BrandweekNRx Off Again -- This Time for Good?

Peter Rost just announced on his Question Authority blog:

"After having been started in April 2007, BrandweekNRX was taken off the air in December, and brought back for the months of January and February this year.

Unfortunately, money is tight over at Brandweek, and advertising on Internet sites such a BrandweekNRX is hard to come by . . . so, for now, BrandweekNRX is closing down again.

Meanwhile, you will find my occasional musings over here at Question Authority"

Too bad, Peter.

But I've just about had it with BrandweekNRx and will take it off my blogroll for good. It's just too much work keeping up with it all!

PharmaPorning and TagLineShilling

Want to increase your blog traffic by 50%? That's the result Insider -- aka Jack Friday -- at PharmaGossip saw after he posted a link to the nude photo of Playboy model and Sanofi drug rep Cameron Haven doing her dirty laundry in Florida.

Of course, I was one of those men -- and probably a few women -- who dutifully exited the PharmaGossip site within a millisecond and followed the link to the XXX-rated photo on a Playboy site.

The non-XXX rated photo posted to PharmaGossip is shown on the left. "Much, much more of Cameron doing her laundry can be seen here!", said Insider.

I followed the link and I kept THAT page open for a few hours during the day. Now THAT'S what I call a "sticky" site; PharmaGossip, not so much.

Insider considered this such a boost that he posted some more links to photos of the model/cum sales rep. But this latest batch took too long to load to satisfy my need for instant gratification.

Of course, he who lives in glass houses should not throw rocks. I have posted on Pharma Marketing Blog images of women sales reps who are also models or cheerleaders (see "Sexy Reps Sell Rx") and have even shown bare breasts once or twice. Of course, I have also balanced that with images of men and penises (see "Pfizer's Erection Hardness Meter" and "Introducing...the All-Pharma Lobbying Lineup!"). Aside from the penis image, however, none could be said to be rated XXX. Also, I only use these images to make a serious point about pharmaceutical marketing, not just to appeal to my readers' prurient interests.

On another issue, I notice that Peter Rost over at BrandweekNRx and its mirror blog Question Authority has started shilling sponsors' wares by writing whole posts devoted to sales pitches. See, for example, "Buy an amazing tagline - Where Good Health is a Click Away."

"'Where Good Health is a Click Away' is an exceptionally solid, timeless, powerful and elegant tagline," said Rost. "If you are a worthy individual or company, a true fit for this tagline and have the big bucks to buy it, then don't delay!"

Peter, as always, is breaking new ground and paving the way for us bloggers to make more profits!

Now we all have to make a living and many of us bloggers run ads on our blogs and even "feature" our advertisers in blog posts and get paid to do it. Rost, at least, has been upfront about the fact that the tag line owner, Robert Goldman of Portland, Maine is "the current BrandweekNRx blog sponsor."

But this is the first time I've seen an editor of a blog actually personally endorse a sponsor's product in the editorial section of a blog, which is something that I try to avoid doing.

I suspect that Peter is under extraordinary pressure from Brandweek to show some return on investment. Recall back in January 2007 that Todd Wasserman, BrandWeek’s editor said of Peter: "We let him go in December because of lack of advertising, but are bringing him back in January even (though) we don't have ads to support him - yet" (see "Riddarhuseter Rost Re-establishes Roost at Brandweek's NRx").

I don't know if the "tagline for sale" post will convince Wasserman to keep Rost or not. Probably, he'll have to see several other such posts and a positive measurable payoff to make his decision.

I wonder how much it cost to be a sponsor of BrandweekNRx and get my own endorsement from Peter? Should I pay anything? After all, Peter has often said good things (and not so good things) about me and I have reciprocated. But to pay him to say ONLY good things about me and urge people to buy my stuff would give me such a sense of POWER OVER PETER that I am very tempted to try it! (Hey, numnuts! Just kiddin'!)

Did Rost Just Pull a Mike Huckabee?

Yesterday, I received an email from Peter Rost entitled "Schering-Plough tries to silence upcoming BrandweekNRX article," in which he summarized correspondence between him and some lawyer at Schering-Plough regarding an expose he said he was writing for BrandweekNRx/BrandWeek. I believe the documents in that correspondence were also posted on NRx for a short time yesterday, but I can no longer find that post.

Over the weekend, Rost wrote a letter to Ken Banta, a strategic adviser to Schering-Plough CEO Fred Hassan, asking him to confirm or deny a couple of statements in an "upcoming story we are writing for BrandWeekNRx/BrandWeek." The first three statements made some damaging revelations about Fred Hassan's wife and her shady-sounding real estate deals involving Schering-Plough properties. Here's Rost's email to Schering-Plough regarding that story (click image to enlarge and read):

[Sorry, that image is no longer available!!! You'll have to take my word for it -- also, see Rost's comment to this post.]

The problem is that Rost hasn't written that story. He has, however, written an excellent story focusing on Hassan and what a terrible job he's doing (see "Did Fred Hassan use smoke-and-mirrors to 'turn around' both Pharmacia and Schering-Plough?").

"This is the story Schering-Plough tried to stop," Rost claimed in email I received this morning. But there is no mention of Mrs. Hassan in the story.

I think this may be the first case of a "Mike Huckabee" style withdrawal of a negative attack piece in Pharma Blogosphere^TM history!

P.S. Peter, I think you're doing a great job! Keep up the good work.

Riddarhuseter Rost Re-establishes Roost at Brandweek's NRx

After languishing for over a month without any word from Peter Rost, BrandweekNRx is "Baack"... sort of (hat tip to Pharmalot for that).

This bit of news is now circulating through the Pharma Blogosphere^TM (see, for example, here and here).

Let's dig a little deeper and learn some more.

Here, for example, is a comment from Todd Wasserman, BrandWeek’s editor, which was reported in Pharmalot:

"We let him go in December because of lack of advertising, but are bringing him back in January even (though) we don't have ads to support him - yet. Peter is great at generating traffic and we like being able to take part in the pharma blogging discussions, so we wanted to bring him back on a month-to-month basis."

Of course, I have always wondered about the QUALITY of Brandweek's eclectic Rost-generated traffic viz-a-viz how attractive it would be to advertisers. See, for example, "What's Brandweek's NRx Strategy?" in which I said:

"If Brandweek's strategy was to get a quick jump in readership no matter who those readers are, then it has succeeded! It may more like a tactic than a strategy, however. I still remember Rost saying that his assignment may be temporary. Perhaps Brandweek intends to sell NRx and the pumped up readership can only help."

Peter J. Pitts -- pundit over at Drug Wonks blog -- had this to say in a comment to the WSJ Health Blog post:

"No revenue but a lot of traffic? What does this say about the state of the blogosphere? (I think it says that Rupert will not come calling any time soon.) It must be Rost-based accounting."

Recall that Pitts' colleague over at DrugWonks -- Robert Goldberg -- previously wished Rost luck when he first signed on at BrandweekNRX:

"I don't get all the consternation about Peter Rost becoming a journalist as opposed to a blogger. Let the guy make a steady living. At least, unlike others in the media, he makes his viewpoint known, never gets ruffled and is not afraid to fire back when challenged. I don't agree with him but I will look forward to reading him in his new perch. Good luck to the 'other' Peter."

Let's wish him luck again, and every month that Brandweek decides to "bring him back."

Of course, Rost has since donned at least one 'other' persona -- anti-pharma litigation witness for hire -- to help him "make a steady living."

Speaking of these "other" Rosts and making a living, here's a comment to the Pharmalot post from "Dan":

"A bit of trivia: Think I read on Corey Nahman blog some time ago that Dr. Rost is a multi- millionare and is a decendent of nobility. This suprised me, considering his disposition and stance on the issues facing the peasants."

I knew that Rost made a lot of dough as a Pfizer VP (about $700K per year in salary, not including bonuses), which, if he was frugal and invested in various assets, could give Rost a multi-million dollar "net worth," but I did not realize he could be descended from nobility!

Now I know why he returns to Sweden so often -- to visit his noble family at the Riddarhuset to get some cash and to be invited to speak before its Parliament!

Fluff v. Substance in the Pharma Blogosphere

Back on August 14, I reviewed the nature of the posts to Brandweek's NRx blog after Peter Rost took over (see "What's Brandweek's NRx Strategy?").

I characterized each post as being one of the following three types:

1. Shameless self-promotion,
2. Pharmaceutical industry related,or
3. Fluff about off-topic issues having nothing to do with the pharmaceutical industry.

That analysis covered only the first 24 posts made by Rost. To be fair, I should continue the analysis over time to see if anything has changed. It has!

The second group of 24 posts that Rost made AFTER my critical analysis is very much different than the first group of 24 (see chart).

Most notably, Rost has cut back on the self-promotion and doubled the percentage of posts that are about the pharmaceutical industry (from 21% to 42%). Posts about off-topic issues ("fluff"), however, also have kept pace with posts about the pharmaceutical industry. In other words, fluff and substance are running neck and neck at NRx.

In the beginning, Rost was drawing a lot of attention to himself, QA (his other blog), NRx, and his new book (Killer Drug). Now that sales of the new book have waned, so has the promos from Rost.

What about the equal time devoted to fluff?

That's always been a trademark of Rost and probably what brings many readers to his blog and ups his rating in technorati and other blog search engines.

One has to wonder about the quality of readers who gravitate to a blog with topics such as:

• "Scientists report: Redheads going extinct."
• "The best Toyota Prius advertising ever."
• "Secretary fired for blogging wins both lawsuit and book deal."

Nevertheless, mixing personal observations and other "fluff" into the conversation is a tried and true staple of many bloggers. Apparently, readers like the entertainment value of knowing that redheads may be a "dying breed" (pun intended).

There may be a trend to add more fluff to the barbee at blogs in this space. Just recently, for example, Steve Woodruff over at Impactiviti Blog wrote a "fluffy" piece about the Mack v. Rost debate (see "Blockbuster Pharma Blogger Mega-merger Announced!"). Both Rost and I liked the post and wrote about it. No doubt all this increased Steve's readership because he followed up with a flurry of other posts that were on topic about his business.

[I have often noted a spike in readership when I post something edgy. It doesn't last and I question the value it brings to your blog in terms of sustained increased readership. My interpretation is that these are merely one-time curiosity seekers and not readers who will stick to you. If the goal of your blog is to generate customers for your business, these are not the kinds of readers you need, IMHO.]

Rost pointed out that "most regular news are (sic) boring, so we bloggers sometimes have to jazz things up a bit. After all, less than 10% of people 30 and under read a daily newspaper, but they do read blogs" (see "Impactiviti reveals the biggest merger in pharma blogging.")

The "non-Swede" (Woodruff) noted in a comment to Rost's post: "I'm feeling more comfortable now taking on controversial topics, letting some opinions fly, and hacking around a bit. Why not? The beauty of blogging is that it's not just 'objective content' - the message AND the messenger are wrapped up together!"

Frankly, I enjoyed Steve's post, mostly because it involved moi as a major character. It counts towards my 15 minutes of fame. But, I have to wonder what other people thought.

I agree with Steve that the "the message AND the messenger are wrapped up together!" I also agree with Rost that "regular news is boring."

But I prefer the technique employed by Ed Silverman at Pharmalot, who "jazzes" up his posts with iconoclastic images, quips and other indications of his personality inserted WITHIN the story.

In other words, there are two ways to "jazz" up your blog: WITHIN on-topic posts or WITHOUT (ie, separate off-topic whimsical posts).

The WITHIN camp tries to make the news more relevant, interesting and BIASED (ie, the messenger is wrapped up in the message), whereas the WITHOUT camp may be wasting the time of half of their readers (or half the time of all their readers) by devoting blog bandwidth to off-topic jokes, IMHO.

One word of caution: being edgy in your blog and basking in the increased flow of readers is addictive! Once you start down that slippery slope you cannot easily control yourself. At first, your edgy, off-topic posts account for only 5-10% of your total output. But, eventually, you may find that the "fluff" amounts to more like 40-50% of your bandwidth. Then, you know you have entered the Rost Zone of the Pharma Blogosphere!

DISCLAIMER: Bloggers -- myself included -- have a perfect right to run their blogs as they see fit and write about anything they see fit.

What's Brandweek's NRx Strategy?

First, let me apologize to Peter Rost and Brandweek for starting a rumor that Brandweek is distancing itself from the NRx blog since peter Rost has taken over (see my original post here).

It seems I was mistaken that the logo was changed by dropping the "BrandWeek" portion (see Fard Johnmar's interview with Jim Edwards, former NRx blogger, here). And on the Brandweek.com site, Brandweek NRx is prominently mentioned. However, it is still difficult to find that link by clicking on the Neilsen Company name at the bottom of the NRx site.

Perhaps Brandweek is laughing all the way to the bank. Rost claims that "BrandweekNRX beats every record in pharma blogging" and that the blog gets 6,000 unique visitors per day! Whether or not this is a lasting trend or just a spicy spike in curiosity seeker readership remains to be seen.

Rost lists the TOP TEN pages that readers of NRx have looked at. Leaving aside the home page, about 50% of these pages are devoted to either Rost's self-promotion of his book or of Brandweek NRx "breaking" stories. Only 2 pages out of the 8 (excluding the home page), or 25%, involve stories about the pharmaceutical industry.

Since Rost took over NRx, there have been 24 postings (see list below). I find that there are 3 types of posts (see chart):

1. Shameless self-promotion posts (58% of all posts)
2. Posts about the pharmaceutical industry (21% of all posts)
3. Fluff or posts about off-topic issues having nothing to do with the pharmaceutical industry (21% of all posts)

To quote Rost about his TOP TEN list: "It should be noted that any snapshot like this one overemphasizes recent articles, but may give an overall good indication of readers' interest, and if followed continuously, helps us develop exactly the kind of stories you want to read about."

It's amazing that so many people would want to read "exactly these kind of stories!" NRx's 6,000 daily readers are obviously Rost fans from whom I expect to get hate mail as a result of this post.

If Brandweek's strategy was to get a quick jump in readership no matter who those readers are, then it has succeeded! It may more like a tactic than a strategy, however. I still remember Rost saying that his assignment may be temporary. Perhaps Brandweek intends to sell NRx and the pumped up readership can only help.

List of Recent NRx Posts

1. 8/1/2007: [Self-referential post] "The media world reacts to Brandweek hiring a blogger."
2. 8/2/2007: [Interview of Christiane Trulove about journalist bloggers; nothing about pharmaceutical marketing.] “The Med Ad News editor has a secret . . .”
3. 8/2/2007: [More about bloggers and journalists, nothing about pharmaceutical marketing.] “Congressional panel approves legal shield for bloggers.”
4. 8/2/2007: [About pharmaceutical whistleblowers; links back to Rost’s Question Authority blog] “Pfizer terminates three executives in HIV division - Ropes & Gray investigates allegations about illegal marketing”
5. 8/3/2007: [Self-referential post] “Unbelievable.
6. 8/3/2007: [Self-referential post] “Med Ad News comments on BrandweekNRX interview with - Med Ad News”
7. 8/4/2007: [Self-referential post; no discussion of issues raised] “The most effective marketing.”
8. 8/4/2007: [Typical Rost Fluff – images and links to mp3 files; references “Pharma Spies,” which may be a blog hosted anonymously by Rost; not real discussion or analysis] “Imagine anti-commercials . . .”
9. 8/6/2007: [Self-referential and a waste of BrandweekNRX space; nothing whatever to do with Pharma marketing] “BrandweekNRX blows the whistle on the "Pharma Blogosphere Survey"”
10. 8/6/2007: [Self-referential] “Pharma Industry blog "Drug Wonks" Reacts to calls to fire Rost”
11. 8/6/2007: [Scant 150-word post with self-referential links back to BrandweekNR and Question Authority] “Pfizer HIV drug approved shortly after three HIV executives terminated.”
12. 8/7/2007: [Self-referential ad] “Expect the unexpected at BrandweekNRX”
13. 8/7/2007: [Petty Gripe and self-referential post; nothing about the pharmaceutical industry] “The creator of the Pharma Blogosphere Survey blows a fuse”
14. 8/7/2007: [At last a pharmaceutical related topic; Rost took up the story after it was published on PharmaGossip earlier in the morning] “Free drugs are here! What will this mean for you?”
15. 8/8/2007: [Self-referential post] “Pharmaceutical Executive follows BrandweekNRX's lead”
16. 8/8/2007: [Self-referential post; takes credit beating NYT to the story while it was PharmaGossip that wrote about it first!] “The New York Times follows BrandweekNRX's lead”
17. 8/8/2007: [Shameless Self-promoting ad] “Read tomorrow's news today. On BrandweekNRX.”
18. 8/8/2007 [Fluff: Rehash of old QA story about a whistleblower who was not even an employee at a pharmaceutical company] “Secretary fired for blogging wins both lawsuit and book deal.”
19. 8/9/2007 [Pharma-related story about j&J] “Red Cross sued over its - Red cross!”
20. 8/9/2007 [Unremarkable story about fellow blogger] “Straight talk with a journalist who turned cutting-edge blogger.”
21. 8/10/2007 [Shameless Self-promoting ad about his new fiction book] “Declassified CIA documents reveal that drug companies gave the CIA drugs with bad side effects.”
22. 8/10/2007 [Another shameless Self-promoting ad about his new fiction book] “My new book - KILLER DRUG - on Amazon's top 25 legal thrillers list!”
23. 8/13/2007 [Shameless Self-promoting ad] “BrandweekNRX beats every record in pharma blogging.”
24. 8/13/2007 [Rehash of story previously publish in The Day] "Pfizer loses more personal data to thiefs.(sic)"

Looks Like a Duck, Walks Like a Duck, Quacks Like a Duck...

Is it just me, or are the journalists all circling the wagons around themselves and referring only to other journalists when they talk about blogs?

Now that Peter Rost is a journalist blogger and ensconced in the journalist tent over at BrandweekNRX, his first post -- aside from the one about himself -- is based on an interview with Christiane Truelove, an editor at Med Ad News and author of Pharma Blogs: Week in Review (see "The Med Ad News editor has a secret . . .").

"I fear that a blogger who doesn't have a solid journalism background can get into trouble and get the story wrong, if they don't do good fact-checking," Truelove says. "That's the worst about blogging."

Only a journalist with tremendous resources available from Med Ad News can get on his/her high horse and bemoan the fact that bloggers sometimes don't get the story right! As if journalists are infallible that way (remember Dan Rather?).

Journalist bloggers may be dominating the opinion pages of trade publications and trade conferences, but they are not what "traditional blogging" -- never thought I'd see that in a sentence! -- is all about.

The true blogger is outside the mainstream media which have tremendous resources behind them to gather information; the true blogger doesn't have a staff of fact finders/checkers, graphic artists, and ad people helping them; the true blogger does not have huge advertising incomes that are at risk when they write a story that offends a hand that feeds them.

In spite of all that, the true blogger successfully COMPETES with the journalist blogger for readers and often is rated higher in credibility and usefulness by their readers than journalist bloggers!

I also note that journalist bloggers have so much time to devote to blogging, they virtually shut out all the other voices with multiple posts every day! This is blogging diarrhea of the worst sort!

Once bloggers have all the resources and income that journalists have, they cease to be bloggers and are just journalists writing blogs.

IMHO, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it IS a duck, not a blogger!

It's Official. Rost Takes Over BrandweekNRX!

Well, it's true -- as I was the first to speculate yesterday -- Peter Rost, pharmaceutical whistleblower extraordinaire -- has taken over the reigns of BrandweekNRX "for a while."

I have immortalized this historic event by capturing the announcement (see image on left; click on it to enlarge).

Read it and ... Weep?

Not yet. Let's give Rost a chance. Also, keep in mind that this is Brandweek's BLOG, not the print publication -- the one with the big circulation and that's supposed to be journalistic and objective.

So Rost as BrandweekNRX blogger makes perfect sense... if you intend to flush your blog down the drain as far as pharmaceutical industry readers are concerned -- except for their lawyers, that is.

Rost now joins the comfy-cosy realm of journalist bloggers who get invited to industry meetings that the rest of us are shut out from. In the fall, for example, Rost will be a guest at a major DTC conference in New Jersey -- right in the heart of pharma country! I'm not mentioning names, but the organization that hosts this meeting has been accused of aiding and abetting a lot that's wrong with DTC advertising.

Not that there's anything wrong with inviting the enemy to piss in your tent!

But the more often you piss inside the tent, the less credibility you have when pissing outside the tent, IMHO.

Full Disclosure: I'm a lover, not a pisser! So, I can't jeopardize my rep by appearing inside the tent once and a while. Just in case someone wants to throw a few stones at me.

P.S. Rost said the paycheck from a well-known publication will boost his credibility.

But what about the credibility of BrandweekNRX and Brandweek? I have some data to suggest Rost may have a negative effect on that side of the credibility equation.

For more on this, see "Brandweek Hires Peter Rost, Moves to the Dark Side!"

Rost Replaces Edwards at BrandweekNRX - Can it Be True?

Do you believe in coincidences? How about this one...

Last week, Peter Rost, "the drug industry's most annoying - and effective - online scourge," announced that he was hired to be a journalist for "a real magazine; you know, printed paper and hundreds of thousands of subscribers. Or something in that range." (see "Rost Now an Authority, Renames Blog")

Then, today, Jim Edwards of BrandweekNRX writes:

"This will be my last post on this blog. As I walk off into the sunset to do this, someone new will take over for a while. I won’t spoil the surprise; check back tomorrow."

Coincidence?

I think not!

My inquiry to Jim Edwards regarding this matter via a comment to his post and personal email has gone unanswered as of this writing.

Rost responded to my email request to "confirm or deny" this rumor and asked me to name my "credible source" aka "Deep Throat."

I think if Rost intends to be a journalist, the first thing he needs to learn is that we bloggers have a tradition of protecting our sources! Of course, he was just pulling my chain and refused to confirm or deny the rumor.

One would think that hiring a pharma industry whistleblower as a journalist to cover the pharma beat would bend the notion of unbiased reporting so far as to break it, but there may be some benefit to pharma if Brandweek hires Rost, as my "Deep Throat" points out:

"Now, if I were to put my Machiavellian hat on, I could imagine a cabal of pharma corporate PR types banding together and convincing Brandweek to take him on as a way of 'domesticating' him -- subjecting him to editorial oversight and at least semi-journalistic standards vs. the buccaneer figure he's been cutting up to now... paycheck and prospect of promotion to the 'majors' (i.e., the print version of Brandweek) riding on whether he goes overboard or not."

Hmmm... Rost the pharma beat guy at Brandweek -- not as preposterous as it sounds!

'Round the Sphere: Commies, Canadians, and Death by Drugs!

This week, the Pharma Blogosphere was abuzz about the two death sentences handed down to two of China's former high-ranking food and drug safety officials. One was just executed as reported in the Wall Street Journal Health Blog and Pharmalot.

It is said that injection by lethal drugs is becoming the standard method of carrying out the death penalty in China (see "Chinese applaud ex-official's execution").

Meanwhile, other supposedly non-lethal drugs have lead to the death of a Canadian citizen -- "first clear-cut case of a death stemming from counterfeit drugs bought on the Internet."

Of course, a chief wanker at Drug Wankers couldn't hold back the gloating to respond to the age-old re-importation retort" "Oh, Yeah. If Canadian drugs are dangerous, where are the dead Canadians?"

Expect Pitts et al to refer to this case again and again and again and again... did I mention again? in the diatribes against re-importation.

Meanwhile, the other Peter (Peter Rost), was quoted in Forbes pointing out the irony:

"The FDA recently put out a warning on the dangers of Internet medicines. Peter Rost, a former Pfizer executive whose blog is an annoyance to drug execs, notes an "irony" in the situation: that the first victim of drug reimportation lives in Canada, and got a drug that is not approved there but is available to the rest of the world."

In his own blog, Peter suggests that rather than an argument AGAINST re-importation, this event is really an argument FOR re-importation!:

"So now all the reactionary elements in American politics will claim drug reimportation claimed its first life. I'm sure they think it is too bad it wasn't American blood.

"Of course there is a logical solution to all this. Make drug importation legal and regulated the trade, so that people don't go on the Internet when their money dries up."

Speaking of China, Canadians and Other "Commies"

Of course, Canadians are not really commies. They just have a commie medical system according to the wankers among us.

It's one thing to stretch the commie analogy to describe the Canadian healthcare system, but it's another to accuse J&J's corporate blog of being the "Pravda of J&J." But that is exactly what Jim Edwards over at BrandweekNRX did!

Ouch! Tough love indeed!

But let's look at the glass half-full instead of half-empty, shall we?

Did you know, for example, that Pravda is the Russian word for "The Truth"? I bet you dinnit! Marc Monseau, the author of JNJ BTW, might take some comfort from being labeled "The Truth of J&J." At least he wasn't called the "CNN of J&J," which might be a much less flattering comparison.

But Jim has a point. If a corporate blog remains silent on issues roiling around it, then suspicions are aroused. It's best to say something, even if it is to refer to the official company press release, which is some form of "truth" if not absolute truth. I suspect that's what Pravda would do.

Of course, this is not what we expect of blogs. But what should we expect from a blog like JNJ BTW?

You can read more about my opinion on that subject in Pharma Marketing Blog (see "Advice to All Pharma PR Bloggers Out There").

Jim Edwards and the Girl Scout Cookie Monster Sudafed Mashup!

Recently, the Pharma Blogosphere has been awash boondoggles, capers, and scandals. First there was the Buckets of Cash Zubillaga Affair and the Cupcakes in the Waiting Room Caper, now there's the Girl Scout Cookie Monster Sudafed Mashup!

Jim Edwards of BrandweekNRX posted a correction of sorts to an article he wrote in BrandWeek a while back entitled "Who's at the Door? J&J With Your Meds." In that article, Jim said: "Johnson & Johnson wants to turn Girl Scout troops into 'drug dealers' - but it's all for a good cause."

This apparently, riled the J&J PR people according to Jim.

"To my surprise," claims Jim, "McNeil was furious, and I got an earful from one of their PR people about a day after it came out. 'We're not trying to turn Girl Scouts into drug dealers," they fumed. "We demand a correction.'"

You can read all about -- from Jim's perspective -- here on BrandweekNRX.

Of course, a "correction" is impossible after the cat is already out of the bag. Or should I say, cookie already out of the jar? Jim's piece was picked up by the press in stories entitled "Girl Scouts Selling Drugs?" And the rest, as they say, is history.

What Hat Are Journalist Bloggers Wearing Today?
Edwards says this is a "Lesson in How Media Viruses Work." Hmmm... it's also a lesson on how journalists can be "corrupted" by the loose standards of bloggers, IMHO. I mean, as a blogger, you might get away with using sensational or "flippant" phrases to capture readers' attention, but a journalist is held to a higher standard. In Brandweek, Jim is a journalist, in BrandweekNRX, he is a blogger. Could it be that he forgot which hat he was wearing when he wrote the original story?

BTW, there's nothing about this on JNJ BTW, J&J's PR blog, which I think is a shame. That's what a corporate blog should be for -- you got to get your voice out there in the blogosphere and not just let it come through filtered by us bloggers.

P.S. Proving once again that great minds think alike, Jack Friday just reminded me about his post on the J&J Girl Scout story. His post uses the same Girl Scout image as this one! I swear i did not intentionally copy Jack, but it must have registered in my mind when I picked up the image elsewhere by Google search. There is one important difference: Jack combined Pepsid with the cookies, whereas I used a decongestant. Obviously, Pepsid is a better product to use in combination with cookies, although I suppose if you are allergic to cookies, a decongestant might help.

'Round the Sphere: Dirty Tightie Whities and Wailing on Wonks!

Pretty soon I'm off to my son's high school graduation and there's no time to start anything productive, so I'll just make this quick post about what has caught my attention this week 'round the old Pharma Blogosphere.

First those Tightie Whities
Aside from being recognized as one of The 50 Best Business Blogs by The Times of London, Pharmalot is also recognized -- at least by me -- for sporting a great new look and crisp little graphics. I especially like the dirty tightie whities Ed Silverman used to illustrate a recent post about the problems faced by Acomplia (aka Zimulti).

Ed suggests that we invest in underwear makers. I would point out, however, that most underwear makers are in China or India and run sweatshops. Based on a recent report --- see "Drugmakers Need New Business Model" -- many pharmaceutical companies may need to offshore their business as well if they are to remain viable. "Companies must expand their pipelines by looking to countries such as India and China, where research is burgeoning, and the industry must redesign the drug development process," the report said.

Wailing on Wonks
Meanwhile, the PR Wonks at Drug Wonks are being wailed on from the left and from the right and all over the place! The funny thing is, I pointed out the Wonks conflicts of interest way back in February (see "Drug Wonks are PR Wonks"), but that tree falling in the forest made no sound.

Now you can't swing a Kitty without hitting a post dissing Pitts and or Goldberg, the 2 most prolific drug Wonks. I think CL Psych started it with the post "Welcome to the PR Machine." Since then, others have taken up the clarion call.

Most recently, Jim Edwards over at BrandweekNRX Wailed on Wonks for their attacks on Moore (see "Why DrugWonks' Campaign to Demonize Michael Moore Will Fail"). But there's much more to Jim's post than anti-Drug Wonkisms. He actually is making a point about our health insurance industry that Moore never even touched on! Read it and weep.

Peter Rost over at Question Authority went so far as to ask "Is Big Pharma Secretly Taking Over the Blog World?" It may be less of a conspiracy theory than it sounds. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal profiled a company that can improve your reputation on the Web. One method -- drown out the bad stuff with counter-content that says you're a saint! By the looks of pharmagather, that seems to be the methodology employed by Drug Wonks, which makes one small post after another all day long. Of course, Pharmalot does the same thing, so I guess one balances the other!

'Round the Sphere: SiCKO Spies, Panama Hats, Blog Burnout

Peter Rost -- one of the biggest stars in the Pharma Blogosphere firmament -- promises to make panama hats popular again! See his post here.

It appears, however, that these hats are already popular amongst Chippendale male dancers -- that's one shown on the left (not Dr. Rost!).

The issue of panama hats arose after Rost showed up last week in sunglasses and a panama hat for a friendly lunch with Jim Edwards of BrandweekNRX. They met at a trendy Italian restaurant in Milburn, NJ, if such a thing is possible (not that I have anything against NJ; some of my best friends live and fish in NJ; please, no comments accusing me of being an anti-Jerseyite!).

Bigger news came out of that meeting than what kind of hat men should wear. It appears that I soon won't have Jim to kick around anymore on the issue of mandatory Gardasil inoculations -- a topic we tussled over some time ago.

Jim announced he is leaving Brandweek in August to become a Knight Bagehot fellow at Columbia. This "sweet deal" includes full tuition and a living stipend of $50,000.

Good luck Jim!

On another front, Derek Lowe, an Arkansan by birth and blogger extraordinaire at In the Pipeline, announced that he will be moving to Boston for a new job! Derek would like to hear from readers with personal experience with the towns, schools (and roads!) of that part of Massachusetts.

It's obvious, although not mentioned by Derek, that after June, when he starts his new job, he may have little time to devote to blogging. And thus another shining star in the Pharma Blogosphere may dim. Good luck to Derek as well!

We Lose 40% of the Top-Rated Bloggers!
Thus 2 of the 5 "top rated" blogs in the Pharma Blogosphere, which includes In the Pipeline, Pharmalot, BrandweekNRX, PharmaGossip, and Pharma Marketing Blog (see "Survey Finds Blogs Critical of Drug Industry Are Most Credible"), will soon fade to black.

So, within the last 6 months we saw an explosion of new entrants into the Pharma Blogosphere and now somewhat of a collapse.

That's the way things are.

SiCKO PhRMA Spygate!
Meanwhile, life -- such as it is -- in the Pharma Blogosphere trundles on.

We've seen "Buckets of Cash" ZubeGate and AstraZeneca's Cupcake Capers. Now a new controversy is brewing involving Michael Moore's movie SiCKO, PhRMA, and a mysterious movie mogul "friend" of PhRMA's executive VP.

I first reported on this in Pharma Marketing Blog: "PhRMA Sent SiCKO Spy to Cannes".

Subsequent to that, Ed Silverman at Pharmalot received a phone call from Ken Johnson -- the PhRMA VP in question -- who claimed that a hollywood "friend" just happened to be in Cannes at the opening of SiCKO and gave Ken "some pretty good blow...", err, I mean "blow-by-blow" (see "PhRMA: We Didn’t Send A Spy To Cannes!").

What Ken failed to mention, however, was the role played by a certain PhRMA Intern in soliciting this favor from a Hollywood movie mogul -- see tomorrow's post to Pharma Marketing Blog for the full story of this exciting Spy-vs-SiCKO sitcom!

BTW, you can read a review of SiCKO by the only pharma blogger to actually see the entire movie here!

Pfizer to Rost: An Offer You Can't Refuse

Rost Accepts Pfizer Settlement, Renames Blog "Question Authority (Except Pfizer, the Largest Drug Company on the Planet)"

Will we someday read this headline in Fortune or the Wall Street Journal, which, of course, would only print it if true -- unlike here, where I am merely extending a scenario envisioned by Jim Edwards over at BrandNRX (see "Can Pfizer Get Over Its Anger and Utilize the Leverage It Has With Rost?").

Jim suggests that Pfizer has "a fantastic opportunity in front of them that no other drug company has: The ability to tie Rost up in a legal settlement that would prevent him from blogging about Pfizer ever again." Jim suggests that Rost would have no option but to accept the offer that cannot be refused:

"And given the scale of pharma settlements, it is highly likely, IMHO, that Rost would feel duty bound to accept those terms. He has a house, wife and kids to provide for after all, and bloggging and publishing don't make people rich."

It's difficult to argue against that point. God knows, I would accept being rich in return for silence. Everyone has his/her price. Don't forget: Rost was "rich" with an annual salary of about $750,000, which he had to give up to blow the whistle. Not many people would have given that up to be righteous.

If Pfizer ever bestowed this "gift" upon Rost, I have no doubt that he will survive and could continue to expose pharmaceutical companies other than Pfizer.

But would the brand "Question Authority" survive? Think of all the T-shirts and mugs he wouldn't be able to sell!

But how much Pfizer money would silence Rost? That's an interesting question that I'd like to have some input on. Peter might also like to know where the line should be drawn.

What will it take to silence Rost?
	Somewhat less than $1 Million
	$1 to $2 Million
	$2 to $5 Million
	$5 to $10 Million
	An astronomical sum of money!

Another Pharma "Friend" Leaves the Pharma Blogosphere

Pharma Gazette's Gloria Gamat is leaving the Pharma Blogosphere^TM -- at least for now. Was it something I said? I don't think so, but here's what she says:

The last 14 months of blogging here at Pharmagazette had been rewarding in more ways than one and I want to take this opportunity to thank the whole Know More Media team for believing in me.

However, some things must end and after this post I will no longer be blogging for Pharmagazette.

(I will still be blogging about health and science though, but outside the Know More Media network of business blogs.)

While blogging about pharmaceutical business taught me huge stuff than I could ever learn somewhere else, it is something that I cannot do anymore.

Thank you so much for frequenting this blog. I hope you still find time to visit when Know More Media finds a new resident blogger.

And as for me, I will still be present in the blogosphere...so I hope you find me there some time soon.

So long and best of luck and regards to Know More Media and its team of excellent professionals and wonderful people.

I wish her luck in whatever her new endeavor may be and I hope she keeps us informed about her new blog about health and science by submitting a comment here.

Friend of Foe?
BTW, I am not at all sure that Gloria can be characterized as a "friend" of pharma. In the First Ever Pharma Blogosphere Reader Survey (download summary here), Pharma Gazette was rated "supportive" of the industry -- but not by as wide a margin as several other blogs. Only about 20% of respondents rated the blog as "very" or "somewhat" supportive of the industry, whereas 40% said the same of In the Pipeline, which I don't view as super-pharma friendly (Lowe often criticizes the industry).

In fact, I don't like characterizing people as "Friends" or "Foes" or as Jim Edwards at BrandweekNRX says, "Enemies" (see "More of Pharma's Enemies Join the Blogosphere"; Jeeez Jim! Can you get rid of that Neilsen NetRatings pop-up? I don't want to take your survey and it takes soooo long to dispose of that window that I sometimes quit your blog in frustration!).

Jim was commenting on the entry of the Prescription Access Litigation (PAL) Blog to the Pharma Blogosphere (see "New Pharma Blog Planet Discovered!"). Frankly, I don't think PAL is an industry supporter, but "enemy" may be too strong a word.

Anyway, it's a free blogosphere and bloggers like Jim can call anyone anything, even "turd." But that's another story about another pharma blogger who has fizzled out of the sphere.

'Round the Sphere With Christiane Truelove

PharmaLive's e-newsletter "Pharma Blogs: Week in Review" edited by Christiane Truelove offers a roundup of what bloggers in the Pharma Blogosphere^TM are writing about recently. To read it, you need to subscribe here.

Topics covered this week include:

• The two Peters (Pitts and Rost) on the issue of drug re-importation.

Pitts is the anti-Peter, whereas Rost if the pro-Peter, viz-a-viz allowing re-importation. You may recall that this was the issue that first brought Rost to worldwide attention via his 60 minutes interview. Back then Peter did not have a blog and would send out email missives. "Get a Blog already," I said (see "Rost to Roost in Blogosphere"). The rest, as they say, is history. Pitts, on the other hand, used to work for the FDA. Funny how many former FDAers now lobby, do PR, or otherwise consult for the drug industry.

• Jim Edwards (Brandweek) on the failed DTC moratorium provision

Truelove says "In response to comments made by Democratic Iowa Senator Tom Harkin in the Star-Ledger, Mr. Edwards says, 'We've had 10 years of DTC. Either it's fine the way it is or it needs to be reined in. If it needed reining in, then this was the chance to do it. And you balked. No one believes that Congress will ever again take serious action to change DTC rules.'" (see "Senate to Big Pharma on DTC: 'Never Mind!'")

Of course, some people, like Robert Corn-Revere, think Congress has the right to limit DTC only by eliminating the first amendment (see this screed from the Media Institute).

• Derek Lowe (In the Pipeline) on more power to the FDA to monitor drug safety

"We know just as much about toxicology as we did yesterday -- a lot, from one perspective, but not nearly enough, from another," Dr. Lowe says.

No legislation will correct the FDA's blind eye, which was turned towards years and years of Purdue's perfidy re: off-label promotion of OxyContin. According to an article in the New York Times, "when the painkiller was first approved, F.D.A. officials allowed Purdue Pharma to state that the time-release of a narcotic like OxyContin 'is believed to reduce' its potential to be abused." Where was the FDA when Purdue Pharma went further? They can have all the power in the world, but it doesn't mean they will use it. After all, there are post-FDA career decisions to consider.

Frosting occurs over pink cupcakes
Of course, Truelove mentions the Pink Cupcake Caper and the "kitty fight" that briefly pitted her against Black Kitty. I'm not going to get into that here, but Truelove handles the whole thing very professionally and distills from it the lesson I promulgated: pharmaceutical sales reps need to have some guidance about what is and what is not appropriate food to be handing out to patients in waiting rooms (see my Guidelines for Gifts to Patients).

Truelove then relates her own personal story about an inappropriate gift from a pharma rep that she still cherishes -- a chocolate bar wrapped in a drug logo-emblazoned wrapper (you'll have to read the newsletter to find out what drug and what pharma company -- hint: it ends with "zeneca"). It must be way moldy by now! Yewwww!

There's more, but I've got to get on with making a living. I suppose you should too!

'Round the Sphere: Not-as-black-as-you-think-you-are and Blog Schmog Point-Counterpoint

Jim Edwards over at BrandweekNRX wonders whether "not-as-black-as-you-think-you-are" genes are responsible for lackluster sales of BiDil -- the first drug approved specifically for "self identified" African Americans. Jim posits that maybe this group is not as black as they think they are and casts doubt on "race-based medicine" (see "BiDil Falters, Casting Doubts on Race-Based Medicine").

John Mack, over at Pharma Marketing Blog, believes this is a bogus argument and places BiDil's problems squarely in marketing's court (see "BiDil Sales Disappoint: Blame Genes or Marketing?"). As usual, I don't just criticize, I offer an innovative solution to the problem of marketing to minorities.

Meanwhile, Agnes Shanley over at On Pharma is casting some doubt of her own and questions the utility of blogs: "Zube-gate aside, rumors of your power to change the world have been greatly exaggerated," says Shanley (see "Blog, Schmlog: Tales from the Dark Side of Web 2.0").

"I Beg to Differ!," says Fard Johnmar over at HealthcareVOX. "To say that blogs are not significantly influencing health and healthcare is far from correct," says Fard (see "Agnes Shanley Says 'Blog Schmog'; I Beg To Differ").

Agnes has been posting some very interesting things on her blog lately and seems to have picked up some pointers from the rest of the pack, especially heating things up with some controversial postings.

Don't worry about lack of comments, Agnes. Keep up the good work and I am sure the comments will follow. It's not the quantity of comments you receive, but the quality and whether or not they move the discussion forward and teach us a thing or two.

Speaking of moving the discussion forward: don't bother making any comments here if all you are doing is pointing out my shortcomings! I am fully briefed on that subject. Just stick to the subject at hand and I am glad to pass your comments on. Otherwise, hasta la vista, baby!

Pointing Fingers

There's been some interest in the First Ever Pharma Blogosphere Reader Survey from bloggers in the Pharma Blogosphere^TM.

Recently, Rich Meyer, author of World of DTC Marketing (rated as one of the TOP 5 "useful" blogs by survey respondents) suggested that people who have not worked in the pharmaceutical industry should not "point fingers."

Rich was disturbed to learn that according to the survey, "BLOGS critical of the pharmaceutical industry are viewed more credible than BLOGS supportive of the industry. ...unless you have worked in the pharma industry there is no way that you can sit on the fence and point fingers at people inside the house." (See "Unless you have been there don't point fingers".)

The blogs that Rich says in "no way" should point fingers at pharma include:

• Pharmalot
• PharmaGossip
• Pharma Marketing Blog
• BrandweekNRX

Of these, only PharmaGossip meets Rich's criteria for the right to point fingers. PharmaGossip is supposedly written by an industry insider. However, the author is anonymous and there is no way to confirm that he/she is an authentic "insider." But I take the Insider (aka "Jack Friday") at his word.

I think it's incredible for Rich to make this kind of statement. First, any one has a right to point fingers and some of the best finger pointing may be done by "outsiders," such as Democrats in Congress pointing fingers at the Bush administration.

The press (of which we have freedom of here in the USA) is another good example of outsiders pointing in. Pharmalot and BrandweekNRX are two "critical" blogs written by reporters and they are doing a wonderful and critically acclaimed job of pointing fingers.

Of course, the "finger pointer uber alis" is Peter Rost of Question Authority. Rost used to be on the inside but now he is on the outside, so I guess he's OK in Meyer's book.

Meyer plays the "pharma is unique card": "Working in the pharma industry is unique and unless you have spent time on the inside I don't believe that you can understand the environment in which we work."

OK, let's have some sympathy for the environment in which these guys work. But that is no excuse for premeditated abuse of laws, regulations, guidelines, and ethical marketing practices, which are plain for anyone to see, inside or out.

P.S. Meyer relates he has seen a lot of wrong committed inside the tent by fellow pharma people. His blog is a good example of how someone on the inside can take a critical look at this situation and I applaud him for doing it. I also applaud his company, which Meyer doesn't name, for not terminating or muzzling him.

Survey Finds Blogs Critical of Drug Industry Are Most Credible

I will be in Las Vegas this Monday and Tuesday where I am speaking at the Healthcare Blogging Summit. I will be participating on the panel, "Blog Search, Distribution, Measurement & Reputation Management", along with Fard Johnmar (HealthcareVOX blog), Tom Eng, Healia (medical blog search), and Constantin Basturea, Converseon (a Web 2.0 communications agency).

At this meeting, I will present the details of the Pharma Blogosphere Reader Survey. Below is the press release, which highlights some of the findings from that survey, which I hope stimulates some discussion at the meeting.

---

First Ever Pharma Blogosphere™ Reader Survey Reveals That Blogs Critical of the Pharmaceutical Industry are Viewed More Credible than Blogs Supportive of the Industry

Results of the First Ever Reader Survey of the Pharma Blogosphere™ Presented at the Healthcare Blogging Summit in Las Vegas

Survey sheds light on the credibility and bias of over 20 blogs devoted to various aspects of the pharmaceutical industry

Las Vegas, NV – April 30, 2007 – A new survey of pharma blog readers presented today at the Healthcare Blogging Summit by VirSci Corporation, publisher of Pharma Marketing News newsletter, reveals that four of the TOP FIVE credible pharmaceutical-related blogs are "industry critics," as rated by industry and non-industry readers alike.

According to industry readers, the TOP FIVE credible blogs, in rank order, are In the Pipeline, Pharmalot, Pharma Marketing Blog, BrandweekNRX, and PharmaGossip. In the Pipeline blog is the only "industry supporter" in the group (see TABLE, below).

Non-industry readers also considered critical blogs more credible, although the list of blogs in this group is somewhat different (see TABLE, below).

Pharma Rag, PharmaGossip, Question Authority, and Pharma Giles were considered the most critical of the industry by all 143 survey respondents, whereas On Pharma, In the Pipeline, Drug Wonks, and Eye On FDA were considered most supportive.

Aside from bias for or against the industry and credibility, respondents rated blogs according to readability (layout, ease of reading and finding information) and usefulness (for keeping readers aware of the issues).

"Top Honors" overall went to In the Pipeline, Pharmalot, BrandweekNRX, PharmaGossip, and Pharma Marketing Blog.

Thirty percent (30%) of respondents read 2 to 9 pharmaceutical-related blogs more than once a week. Eighty-six percent (86%) read pharma blogs to keep up to date with industry news and gossip; 69% to learn more about industry business practices, regulations, etc.; and 22% to "snoop" in order to see what bloggers may be saying about their companies or blogs.

The most frequently read blogs are Pharma Marketing Blog, PharmaGossip, Pharmalot, Question Authority (Dr. Peter Rost), In the Pipeline, and Eye On FDA.

"Both the drug industry and its supporters seem to have fallen into the same credibility gap," said John Mack, publisher of Pharma Marketing News and author of Pharma Marketing Blog and Pharma Blogosphere™ blog. "The results of this survey are a wake-up call to blogs that support the industry. They must do a better job convincing readers—most of whom are likely skeptical of the industry to begin with—that the information in their blogs is credible."

VirSci Corporation's survey was featured in the April issue of Pharma Marketing News. A reprint of the article "How Readable, Credible & Useful are Pharma Blogs? can be found on the Pharma Marketing Network website and purchased for $9.95. It’s free to subscribers of the newsletter (subscribe here).

TABLE: TOP FIVE credible blogs according to industry respondents (left 2 columns) vs. non-industry respondents (right 2 columns), based on the percentage of responses in the "Top 2 boxes" (Superior/Excellent). N (industry)=43 (excluding respondents who “never” or “rarely” read the blog); n>5 (includes only blogs having more than 5 responses); N (non-industry)=100 (not Never/Rarely); n>10. Excludes Pharma Watch blog because it is now closed to the public. *In the Pipeline is the only “industry supportive” blog in this group, as judged by respondents.

About the Survey
One hundred forty three (143) respondents to the survey ranked 22 pharmaceutical-related blogs according to readability (layout, ease of reading and finding information), usefulness (for keeping readers aware of the issues), and credibility (accuracy of information). The survey was hosted online between February 3, 2007 and February 28, 2007. VirSci Corporation acknowledges with appreciation Chris Pounds at Myriad Pharmaceuticals for help with survey design and analysis.

About VirSci Corporation
VirSci Corporation (www.virsci.com) publishes Pharma Marketing News and owns Pharma Marketing Network, which brings together pharmaceutical marketing professionals from manufacturers, communications companies, and marketing service providers for wide ranging discussions and education on a multitude of current topics. Pharma Marketing Network & Pharma Marketing News provide executive-level content coupled with permission-based e-marketing opportunities.

Media Contact
John Mack, VirSci Corporation
Phone: 215-504-4164
Cell: 215-431-0859
E-mail: johnmack@virsci.com

# # #

'Round the Sphere: Capitalizing on VA Tech Tragedy, Rost Roasts Mack, the PharmaBlog Band

Let me start with the hottest topic making the rounds of the Pharma Blogosphere^TM (and the world in general): the VA Tech Tragedy. We all want to show our support for the students of VA Tech, their families, the victims, and especially the families of the victims. Bloggers in the Pharma Blogosphere are no exception and several of us expressed our thoughts in one way or another.

Fard Johnmar at HealthcareVOX observed a daylong moment of silence on April 18; Pharma Marketing Blog (my blog) followed suit on April 19.

Pharma Giles touched upon the anti-depressant drug link issue ("No Sense at all.."), but confessed "I don't feel like trying to be funny for a while. My heart goes out to the families of those who died at Blacksburg on the morning of the 16th."

But Drug Wonks -- opportunists that they are -- immediately saw the chance to stick it to the anti-anti-depressant folks in their post "The Sorrow and the Pity." Is it OK because they prefaced their comments with "Virginia Tech sorrow and media SSRI hysteria notwithstanding, some important new science ..."? I don't think so!

Pharm Aid got its ass in a wringer when it posted "Anti-Science Propaganda" which I guess could be characterized as a screed in line with the Drug Wonk sentiment, but going a step further by characterizing the anti-anti-depressant crowd as "anti-science crowd." Pharm Aid must have gotten a lot of flack in comments because it had to announce that it would henceforth moderate comments. Good idea!

The Howard Stern of the Pharma Blogosphere!?
Which brings me to the roast that Rost wrought upon me, in which he accused me of "spinning" the results of the Pharma Blogosphere Survey, compared me to shock jock Howard Stern (I guess he doesn' have Don Imus to kick around any more), and berated me for sullying the good name of Agnes Shanley, author of On Pharma blog. You can find his comments here.

"To be, or not to be,--that is the question:--whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them?"

Oh, what the hell! I'll choose the arms! Here's my response to Peter, which I would like to make public here:

Peter, Peter, Peter! You don't need no stinkin' survey to be popular and help you promote yourself! You're doing a great job all by yourself.

BTW, regarding the Pharma Blogosphere Survey, all the analysis was done by a third party expert in data analysis. Also, you and all the other bloggers in the survey, will receive the raw data soon and can make your own hay out of it!

I just want a bit of exclusivity considering how much work I put into this -- including giving away my products (reprints and special supplements to my Pharma Marketing News newsletter) to participants as a thank you.

Is it too much to ask that I get my chance to bask in the sun? After all, my blog didn't win top prize and I haven't dissed the winner [I should correct that: the TOP five blogs, eg, In the Pipeline] as you have!

Regarding the Cafe Pharma quotes let me say this: I have no recollection of that!

Just kidding. Really, you know it was all done tongue-in-cheek, don't you? Perhaps I took it a step too far, but putting me in the same league as Howard Stern and Imus is really unfair, you lilly-white ho!

What you may not know is that I have been in contact with Agnes Shanley who wrote in an unsolicited e-mail: "Thanks...for the link and writeup. Have been chuckling about it all morning, and hope it generates some discussion. Your points were all good/true, too." [I don't think she meant that the comments attributed to "anonymous" were good and true. Everyone, I hope, realizes that those comments were taken from unrelated Cafe Pharma posts and were meant to illustrate how "uncivil" some people can be online. Sorry, if there was any confusion about that. See also Agnes' post: “Tough Love” from John Mack?] I have since helped Agnes by noting that her comments were not working and that's why her site is not getting comments from readers! No one else took the time or effort to give her a heads up!

So, I like to think that I give as much as I take and I hope most bloggers in the Pharma Blogosphere will back me up on that!

Can I hear an Amen?

Let Me Introduce You to the Band
PharmaGossip's PharmaBlog Band that is! Guess who's the lead guitar? See him here. Peter Rost, Ed Silverman, and Jack Friday himself are the backup members.

We Are Family
In a few short months I have seen the Pharma Blogosphere blossom into a strong family that has garnered a lot of attention. Much credit has to go to Peter Rost and journalist bloggers like Jim Edwards, Ed Silverman, and the guys at the WSJ Health Blog, for accelerating this process.

A growing family is bound to have problems as we learn to live together. So, just because this week Peter and I seem to be at odds, it doesn't mean we are dysfunctional. At least I hope not. Sometimes we can go too far and I am sorry.

That's it. I've done apologizing! Now back to the music...