How Independent is Funded Academic Research?

The WSJ's Personal Finance section has an article on academic financial research sponsored by industry and focuses, in particular, on a study of annuities conducted by University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and funded by New York Life; Beware of 'Independent' Investing Research.  (Full disclosure:  I was co-author of a study on investors' perceptions of arbitration financed by FINRA .)