Ella Funderburk

Dr. Pauline Howes

PR 3355

1 February 2024

Advertisement Company Fuels America’s Opioid Crisis

Publicis Groupe is paying $350 million to settle claims that its past marketing efforts for

drugmakers has contributed to the opioid crisis in America. Publicis is a French multinational

advertising and public relations company. Purdue Pharma was a pharmaceutical company that

pleaded guilty to felony charges of misbranding OxyContin; the company later dissolved in a

bankruptcy settlement. Purdue paid Publicis to market its products in a misleading way:

"Publicis was responsible for creating advertisements and materials, such as pamphlets and

brochures that promoted OxyContin as safe and unable to be abused, even though this claim was

not true," (New York Attorney General Letitia James, 2024, as cited in Ovalle, 2024). Publicics

employed a multitude of unethical and deceptive information, evidently prioritizing profit over

people. After such a catastrophic crisis public relations is a vital function for Publicis.

The challenge Publicis is facing now is addressing the legal and reputational

repercussions while still acknowledging the opioid crisis and being empathetic to the issue. The

public relations team must implement a strategy to combat the crisis the company's reputation is

experiencing, but first the publics must be identified. In this situation the publics include: clients

of Publicis, the general public, media outlets, state attorneys general, the medical community and

Publicis shareholders. The main objective for the crisis includes mitigating the reputational

damage, communicating a commitment to responsible marketing efforts, rebuilding trust,

demonstrating calm and cooperative mannerisms with the legal issues, and taking corrective
action. Publicis must take an empathetic and responsible approach to repair the immense damage

that has been done after such a significant act of deception.

The next step Publicis must perform is research. Publicis should analyze how the external

stakeholders are reacting to the issue. Publicis needs to be aware of how people are perceiving

the company, in order to best address the issue. It is vital Publicis stays knowledgeable about the

constantly evolving and rapid nature of media, especially to allow them to take proactive actions.

Furthermore Publicis can research effective crisis communication plans and decide how it can

best resolve their problem. Studying how other companies or institutions have navigated similar

crisis situations allows firms to assess their own strategies; Publicis can analyze successful and

unsuccessful actions and responses to refine their approach. In conclusion, as Publicis moves

forward, it is crucial for the firm to conduct thorough research, including analyzing external

stakeholders reactions, staying attuned to public perception, and understanding the dynamic

media landscape, to enable proactive crisis management and refine their approach based on

lessons learned from similar situations.

After research has been completed Publicis needs to decide how it plans to fix the issue.

Public relations personnel working for Publicis decided to deny allegations and use legal defense

to handle the crisis. In a statement, Publicis stressed that the advertising work broke no laws and

that the settlement was not an admission of wrongdoing. Publicis released a statement: “The

fight against the opioid crisis in the United States requires collaboration across industries,

lawmakers, and communities, and we are committed to playing our part,” (Publicis, 2024, as

cited in Breuninger, 2024). Publicis asserted innocence, and opted for a legal defense strategy

where they reached a settlement of paying $350 million to all 50 states suffering from the opioid

crisis, without the requirement to acknowledge wrongdoing.

 In conclusion it appears the PR team for Publicis may have helped mitigate immediate

legal consequences and potentially limit reputational damage, but it may also lead to skepticism

and distrust from the public. The severity of the opioid crisis and the role of marketing in

perpetuating it is a serious and damaging issue. In many crises companies will be unresponsive

towards the media which can lead to further damage. Moving forward, Publicis must navigate

the aftermath of the crisis closely, transparently and empathetically. It would be beneficial to the

company’s reputation if more communication and empathetic statements were released. It could

also prove beneficial for Publics to employ campaigns, collaborations, events, initiatives, and

training to help manage their crisis and improve credibility. Overall, Publicis faces significant

challenges in repairing its reputation and rebuilding trust with stakeholders, and its future action

will play a pivotal role in its future trajectory.

 References

Attorney general Bonta announces $350 million settlement with multinational marketing firm

Publicis Health for its role in fueling the opioid crisis. State of California - Department of

Justice - Office of the Attorney General. (2024, February 2).

https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-350-million-sett

lement-multinational-marketing

Breuninger, K. W. (2024, February 1). Ad giant publicis paying $350 million to settle U.S. opioid

crisis claims. CNBC.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/01/ad-giant-publicis-paying-350-million-to-settle-us-opio

id-claims.html

Katersky, A. (2024, February 2). Ad giant publicis health agrees to $350m settlement over claims

it helped fuel opioid crisis. 6abc Philadelphia.

https://6abc.com/publicis-health-agrees-to-$350m-settlement-over-claims-it-helped-fu/14

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y%20General%20Letitia%20James.

O’Brien, J., & MM+M. (2024, February 1). Publicis Health reaches $350 million settlement over

role in the opioid crisis. PR Week.

https://www.prweek.com/article/1860031/publicis-health-reaches-350-million-settlement-

role-opioid-crisis

Ovalle, D. (2024, February 1). Ad agency tied to Purdue Pharma settles opioid claims for $350

... The Washington Post.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2024/02/01/opioids-oxycontin-purdue-publicis-h

ealth-lawsuit/