OTM issues apology, correction on "Infinite Mind" show

On the Media has apologized for what it called a "lapse in journalistic judgment" concerning a November 2008 story on the public radio show The Infinite Mind. Dr. Fred Goodwin, the show's host, had stirred controversy when The New York Times reported that he had accepted more than a million dollars in speaking fees from drug companies and talked about their brand-name drugs on the show. Infinite Mind producer Bill Lichtenstein had previously denied, in statements on his production company's website, knowledge of the psychiatrist's links to pharmaceutical firms. But OTM 's report about the flap relied on an account from an anonymous Infinite Mind producer who claimed the show was in fact aware of Goodwin's activities. Host Brooke Gladstone said on March 13's broadcast that OTM should have checked the allegation with Lichtenstein, who said his producer told him she had "no first-hand evidence that (Lichtenstein) knew of any fees." Gladstone said not checking with Lichtenstein was "a mistake, it wasn't fair and it didn't serve our listeners." The Infinite Mind ran for 10 years, ceasing production at the end of 2008. It was distributed to public radio stations and ran on NPR's Sirius Satellite Radio channel.