Johnson & Johnson recently lost a bid to settle lawsuits that claimed its talc powder products, including baby powder, caused cancer. Author Gardiner Harris says the company's defense "is beginning to crumble." His book is No More Tears. Also, John Powers reviews the new Apple TV+ series Your Friends & Neighbors, starring Jon Hamm.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
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This is Fresh Air. I'm Tanya Mosley. Chances are you've got a Johnson & Johnson memory tucked somewhere deep. Maybe it's the scent of baby powder used by our mothers and grandmothers to make us feel a little fresher, a little more put together.
Ever since I was a little girl, Johnson's baby powders made me feel soft, fresh, and loved. From the start of your life, it's been a part of your life. A special comfort to you, a loving feeling too. It's a feeling you never outgrow. Johnson's Baby Powder is a feeling you never outgrow. Pure Johnson's Baby Powder from Johnson & Johnson. It's a feeling you never outgrow.
Maybe it's that childhood memory of running into the house with a scraped knee reaching for a Band-Aid from the iconic red and white box or Tylenol from the medicine cabinet. From pharmaceuticals to medical devices, Johnson & Johnson has been woven into the most tender, vulnerable parts of our lives for generations. But a new book by investigative journalist Gartner Harris challenges that trust.
In No More Tears, The Dark Secrets of Johnson & Johnson, Harris investigates J&J's business practices, the link to its baby powder and cancer, and the urgent questions about the safety of many of its other products.
Through court documents, accounts from whistleblowers, and those directly impacted, Harris also writes about the company's aggressive marketing tactics, which he argues helped fuel the opioid epidemic. Just last week, a court rejected Johnson & Johnson's request to approve a $9 billion settlement with tens of thousands of people suing the company over claims that its talcum powder caused cancer.
Gartner Harris is a freelance investigative journalist. He worked previously for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, where he wrote about public health and the pharmaceutical industry. Gartner Harris, welcome to the show.
I'm glad to be here, Tanya. Thank you.
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