Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Los Angeles Times, (12.14.2006) - Friday, December 15, 2006
Rong-Gong Lin II
"We call on Pfizer to exercise responsibility by discontinuing marketing to men with mild erectile dysfunction, and by initiating an educational campaign on the dangers of Viagra and meth targeting men who have sex with men," said an AHF ad published recently in L.A. Weekly. AHF plans to run the ad in New York, San Francisco, and South Florida publications.
AHF President Michael Weinstein described several Viagra ads whose message, he said, "is like saying, 'Have a party. Have a good time. Use Viagra.'"
"Such marketing could make Viagra sound like a party drug, and for a drug to be used when one wants to take risks," said Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, San Francisco Department of Public Health's STD prevention director.
Pfizer denies AHF's claim that the Viagra advertisements promote recreational use of the drug: It said the ads already state Viagra offers no protection against STDs. "We've always been committed to the safe and appropriate use of Viagra," said Shontelle Dodson, Pfizer's senior medical director. "We always encourage men to see their physicians for the proper diagnosis."
In 2004, the Food and Drug Administration ordered Pfizer to stop promoting Viagra in television ads that the agency said promised men "a return to a previous level of sexual desire and activity" - a claim FDA deemed unsubstantiated.
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