How Relevant are Peer Review Journals Nowadays?

Well, of late a lot of debate has been on the net as well as my site and my letter to the editor on Radiographics discussing Web Versus Peer Review. This is what Richard Smith, Former editor for the BMJ for 25 years has to say,

Medical Journals Are an Extension of the Marketing Arm of Pharmaceutical Companies

"The most conspicuous example of medical journals' dependence on the pharmaceutical industry is the substantial income from advertising, but this is, I suggest, the least corrupting form of dependence. The advertisements may often be misleading and the profits worth millions, but the advertisements are there for all to see and criticise.

The much bigger problem lies with the original studies, particularly the clinical trials, published by journals. A large trial published in a major journal has the journal's stamp of approval (unlike the advertising), will be distributed around the world, and may well receive global media coverage, particularly if promoted simultaneously by press releases from both the journal and the expensive public-relations firm hired by the pharmaceutical company that sponsored the trial."

Full Article Here-

Smith R (2005) Medical Journals Are an Extension of the Marketing Arm of Pharmaceutical Companies. PLoS Med 2(5): e138