Student Scholarship
Document Type
Research Paper
Abstract
This Washington Semester Project analyzes the Federal Trade Commission's effectiveness in regulating deceptive drug advertising between 1960 and 1961. The research highlights a significant transition in leadership from Republican Chairman Earl W. Kinter to Democratic Chairman Paul Rand Dixon, reflecting a broader national shift toward consumer protection during the New Frontier era. While Kinter emphasized voluntary compliance and the creation of simple guidelines for businessmen, Dixon initiated a rigorous reorganization aimed at eliminating the regulatory lag that often allowed false claims to outlive their effectiveness. Dixon’s approach focused on centering responsibility within individual attorneys and increasing the use of compulsory investigative powers and clinical testing to refute dubious medicinal claims.
The study provides a detailed case analysis of Norkon Pharmacal, Inc., which was charged with disseminating false advertisements for a salicylate-based analgesic. The Commission successfully argued that the product was misrepresented as a superior treatment for serious ailments like arthritis and rheumatism, when it actually provided only temporary relief for minor aches. This case illustrates the FTC’s reliance on expert medical and scientific testimony to challenge pseudoscientific marketing, a policy Dixon sought to formalize to bypass the delays associated with consumer surveys.
Ultimately, the document concludes that while the FTC’s legal machinery is traditionally slow and hampered by opportunities for procedural delay, the 1961 reforms represented a more aggressive stance against quackery. However, the author maintains that government regulation must be met with an active buyer beware attitude. The best defense against deceptive drug advertising remains a skeptical consumer who is willing to protest misleading claims and demand scientific proof of performance.
Research Highlights
The Problem: Ineffective regulation of deceptive drug advertising due to a perceived "regulatory lag" and the lack of scientific expertise within the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) historical case-by-case enforcement process.
The Method: A comparative organizational analysis of the FTC under Chairman Earl W. Kinter (1960) and Chairman Paul Rand Dixon (1961), utilizing agency annual reports, the 1961 Landis Report, and a case study of Norkon Pharmacal, Inc..
Quantitative Finding: The FTC's 1962 fiscal budget was increased to $10,000,000, representing a 25% increase over the previous year; $80,000 of this appropriation was specifically earmarked for clinical drug testing; a record 503 complaints were issued in 1960, a 44% increase over 1959.
Qualitative Finding: The 1961 reorganization shifted the FTC from a passive, voluntary compliance "educational" model to an active, industry-wide enforcement strategy; responsibility was consolidated under individual attorneys to eliminate "organizational complexity"; the Commission moved to prioritize scientific expert testimony over consumer witnesses in determining the falsity of medicinal claims.
Finding: The Norkon Pharmacal case (Docket 6885) demonstrated the effectiveness of utilizing expert medical and chemical testimony to disprove claims that an aspirin-based product acted as a "buffer" or provided "safer" relief than ordinary analgesics.
Publication Date
1-1962
Recommended Citation
Green, Donna Kay, "The Federal Trade Commission and Deceptive Advertising of Drugs, 1960-1961" (1962). Student Scholarship. 123.
https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/student-research-papers/123
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