The document summarizes the spread of media coverage of the Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) breast implant scandal across several European countries from 2011-2012. It found that coverage initially emerged in France in late 2011 following the death of a woman with PIP implants. Coverage then spread to other countries and peaked in January 2012 when claims surfaced about the chemical composition of the implants. Broadsheet newspapers like Le Figaro and The Daily Telegraph had the most prominent coverage. The scandal remained in the news throughout 2012 as updates were reported.

1. Red paper
How one health scare became news
across Europe
A study on how media reporting on the Poly Implant Prothese scandal
spread across France, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK
Released February 2013

2. How one health scare became news across Europe
The Review of the Regulation of Cosmetic Interventions was set Although there were a handful of scare stories back in April 2010,
up by the UK Secretary of State for Health following the PiP breast including a prominent feature in the Daily Mail, PIP initially fell out of
implant scandal. At the end of December 2012 the Review published the media spotlight.
interim findings which were reported extensively, generating a spike However, following the death of the first woman in France linked to
in coverage of the Poly Implant Prothese (PiP) scandal in the UK the implants in November 2011, the issue fell back into focus.
media. The news was initially only reported in French publications, being
first reported by the French regional daily Sud Ouest and tabloid
This coverage prompted LexisNexis to examine the longer term newspaper Charente Libre before Agence France Presse picked it up
trends in coverage of the PIP scandal across the UK, France, and helped to spread the story online. Reports of the scare spread to
Netherlands and Germany – here is what we found. the UK when it was revealed that authorities in France were expected
Poly Implant Prothèse (PIP) was a French company founded in 1991 to call in all women who had been given PIP implants in order to have
that has produced breast implants for around 400,000 women them removed and replaced.
worldwide. In 2011 the company went into liquidation following a There was almost a month between news of the death of a woman in
public health scare that has continued to this day. France and the Telegraph.co.uk reporting that 45,000 women were
We used Nexis, our online service for news and business information known to have implants.
to look at how news of the scandal spread throughout Europe. The growing litany of accusations against the by then defunct PIP saw
a peak in media coverage across all four countries in January 2012.
Volume of media coverage by region and date
News of the arrest of the founder of PIP drove the spike in Claims in the French media that the implants
coverage across all four markets. Reassurances were also being
450 sought by women who had received breast implants from contained a chemical normally used in petrol
hospitals across Europe that PIP products had not been used.
were repeated in all four countries and led to
a corresponding surge (and peak) in Google
375 searches for the company in January 2012.
In the UK, regional The news that the
newspapers picked founder of PIP was Although coverage of the issue fell away in
300 up on the story in the about to freed after
subsequent months it remained in the news
Volume of coverage
summer, with the eight months in prison
Scottish press focus- saw a further spike
ing on news that the in coverage in
throughout 2012, with media outlets reporting
225 government had October 2012 in any updates on the case and carrying interviews
rejected calls for an France and Germany.
inquiry. In the UK, reports with women affected by the scare.
French coverage focused on the news
spiked in July with the the NHS was planning
150 news that Jean-Claude to remove 1,000
Mas, PIP’s founder, had faulty PIP implants
been indicted for
"involuntary injury". UK
75 Netherlands
Germany
0 France
Dec-11
Au-12
Nov-11
Oct-12
Jan-12
July-12
Mar-12
Apr-12
Sept-12
Feb-12
May-12
June-12
N.B. 7 articles appeared in France prior to November 2011
Share of media coverage by country
UK
7%
The higher volume
Netherlands of reports in France
13%
reflected the fact
France
56%
that it was the origin
Germany
24% of the story.
LexisNexis® PIP red paper

3. Top publications by language
Top French publications Top German publications
Agence France Presse Agence France Presse - German
Le Figaro Rheinische Post Duesseldorf
SDA - Service de base français dpa-AFX ProFeed
Le Parisien dapd Basisdienst (ehemals ddp)
LePoint.fr Süddeutsche Zeitung
(inkl. Regionalausgaben)
0 50 100 150 200 250 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Volume of coverage Volume of coverage
Top Dutch publications Top UK publications
Algemeen Nederlands
Persbureau ANP telegraph.co.uk
Het Laatste Nieuws The Daily Telegraph
De Standaard Manchester Evening News
Dagblad De Limburger Independent.co.uk
De Morgen Press Association
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Volume of coverage Volume of coverage
Top overall publications (all languages)
Agence France Presse
telegraph.co.uk
Agence France Presse - German
Le Figaro
SDA - Service de base français
The Daily Telegraph
Le Parisien
LePoint.fr
Rheinische Post Duesseldorf
dpa-AFX ProFeed
0 50 100 150 200 250
Volume of coverage
Across the year, conservative broadsheets were the most prominent After taking legal advice, The Telegraph concluded that the only way
in reporting the news, with Le Figaro and The Daily Telegraph and the to disclose the flaws was to mount an undercover operation and
top print publications. that there was a clear public interest in doing so.”
The Daily Telegraph championed the cause in the UK, beginning its The paper’s eurosceptic stance was emphasised by the investiga-
own investigations into the implants shortly after the scandal initially tion’s focus on the “serious questions [raised by] the licensing of
erupted towards the end of 2011. The newspaper recently reported such products in the EU”.
that it had “carried out extensive research into the approval system,
talking to experts, doctors and academics, and joining forces with In today’s globalised world, where products, services and stories
the esteemed peer-reviewed British Medical Journal”, adding: cross borders with ease, a news item can quickly spread from its
“Again and again, the reporters were told that it was terminally country of origin to be carried by the press across the markets
flawed and failing British patients. Concerns were raised about affected by the story, and beyond. PIP is a case in point.
specific notified bodies - licensing bodies - in certain countries.
LexisNexis® PIP red paper

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