Here is a news release outlining the program of "education" of viewers of
Chicago Hope to be followed up by local news coverage after the viewing of
the show about the "risks associated with breast feeding"(sic). Notice who is
sponsoring this: the Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America
(PhRMA). Just an observation.......I'm sure it's just a
coincidence...........
Ruth Scuderi
Westfield, MA
TV News Features Bring Medical Hope to American Viewers
Johns Hopkins Hospital Supports Program With Research and Expertise
BALTIMORE, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Special medical news features, designed
to educate consumers on timely health issues, have been developed and are now
airing in local TV news programs. These exclusive news packages, produced
under the project name "Living With Hope," air during late night news
programs, following the weekly TV show "Chicago Hope," as it begins its new
season September 30 on CBS. In the newscasts immediately following each
episode of the popular hospital drama series, the fictional medical situations
portrayed in the show are realistically addressed by medical experts from
Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in the "Living
With Hope" segments.
The "Living With Hope" project is a collaborative effort between Johns Hopkins
Medicine, the Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), CBS
Television stations, and show producers Twentieth Century Fox, to relate to
viewers on medical concerns at a time when their awareness is heightened on
such issues. "Chicago Hope" reportedly has an intensely loyal audience week to
week, a good deal of which stays tuned in to watch the local news afterwards.
The parties involved in the project hope viewers will also watch the medical
news segments to become better informed should similar emergency or other
health care issues arise in their own families. Local stations promote each
nightly news segment during the preceding "Chicago Hope" episode, and
encourage viewers to tune in to learn more.
Another aspect of the "Living With Hope" project is the interactive component.
During each newscast, viewers are directed to CBS Television's Internet Web
site, which is updated weekly with information related to that night's
"Chicago Hope" episode and the corresponding "Living With Hope" feature. The
Web site is located at http://www.intelihealth.com/hope/. Produced in
Baltimore, Maryland, the news features now air in that city as well as on CBS-
owned and operated stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia,
Boston, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Miami, Denver, Pittsburgh and Green Bay.
Experts from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the 107- year-old Johns
Hopkins Hospital have provided background research and on-camera interviews
for each feature in the "Living With Hope" news series.
PhRMA, the pharmaceutical industry trade association, is backing the project
out of a sense of responsibility, says Alixe Glen, Vice President of Public
Affairs of PhRMA. "The goal of the research-based pharmaceutical industry is
in discovering, developing and bringing to market medicines that allow
patients and families to live healthier, happier and more productive lives
while also reducing overall costs." About tying in with the popular TV show
and local news programming, Glen says the partnership "allows our message to
be associated with high quality programming that deals with information on
medical conditions in a responsible way."
Bozell Worldwide New York, PhRMA's agency of record for media, was
instrumental in the development of "Living With Hope." According to Peter
Gardiner, Bozell New York Media Director, "this project is part of a broader
campaign strategy for the pharmaceutical association, aimed at placing PhRMA's
message in positive and trusted 'health environments.'"
American Demographics reported the Gallup organization's findings that local
TV news is the most important source of news to six in ten people in this
country. Local news, the article said, carries more weight because the
information offered has a greater and more immediate effect on viewers and how
it relates to their lives. It also cited the Internet as another resource
interested viewers use to acquire additional in-depth information.
In another unrelated article, the Johns Hopkins Hospital was recently rated as
the nation's "best hospital" for the seventh year in a row by U.S. News &
World Report.
The first "Chicago Hope" episode and subsequent "Living With Hope" news
segment this fall will address the subject of in vivo, a desensitization
therapy used in the treatment of elevator phobia. Later in the season, viewers
can expect to be educated on issues such as a patient's right to die and the
risks associated with breast feeding.
SOURCE Sales Development Systems
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