NCJ Number
159970
Date Published
1995
Length
10 pages
Annotation
The author, an ex-undercover narcotics agent who was convicted and imprisoned for drug use, argues that the media have become tools of the government in providing supportive rather than investigative journalism in the coverage of the "War on Drugs."
Abstract
An objective analyst would be hard-pressed to show that the mainstream U.S. media, whether print or electronic, have been doing anything but pushing the Federal Government's view of the threat of drug abuse and the strategy to counter it. White middle America, whose constituency consumes approximately 70 or 80 percent of the illicit drugs taken in the United States, sits back and watches evening news visuals that at least half of the time show African-Americans being arrested for drug abuse, although African-Americans consume less that 20 percent of America's illegal substances. The image of the War on Drugs as portrayed by the media and the Federal Government is that of police mounting raids on inner-city crack houses. Headlines proclaim a multibillion-dollar drug-war budget as politicians try to convince voters they are tough on drug users and drug dealers. What the media do not emphasize is that the strategy calls for 70 percent of the funds to go to law enforcement while the leftovers go to education and treatment. The times and the profits demand drama in media coverage, and this involves stories about police knocking down doors with battering rams and dragging off ghetto inhabitants in handcuffs. What is needed is a more equitable portrayal of drug-use patterns in the United States as well as how and against whom the War on Drugs is being waged and whether or not it is effective in reducing drug use.