak, flawed studies that reference each other. The problem is that a lot of people are willing to have their own opinions pre-digested for them by experts rather than being willing to invest the time, energy, and intelligence in looking objectively at what the studies actually prove and what the criticisms of the studies show.
Frankly, if people have their opinions shaped by a TV show, where the writers actually reviewed the body of research rather than just relying on “expert” opinion, I think that’s a plus for the whole autism community.
I think they have every right to air it … I just dread the endless references to the show by well-meaning friends and relatives.
I’m not sure what the cause(s) of autism is/are… I don’t think ABC’s broadcasting of this episode is going to get us any closer to the answers we need. I also don’t think it will help increase awareness about concrete issues like lack of education/treatment/services for adults and children on the spectrum. It doesn’t sound like it will address the lack of insurance coverage for treatments. Those are things I would like the general tv-watching public to be made aware of…Guess those topics just aren’t quite sexy enough…
The only way ABC can justify airing the show is to say,on the air, at the time, that the latest CA study reliably refutes any vaccine connection. You can wish all you want that people look at TV as entertainment, but the reality is they remember what they’re inclined to. Consider how many people believe Stone’s depiction of JFK’s assination is the absolute truth.
Ooops! s/b ‘assassination”
Paul – studies have shown that there is no link between vaccines and autism. In the case of MMR there are two instances of clinical science and one set of research that demonstrates (See testimony of Stephen Bustin in Cedillo) measles virs was never in the guts or brains of autistic kids.
In the case of thiomersal, it is not the amount of papers that prove there is no link but rather, 10 years on, the utter absence of any decent science that supports such a causal link. The burden of proof is on the person making the claim. Groups such as Gen Rescue, Safe Minds etc are well-funded by very rich private citizens – there’s no reason they couldn’t fund the studies you suggest if they’re so interested. Isn’t it curious that they have chosen not to do so?
Personally I have no opinion either way on TV shows. However, I sincerely hope that people do not get their science from the television. That is silly.
My children born all in late 70,s and early 80,s had 1-shot at a time. My grand children now have 4 to 5 shots at a time, This is too much on such a young infant, toddler and child. What’s happening here is causing the autism problems. My oldest granddaughter almost 4 years old has started going backwards this last year and now has been dignoised with autism. Whats happening to our children and grandchildren, God help us.
You people need to understand how the immune system works. First when virus or pathogen naturally enters the body, it goes through a filtration process via the ears, nose, mouth or eyes. A healthy body will eradicate this virus whether it’s chicken pox, measles or whatever. To introduce a virus directly in to the bloodstream with no filtration process along with animal DNA and chemicals that are otherwise deemed toxic (mercury, aluminum hydroxide, phermaldehyde) is beyond mind-boggling and stupidity. The mere fact that vaccines are not made by our governments via our taxes but by large corporations with SHAREHOLDERS, just oozes corruptions and payoffs. Profits before kids, people…that’s all it is…profits. That’s why we have gone from our grandparents getting virtually none to our kids today getting around 40 vaccines by kindergarten. I am glad this show is airing. The American Pediatric Association is as corrupt as they come. They push the crappy baby formula Similac, the top selling brand, yet corn syrup solids are almost half the ingredients. Any dumbass with basic knowledge of nutrition knows sugars supress the immune system and to give to a baby that weighs as much as a bowling ball is asking for trouble. Don’t be spoonfed people, please…do you’re own research and don’t listen to corrupt organizations that manipulate your mind for their gain. It’s YOUR child, YOUR choice.
Carl – you say “The mere fact that vaccines are not made by our governments via our taxes but by large corporations with SHAREHOLDERS, just oozes corruptions and payoffs. Profits before kids, people…that’s all it is…profits.”
is your point that any product made by a corporation is suspect by virtue of the fact that someone is making a profit from it? I’m thinking that would make pretty much ANY product produced in the United States (except, perhaps, for postage stamps) suspect, wouldn’t it?
In fact, almost all products made with our tax dollars are actually produced by contractors who are in it for the money anyway. It’s not like the US government has its own paid manufacturers to build, say, helicopters or smart missiles.
If you’re suggesting that it makes sense to follow the money and see where it leads – that I agree with. But to suggest that anyone who’s making a profit is suspect – I think that’s going a bit far.
Lisa (autism guide)
Mercury is in the brain, not in blood — Half live of thimerosal in blood is misleading because all methods of finding mercury and mercury derivatives but one are incapable of finding it presence in the brain. I once was very ill with severe speech impairment and other disabling symptoms including coma (which I found later were related to heavy mercury poisoning). London clinic neurologists could not explain my condition. After finding some clues on Internet thanks to Google search to try to understand what was happening to me, I started suspecting heavy metal poisoning. Google search allowed to educate myself with the methods to find heavy metals and how to remove them (chelating). I sent blood samples taken at the same time to 3 labs using different methods; only MELISA test (www.melisa.org) has been capable of proving that I had heavy accumulation of thimerosal, and it was not in the blood because the other more traditional methods did not find any at all (my lab results and symptoms are posted on the Internet). Moreover, I could link my sudden heath deterioration to the 3 vaccine shots that I had taken simultaneously 6 months before for traveling to the African outback and the numerous hepatitis B booster shots during the years I frequently travelled to Asia for professional reasons. Chelating was done by taking some clay baths (www.magneticclay.com) which resulted in spectacular improvement of my health within days. I had no more symptoms after 3 months, and the Melisa test performed 6 months after the first test showed that thimerosal had completely disappeared. This happened 5 years ago and I am now an energetic key executive in a high profile advanced technology company. When I find myself abnormally tired or disturbed, I take a clay bath subsequent to which I recover (the next day) clarity and energy lasting weeks or months. I shed 60 pounds and at 54 I can run the half marathon. If it worked so well for me, it should most certainly help babies and children — no matter how small the quantity of thimerosal measured in their blood, no matter where it comes from and no matter how quickly they may excrete it naturally… The problem, Melisa test is very expensive (and invented in Sweden) and clay is too cheap!!!!
Someone was asking for an independent study, well it was supposedly paid for by the IoM, but the researcher didn’t say what they wanted, so you never hear about it. Dr. Boyd Haley Mercury Toxicity and Autism (parts 1-4) on google.video.com. His specialty was mercury/heavy metal poisoning, real scientific research in a real institute. And he has some interesting things to say about the effects of mercury and aluminum(and thimerosal in particular) on the human body, but when he presented his findings, they told him to stop his research.
My daughter is now 13 years old and recieved her autism diagnosis almost 9 years ago… but I still run into folks that say, Autism? What’s that? Any exposure is good at this point… let them air it and start up the debate and bring the spotlight to bear on corruption.