"Strong evidence shows that thickly cushioned running shoes have done nothing to prevent injury in the 30-odd years since Nike founder Bill Bowerman invented them, researchers say. Some smaller, earlier studies suggest that running in shoes may increase the risk of ankle sprains, plantar fasciitis and other injuries. Runners who wear cheap running shoes have fewer injuries than those wearing expensive trainers."
I find this part hard to believe, especially the bolded section. Runners who wear cheap shoes also probably don't run nearly as often as those who wear expensive running shoes. Naturally, a marathoner is more prone to injury.
And on the point of the midfoot vs. heel landing point, the only upside they advocate is a shorter stride. A good runner knows that a shorter stride is necessary anyway, and will consciously do that. I'm not really buying this, but I would be very interested to hear from someone with experience using them and/or an avid runner.