Too many of these type publications, that profess to publish articles to help consumers make better choices when making buying decisions, may not always have the consumer’s best interest in mind. Any publication that accepts or relies on advertising to stay in business may not always be totally unbiased when it comes to the consumer’s interests! Also beware of advertisement-driven, so-called consumer publications that do stories recommending certain products then turn around and sell ads to the manufacturers of the same or similar products!
The consumer’s best bet for totally unbiased reporting would possibly be to rely on those publications that accept absolutely no advertising whatsoever.
Donating A Car To Charity
Too many advertisements you hear or see asking you to donate your old, unwanted used car to charity may not give more than 5%, and possibly even less than 5%, of the car’s value to charity! So beware which organization you donate your car to.
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) recommends you donate a car to organizations that devote at least 65% of their donations to good works. You can find recommended organizations at the BBB’s National Charity Reports found at bbb.org/charity. You canalso find good information at charitynavigator.org. Both services are free.
When donating a vehicle always remove the license plates, unless the particular state you reside in says otherwise. Also remove the registration and inspection stickers. Doing this and you will not be held accountable for a later owner’s violations!
Drug Company Research Advertisements
Drug manufacturers may be suppressing their own research results which, if leaked out to the public, could conceivably threaten profits at the expense of patients who are having to take these drug manufacturers’ drugs! Research may be uncovering cheaper alternatives to drugs now available but if a drug company halts or attempts to hold up or hinder a certain study’s results from getting published, based on so-called scientific objections, consumers may needlessly be spending more money for certain drugs than they should have to.
These findings raise troubling questions about drug manufacturers’ influence over research findings on which their profits may depend. Who knows if critical research findings may be “locked up” in a particular manufacturer’s laboratory, findings which could be saving lives or at least offering up cheaper drug alternatives?
Concerning drug advertisements, they are allowed to “hype” or exaggerate a drug’s benefits in the advertisements’ main body of copy or ad text, then only have to disclose the drugs’ risks in the ads’ small, fine print that many people do not tend to read or cannot even understand due to all of the unclear medical jargon.
Drug ads may lead doctors to prescribing more expensive drugs when cheaper, less advertised drugs may exist! Critics charge that drug ads should have to make the risks of taking certain drugs clearer in the ads, and spelled out in bigger, bolder print, as well as offer information about alternative drugs or non-drug, unconventional treatments.
One survey of ads found that 62% of the drug ads published in medical journals were inaccurate or misleading. For example, some drugs described as effective may have severe side effects that are not fully explained while other costlier drugs with higher profit margins, advertised as a better choice, may have equivalent counterparts available that are just as good and cheaper to buy for the consumer!
A leading consumer magazine reported that possibly only about 40% of the drug ads published today may be fairly describing the benefits and risks to consumers! Ads may also exaggerate the claims of their competitors drugs’ side effects by trying to put their competitors’ drugs in a negative light.
SUPPLEMENTAL SOURCE: MIAMI HERALD NEWSPAPER 1/19/97 and 4/16/97