Federal Communication Commissioners (FCC) Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein have promised an investigation into each of the 46 television stations revealed by the Center for Media and Democracy's report, Still Not the News to have used undisclosed video news releases (VNRs). Democracy Now presenter, Amy Goodman, found it difficult getting a comment from any of the stations. Fifteen declined to comment or did not respond to inquiries while San Diego CBS affiliate KFMB-TV stated a VNR they used should not have been aired without disclosure. The Radio-Television News Directors Association and the newly-minted VNR-industry lobby group, the National Association of Broadcast Communicators, both declined to be interviewed. O'Dwyer's PR Daily reported Copps praised CMD for its "hard work" in producing the report. Adelstein criticized television stations for broadcasting "corporate propaganda" and flagged the need for tighter FCC regulation. "If the flock ignores the shepherd, it is time to build a fence," he said.

Jim Rogers, the Chief Executive of Duke Energy, a power company that is keen to build nuclear power plants in North and South Carolina, told reporters at an energy conference that he was "cautiously optimistic on nuclear, but public opinion turns on a dime." The nuclear industry faces considerable hurdles. Nuclear plants are prohibitively expensive, have long lead times before they deliver any power, lack support from private investors, increase the risk of nuclear proliferation and haven't yet solved the problem of long-term disposal of nuclear waste. If those hurdles aren't enough, the safety of nuclear plants remains a persistent persistent problem. "One bad event anywhere in the world could impact the future of nuclear," Rogers conceded. One more "bad event" - such as the meltdown at Chernobyl - could also cause numerous deaths and irreparably damage the environment.

US Deputy Health Secretary, Alex Azar, is lobbying the Britain's Health Secretary, Patricia Hewitt, to ease restrictions on the drug industry. In particular, the U.S. drug companies want the ban on direct-to-consumer advertising dropped and to increase the prices the government pays for drugs. Sarah Bosely reports that both Azar and the drug industry object to procedures used the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, which evaluates the effectiveness of a new drug and whether it represents value for money compared to drugs that are already available. Azar, like the drug industry, claims that restrictions on prices limit the willingness of companies to invest in research on new drugs. "I try to remember to advise people first off that we will never balance our budget going after drug prices," Azar said. Azar has been a strong supporter of Republican politicians and was a member of Lawyers for Bush-Cheney 2004 and contributed $2,000 to Bush-Cheney '04 Inc..