CHICAGO, Jan 28, 2008 (UPI via COMTEX) -- The American Academy of Pediatrics
said it is demanding ABC cancel its premiere episode of "Eli Stone" because it
incorrectly links vaccinations and autism.
The opening installment of the series, which is set to debut Thursday, features
a lawyer who argues in court that a vaccine caused a child's autism, The New
York Times reported.
While the show includes statements that science has refuted any link between
autism and vaccines, the episode's conclusion delivers a contrary impression
with a jury awarding a mother $5.2 million, leaving audiences with the idea that
vaccines do cause autism, the AAP said.
"A television show that perpetuates the myth that vaccines cause autism is the
height of reckless irresponsibility on the part of ABC and its parent company,
The Walt Disney Co.," Renee R. Jenkins, president of the AAP, said in a
statement. "If parents watch this program and choose to deny their children
immunizations, ABC will share in the responsibility for the suffering and deaths
that occur as a result. The consequences of a decline in immunization rates
could be devastating to the health of our nation's children."
The AAP said no scientific connection has been established between vaccines and
autism.
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Copyright 2008 by United Press International