"Merck & Co.'s campaign to defend itself in the wake of the recall of the pain reliever Vioxx intensified as it placed a package of three full-page ads in seven prominent newspapers beginning last Friday. That follows several television appearances as well as testimony before Congress by the company's chief executive.
"But public relations experts are calling the campaign predictable and said it lacks a crucial element necessary to bolster Merck's claims that it acted responsibly and timely in removing Vioxx from the market: Parties with no self interest or financial ties to the company coming to its defense." [Seattle Post-Intelligencer - AP]
