ABC autism show must go on — along with controversy
January 29th, 2008
From Reuters, the Associated Press, Boston Globe, New York Times and others:
Defending itself against harsh criticism from pediatricians, the ABC network said it would include a disclaimer about a plot linking autism with vaccines in the debut episode of the drama “Eli Stone.” The American Academy of Pediatrics had called on the network to cancel the show, charging that it “could lead to a tragic decline in immunization rates.” See earlier post.
The fictional episode features the show’s title character and hero, a trial lawyer played by Jonny Lee Miller (above), convincing a jury that a mercury-based preservative in a vaccine caused a child’s autism. In real life, repeated scientific research has not established a causal link between the preservative and autism.
The show’s two creators, Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, disputed the notion that their show would frighten parents away from vaccines.
“We actually share the concern of the American Academy of Pediatrics. We believe that children should be vaccinated,” Berlanti told Reuters. But he also said, “We hope that people do watch the episode and draw their own conclusions.”
In an earlier interview with the New York Times, the writers had said they did not have any personal ties to the subject of autism and childhood vaccines.
Mr. Guggenheim, who has two young children, said he had questioned his pediatrician about the number of vaccines his children were receiving. “I haven’t vaccinated them as aggressively as I could,” he said.
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