BulletProofBlog the blog on crisis communications

Several weeks ago, there was another reminder of the need for transparency when enlisting third party advocates to deliver corporate messages.

The New York Times reported that psychiatrist Dr. Frederick K. Goodwin - the well-known and widely-respected host of public radio' s "The Infinite Mind" - had made up to $1.3 million from pharmaceutical manufacturers for marketing lectures he delivered between 2000 and 2007. The relationship was never disclosed on Dr. Goodwin' s program, a potentially serious conflict of interest, given the fact that he often offers guidance on treating a number of psychological conditions on his show.

Dr. Goodwin' s relationship with drug makers was just latest to be uncovered as pharmaceutical marketing techniques have come under intense scrutiny in recent months. As a result, Congress is currently considering legislation that would require full disclosure of such financial arrangements and several companies have already announced that they will implement full disclosure programs beginning this year.

Trust and credibility are the most valuable commodities that a pharmaceutical company and an expert physician or researcher can offer. But by failing to disclose their relationships, doctors and drug makers jeopardize that trust. When that happens, everyone learns the hard lesson that credibility is hard to earn, easy to lose, and often impossible to regain.

If companies and their third party advocates take a more transparent approach in the future, they will likely find that their efforts to educate the public about legitimate treatment options will be better recieved, even by skeptical politicians. Had Dr. Goodwin come right out and told his radio audience that he had worked for GlaxoSmithKline, listeners would probably have appreciated his honesty. At the very least, the probability that the relationship might be disclosed in a far more damaging manner would be eliminated.

The world in which pharmaceutical companies market their products is changing. When employing third party advocates, companies need to understand that in the age of the Internet secrets don' t stay secrets for long. And even if they did, there is still no good reason to hide the fact that a respected and influential expert is willing to put his or her reputation behind a product - even if there is compensation involved.