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The White House spent last night dealing drugs to the press, but the press wasn't buying. Instead, reporters turned a sharply cynical eye to the preannouncement that the Bush administration had decided to back generic drugs -- at least in a small-of-the-back, sacroiliac sort of way.

Some time today, President Bush will stand in the Rose Garden and announce that his administration is taking action to make it easier for Americans to afford prescription drugs. More specifically, the FDA is proposing a rule to make it harder for brand-name drug companies to delay competition from generics. (See last week's report on Merck's quarterly earnings for a sense of the generic threat.) Companies could still get 30-month patent extensions -- but not by the basket. According to White House estimates, introducing generics more promptly after patents expire could save consumers $3 billion a year. (Kudos to Reuters for context: The U.S. spent $155 billion popping prescription meds last year.)

Helping people save money and stay healthy: That's sure to be popular news. Yet coverage of the president's expected action has been far from friendly. The White House strategy of preannouncing the news seems to have backfired. Did anyone tell Ari Fleischer there was a ball game last night? We thought we heard a wee twinge of resentment from the Associated Press' Scott Lindlaw as he described the Sunday conference call as a White House ploy to "ensur[e] two days worth of headlines" and "squeeze maximum political gain out of the move."

Most reporters questioned the administration's motives and timing, maintaining that its support of generics had been scheduled to influence November elections. Many outlets noted that the proposed FDA rule falls short of similar legislation recommended by the Democratic Senate (but stalled in the Republican House) last summer. The Wall Street Journal squinted especially hard -- devoting its entire second paragraph to make the point that the proudly unveiled change in policy may never take effect. Fans of exquisite understatement will appreciate this one: "The rule is subject to public comment before becoming final, and likely will be strongly opposed by big pharmaceutical companies." Well, yes. But if the rule goes poof, you can bet that won't be announced on a Sunday night. - Lori Patel

Bush to Seek Lower-Cost Generic Drugs
http://reuters.com/news_article.jhtml?type=politicsnews&StoryID=1603760

FDA Plans to Speed Up Flow Of Generics to Marketplace
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1035168973673930591,00.html
(Paid subscription required.)

Bush plans new rules on generic drugs
http://www.business-standard.com/updates/news.asp?story=218

Plan to Seek Faster Release of Generics
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/21/politics/21DRUG.html

Bush Plans New Rules On Generic Medicine
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57234-2002Oct20.html

Merck profit drops on sluggish sales growth
http://www.forbes.com/newswire/2002/10/18/rtr758176.html

Does Vivendi Universal scrawl its "for sale" signs in pencil? First, the flat-broke company threatened to call off the sale of its publishing unit if the bids were too low. Now it wants bids in ASAP. Then it hung a "for sale" sign on its stake in Cegetel, the French phone company. Now it might increase its stake. Aren't we going backwards here? The two moves are really cause and effect, but how much of the story readers are getting depends on which news corner of the world they inhabit.

The Financial Times has been reporting since late last week that with a $6 billion offer in hand from Vodafone for its Cegetel stake, Vivendi has gotten cold feet. See, Cegetel makes money, as does SFR, the French wireless company that Cegetel owns 80% of. Vivendi desperately needs the money from the sale, but selling the property will cut it off from an important revenue stream. Trouble is, Vodafone is offering to buy not only Vivendi's stake, but also the stakes owned by the U.K.'s BT Group and the U.S.-based SBC Communications. Former shopaholic Vivendi, however, owns the right to pre-emptive buys of the other two stakes. So now the company with 19 billion euros of debt is talking to its bankers about spending billions more.

The latest loopy turn by Vivendi notched hardly a pixel's worth of coverage by U.S. media. But the British media -- writing from the home turf of Vodafone, we note -- had plenty to say. The Financial Times' Lex says Vivendi is up to its old tricks, "contemplating financial gymnastics worthy of former chief executive Jean-Marie Messier." The Observer wrote that while the Vodafone deal seems a shoo-in, "this is Vivendi, and that means Gallic emotion is at least as likely to govern the outcome as financial logic."

In publishing-centric New York, the New York Times reports today that Vivendi has put the pedal to the metal, telling potential buyers of its publishing unit, which includes Houghton Mifflin, to high-tail in their offers so Vivendi is in a better position to counter Vodafone's bid. In an angle closer to the continent's heart, the Financial Times reports today that angry French publishers say a leading French bidder, Lagardere, could unfairly dominate their country's book industry if its offer is accepted. The Financial Times cut to the heart of French nationalism by wondering whether that fate is worse than excluding Lagardere and increasing the odds that the publishing unit's new owners are largely financed by -- gasp -- foreign capital? -- Deborah Asbrand

Vivendi Seeks Legal Advice on Cegetel (Financial Times)
http://tinyurl.com/23ya

Vivendi Seeks Finance for Cegetel Control (Financial Times)
http://tinyurl.com/23yc
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Lex: Vivendi/Vodafone (Financial Times)
http://tinyurl.com/23ye
(Paid subscription required.)

New Habit Needed (second item)
http://www.observer.co.uk/business/story/0,6903,815249,00.html

Vivendi Moves Up Deadline on Bids for Publishing Unit
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/21/business/media/21VIVE.html

Vivendi Faces Opposition to Lagardère Bid (Financial Times)
http://tinyurl.com/23y9

Sale of Vivendi Unit Could Face a Delay (Bloomberg)
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-preview21.3oct21,0,4427643.story

America Online Is Lagging As Others Increase Ad Sales
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1035147183236070671,00.html
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Crash test penguin? Chrysler meets Linux
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-962661.html

An End to Cellphone Telemarketing?
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/21/technology/21CELL.html

British Concern to Help U.S. Track Terrorists
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/21/technology/21DATA.html

Drug activists to rally against Dior perfume
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2002-10-20-addict-usat_x.htm

Who Is the Sniper? Blogs Tell All
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,55893,00.html

A Merger Taken AO-Ill
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53579-2002Oct19.html

Anschutz Finds Qwest Collapse Upsets Billionaire's Quiet Life (Bloomberg)
http://tinyurl.com/23u7

CNN, ABC News near altar again (Wall Street Journal)
http://www.msnbc.com/news/823686.asp

Microsoft Using Kazaa as a Marketing Portal
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-micro21oct21,0,6160309.story

Asian Shoppers Like to Buy New Fabrics That Do Stuff
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1035136790148305431,00.html
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Copyedited by Jim Duffy (jimduffy86@yahoo.com).

Advertising: Erik Vanderkolk (erikvanderkolk@yahoo.com).

Editor and publisher: Jimmy Guterman (guterman@vineyard.com).

Media Unspun is produced by The Vineyard Group Inc.
Copyright 2002 Media Unspun, Inc., and The Vineyard Group, Inc.
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