For her creative research project, Rika created this documentary that delves into the ethical and moral conflicts that exist in the pharmaceutical industry. Informed by her personal positionality as a young person, Rika aims to encourage other young people to learn about these issues and strive to make a change.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gej0MLA35TU
Note to Viewer:
Dear Viewer,
The nature of humanity is a debate whose origins can be found in the oldest of philosophy. To seek our purpose in the world, to explore the very reason for being – these objectives are ones that many have devoted their entire lives to. One may argue that by living, we naturally devote our lives to seeking its purpose. With all that said, it is easy to agree that it would be significantly harder to find this purpose if we aren’t provided enough time to explore. Those who recognize this seek to prolong life, unearth the science behind survival, battle disease and come out on top. But as many myths and fables have shown, greed tends to corrupt the otherwise harmless nature of curiosity and passion for one’s work. In the short film trailer I’ve created, I chose to explore this corruption of knowledge, through the most prominent figures today that are the most vocal about unearthing new science; in this film, I investigate the Big Pharma controversy through the lens of a young adult, in hopes that those who watch this in a similar position come to understand the dangers of being ignorant.
One may question the importance of this topic. After all, news stories are easy to find and access, and with such a large-scale controversy, it wouldn’t be difficult to find information about Big Pharma companies. Why bother creating a film at all? I would even be in your shoes, had it not been for O’Connor and Weatherall’s The Misinformation Age and the insight they provided into the dangers of fake news and social media’s involvement. It made me realize that easy access does not always promote a positive connotation. With that, I created this film with an audience in mind that consists of the group that would be one of the most involved with social media – young adults. Specifically, these young adults, most likely in university or doing similar work, who are exploring their financial independence. While Big Pharma’s controversy is a global topic that affects multiple groups, recently financially independent young adults are in a position of direct and indirect danger. Whether the danger stems from their ignorance of the politics in the medical world, or if their involvement is so great that it forces them into a position where they are directly affected, this group is at high risk. Beyond them, doctors and politicians who seek to be involved in the sociopolitical spheres of the medical world may also encounter this film. To involve them, I chose to also explore the science that is being studied in these spheres, as well as discuss the process of involvement and collaboration with Big Pharma (Lipton & Nordstedt, 2016). But there is no limit to who can watch. Whoever you are, viewer, you are welcome to explore the same controversy.
As well-put by DeAngelis (2016), big-name pharmaceutical companies receive a concerning amount of profit from the drugs they produce, and there isn’t enough importance placed on defining the parameters of fair and just (30). This very issue of how corruption becomes easier when Big Pharma leaders get to define their own parameters with little accountability is the reason for me choosing this topic to explore in this project. It’s important to recognize that corruption comes in many forms, and often goes unseen. In the context of large-scale companies that have the power and the money to hide their tracks, this corruption is hidden much more efficiently. It’s not entirely fair for me to give credit to the corrupt pharmaceutical companies and their ability to hide said corruption, though, when part of it also stems from ignorance on the other end. Sometimes, people either don’t listen to things they don’t want to hear or are too preoccupied to give them attention. Both are fair, but these uncomfortable conversations are exactly the ones to have if any progress is to be made at all. My hope is that this film can act as a catalyst of some sort for this conversation to be had.
All good informational projects require an appropriate amount of research to be done – after all, we aren’t just showing personal findings, but also evidence of the information that we are putting out in the project. Throughout the creative process, I found many different sources that helped bring the story to life. Some of the sources were informational articles that I used to create the backbone of the film, some were referenced indirectly (or provided background information), and some were even quoted directly in the film. I also found a few sources that I used as a part of the film as clips to help shape the story. These were referenced at the end of the video. Using Birkinshaw et. al’s article about biotechnology, I strengthened my understanding of the ways of pharmaceutical companies and their processes (2018). Hogerzeil’s insightful discussion on the Medicine Index (2013) and its uses allowed me even further insight into how the pharmaceutical industry operates. DeAngelis’ article (2016) and Hvistendahl’s findings in China (2013) shaped a lot of my argument that was the centre of the film! In Thierry et. al’s (2013) article, it wasn’t so much a piece that shaped my work, but rather an article that informed me on the practices of the pharmaceutical industry. I used it similarly to how I used Hogerzeil’s and Birkinshaw et. al’s research. In Light et. al’s (2013) study, I learned a lot about how pharmaceutical companies worked to cement their place in the industry. Again, this study helped me understand the depth of the crimes of the pharmaceutical industry, so it helped me shape my perspective on the topic. For Lipton & Nordstedt’s (2016) article, it was mainly for me to understand my secondary audience, who are primarily healthcare workers and scientists. Mahase’s (2021) article is similar to DeAngelis’ as it talks about the depths of the Big Pharma controversy in the form of a social commentary. For Owen’s (2014) article, I used the researcher’s discourse analysis as a guide to approaching the film, and Sismondo’s (2021) paper on epistemic corruption within the pharmaceutical industry was once again used to shape and further develop my argument that I present in the film. Some other sources were used in the film itself that weren’t included in the original annotated bibliography, such as the paper done by the World Health Organization on COVID-19’s origins (2021) and the clips in the film that I did not create which were cited on the video, such as MODSUN’s I’m addicted to drugs and alcohol…, DW News’ Coronavirus vaccines: Big pharma’s next cash cow?, E! News’ Demi Lovato’s recovery: Dr. Drew’s professional take, ABC News’ 1st case of coronavirus confirmed in the US, South China Morning Post’s Mystery illness outbreak in Wuhan, China, War is Hell’s World war 1 graphic footage, Sky News’ The shocking centre of the COVID-19 crisis, CBSDFW’s Up – close look at real life in trauma unit, and The Opener’s 5 awesome medicine making machinery in pharmaceutical industry. The research I did for the project wasn’t used directly in the final product. Rather, I used the sources that I had gathered to form my argument and further my understanding of the medical world – specifically, the pharmaceutical industry, so that I could create a film that acted as a sort of call to action to the viewer.
Dear viewer, I would hope that this film stirred something within you. While it isn’t our direct duty to fight back against these large-scale names and leaders of the world, it’s our direct duty to do what is best for both ourselves and our community. Let us remember that these companies hold our safety, our key to living longer, in their hands. If we let them control it, we are essentially allowing them to enslave us and have us obey their every command. If not for anything else, dear viewer, reflect on this argument I’ve presented to you for the sake of your autonomy – for the sake of your livelihood.
References
ABC News. (2020, January 22). 1st case of coronavirus confirmed in US | ABC News [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMc280EtXxs&t=25s
Birkinshaw, J., Visnjic, I., & Bes, S. (2018). Responding to a potentially disruptive technology: How Big Pharma Embraced Biotechnology. California Management Review, 60(4), 74- 100. https://doi.org/10.1177/0008125618778852
CBSDFW. (2017, March 1). Up-close look at real life in trauma unit [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiosxRZbF3M&t=77s
DeAngelis, C. D. (2016). Big pharma profits and the public loses. The Milbank Quarterly, 94(1), 30-33. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-0009.12171
DW News. (2020, November 13). Coronavirus vaccines: Big pharma’s next cash cow? [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNIViibimVU&t=85s
E! News. (2021, March 25). Demi Lovato’s recovery: Dr. Drew’s professional take | Daily Pop | E! News [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7xDbFleZpg&t=123s
Hogerzeil, H. V. (2013). Big pharma and social responsibility – The access to medicine index. The New England Journal of Medicine, 369(10), 896-899. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-0009.12171
Hvistendahl, M. (2013). Corruption and research fraud send big chill through big pharma in China. Science, 341(6145), 445-446. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23491174
Thierry, K., Blomberg, N., Greasley, P. J., Mundt, S., Vainio, M. J., Schamberger, J., Schmidt, G., & Hüser, J. (2013). Big pharma screening collections: more of the same or unique libraries? The AstraZeneca-Bayer Pharma AG case. 2013. Drug Discovery Today, 18(19-20), 1014-1024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drudis.2012.10.011
Light, D. W., Lexchin, J., Darrow, J. J. (2013). Institutional corruption of pharmaceuticals and the myth of safe and effective drugs. J Law Med Ethics, 41(3), 590-600.10.1111/jlme.12068.
Lipton, S. A., & Nordstedt, C. (2016). Partnering with big pharma – What academics need to know. Cell, 165(3), 512-515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2016.04.021
Mahase, E. (2021). Covid-19: Rich countries are putting “relationships with big pharma” ahead of ending pandemic, says Oxfam. BMJ, 373. 10.1136/bmj.n1342
Owen, T. (2014). The ‘access to medicines’ campaign VS. big pharma. Critical Discourse Studies, 11(3), 288-304. DOI: 10.1080/17405904.2014.915860.
Sismondo, S. (2021). Epistemic corruption, the pharmaceutical industry, and the body of medical science. Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analysis, 6. 10.3389/frma.2021.614013.
Sky News. (2020, March 19). The shocking centre of the COVID-19 crisis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J60fQr0GWo&t=187s
Smith, D. R. [MODSUN]. (2019, August 28). Addicted to drugs and alcohol… [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDOa2CMAG2g&t=168s
South China Morning Post. (2020, January 4). Mystery illness outbreak in Wuhan, China [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LtA0-qoHOg
The Opener. (2020, May 4). 5 awesome medicine making machinery in pharmaceutical industry [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIFXiMtalCQ&t=692s
World Health Organization. (2021, March 30). “WHO-convened global study of origins of SARS-CoV-2: China part.” Retrieved from https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/whoconvened-global-study-of-origins-of-sars-cov-2-china-part
War is Hell. (2016, November 26). World War 1 Graphic Footage [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhu_77VU4tA&t=17s