19 June 2020: Today, the Financial Times and PBS announce Opioids Inc., a jointly reported investigation into the role one pharmaceutical company played in fueling America’s epidemic of opioid addiction, and how it and its stockholders profited from it.
This is the first collaboration between FRONTLINE and the FT. It demonstrates the FT’s continued investment in engaging audiences in the US with its award-winning reporting in new formats. It launches with a free-to-read, in-depth magazine cover story from the FT and streaming of the Opioids, Inc. documentary, followed by a TV debut on PBS FRONTLINE on June 23.
Opioids, Inc. reveals how Insys Therapeutics bribed doctors, deceived insurers and made millions for Wall Street investors by pushing a highly addictive opioid painkiller — and how it then became the first pharmaceutical company to have its CEO found criminally liable in federal court.
Using firsthand accounts from the key players, FT pharma and biotech correspondent Hannah Kuchler, award-winning FRONTLINE director Tom Jennings and his reporting and producing partners investigate Insys’ spectacular rise. They explore corruption that federal prosecutors said went all the way to the top, and that effectively involved paying doctors to prescribe extreme doses of Subsys to their patients — and how investors looked the other way.
“Opioids, Inc. is a deeply investigated collaboration between two influential news organisations into a story about corporate misconduct and its social ramifications,” said Kayode Josiah, director of commercial development at the FT. “This partnership allows the FT to further its presence in the US while leveraging both its world class journalism and the strength of a trusted brand that is PBS.”
Opioids, Inc. is available to watch in full at pbs.org/frontline and in the PBS Video App for US audiences. It will be available for two weeks online for viewers in the UK. The documentary will premiere on PBS stations on Tuesday, June 23 at 10/9c (check local listings).
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Credits
Opioids, Inc. is a FRONTLINE production with 2Over10 Media in association with the Financial Times. The writer and director is Thomas Jennings. The producers are Annie Wong and Nick Verbitsky. The journalist from the Financial Times is Hannah Kuchler, with reporting credit to US Editor of Alpha Grid Shaunagh Connaire. The co-producers are Anna Auster and Shaunagh Connaire. The senior producer is Frank Koughan. The executive producer of FRONTLINE is Raney Aronson-Rath.
About FRONTLINE
FRONTLINE, U.S. television’s longest running investigative documentary series, explores the issues of our times through powerful storytelling. FRONTLINE has won every major journalism and broadcasting award, including 93 Emmy Awards and 24 Peabody Awards. Visit pbs.org/frontline and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube to learn more. FRONTLINE is produced by WGBH Boston and is broadcast nationwide on PBS. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Major funding for FRONTLINE is provided by The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Ford Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the Abrams Foundation, the Park Foundation, the John and Helen Glessner Family Trust and the FRONTLINE Journalism Fund with major support from Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the Jon L. Hagler Foundation.
About the Financial Times
The Financial Times is one of the world’s leading business news organizations, recognized internationally for its authority, integrity and accuracy. The FT has a record paying readership of more than one million, three-quarters of which are digital subscriptions. It is part of Nikkei Inc., which provides a broad range of information, news and services for the global business community.
For more information, please contact:
FRONTLINE: Anne Husted / anne_husted@wgbh.org
Financial Times: Katrina Fedczuk / katrina.fedczuk@ft.com