ADHD UK Urges Ofcom Complaints Over Channel 4 Film as 80% Benefit From Medication
Updated
Updated · The Independent · Aug 20
ADHD UK Urges Ofcom Complaints Over Channel 4 Film as 80% Benefit From Medication
3 articles · Updated · The Independent · Aug 20
Summary
ADHD UK said it has already complained to Ofcom and is urging viewers to file complaints and survey responses over Channel 4’s “The Great ADHD Myth?”, with plans to take its findings to Parliament.
The charity says the documentary’s own six-week experiment undercut its thesis: 10-year-old Mason later resumed ADHD medication after his school performance declined, a result ADHD UK says was buried in the end credits.
Chief executive Henry Shelford called the programme “sensationalist nonsense” and said he had asked Channel 4 for corrections and a title change, arguing it relied on a sample size of one despite saying 80% of people benefit from medication.
Channel 4 defended the film as part of its remit to challenge the status quo and host public debate, while online critics called it unbalanced and harmful and some reviews praised it for opening a necessary discussion.