• by Christine Bittar , February 9, 2007

Watchdog consumer advocacy group Public Citizen is using YouTube for the first time to spread its concerns about some new brands of birth control pills.

The non-profit founded by Ralph Nader issued a press release Tuesday calling for a ban of some of the new drugs, and the same day put a video on YouTube featuring Public Citizen staffers--including a narrator named Kate, who is a researcher in its healthcare unit.

Until now, the group's forays into online media have consisted of e-alerts and Web-based petition drives to the Food & Drug Administration.

Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group, said the organization turned to YouTube in hopes of targeting young women. The first day of the campaign, more than 1,000 people viewed the YouTube video, according to Wolfe.

The warning applies to the newest third-generation birth control pills, which contain a type of progestin called desogestrel. Wolfe's group maintains that these pills "almost double the risk of life-threatening blood clots compared to older forms." Specific brands include several from Barr Pharmaceuticals such as Duramed and Kariva, Watson Pharmaceutical's Reclipsen, and Ortho-Cept, from Johnson & Johnson/Ortho-McNeil.

Over the years, Public Citizen has masterfully cultivated media attention, especially with baby boomers, but it's not yet clear whether YouTube will boost the group's influence with younger consumers. Gil Bashe, executive vice president in charge of Makovsky & Co.'s healthcare practice, said the YouTube campaign might help raise awareness, but that doesn't mean the YouTube generation won't question Public Citizen's positions. Still, he said, Public Citizen's decision to harness YouTube makes sense. "It was smart. He needed to do this to remain relevant and reach a new generation."