CNN to Reveal When Guests Promote Drugs for Companies

After learning that some celebrities who talked on its news programs about their health problems were being paid by drug companies, CNN has issued a new policy and will tell viewers about the stars' financial ties to corporations.

CNN will ask celebrities who want to talk about a medical issue whether they are being paid by a company, the network said. If so, the financial tie will be disclosed during the interview, CNN said.

Other news programs — including the "Today" show on NBC, "Good Morning America" on ABC and "The Early Show" on CBS — say that they have also become more careful after they learned that some Hollywood celebrities they had interviewed, including stars like Lauren Bacall and Kathleen Turner, had been paid to help promote drugs or other medical products on their programs.

Pharmaceutical companies have one interest in mind - selling their drug. Jane Galt would probably say that is appropriate in a free market. I would say that society has an interest in minimizing influence which does not necessarily correlate with patients' best interests. I like this development. I believe that I can do a better job recommending medical care than celebrities.