NAMI protests ABC's "Wonderland;" AstraZeneca first to withdraw support

Drug Store News, April 24, 2000

The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill has contacted companies that sponsored the premiere of the ABC television show "Wonderland," asking them to pull support for the program. The alliance said the show "reinforces ignorance and stigma" toward mental illness through "a sensational and one-dimensional portrayal that reduces people with mental illness to caricatures or stereotypes--subjects of humor or derision."

AstraZeneca was the first sponsor to withdraw support, NAMI said. During "Wonderland's" premiere March 80, two commercials for Prilosec were aired. "We are grateful for AstraZeneca's responsiveness," said NAMI executive director Laurie Flynn. "Many people with mental illness rely on them for medication. They have assured us that placement of the commercials with the show was inadvertent and we hope other companies will follow their lead."