NCJ Number
169244
Date Published
1998
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This chapter discusses American media coverage of heroin use.
Abstract
Many publications in the United States, from the New York Times, to US News & World Report and Rolling Stone, have been writing about the "return" of heroin since 1989; for the press, heroin never goes away but is always returning. The American press has erroneously reported a resurgence of heroin use in recent years. The media have also erred in stating that the purity and potency of heroin have increased and that this change is responsible for heroin overdoses. According to Federal statistics, the number of both heavy and casual heroin users has actually decreased and, if figures in a 1996 government study were accurate, recent heroin purity actually has declined somewhat. In addition, there is good evidence that potency is not the most significant risk factor in overdose deaths. A study of heroin overdoses, findings of which were reported by the Journal of Forensic Sciences (1989), found no relationship between heroin purity and either death by overdose or nonfatal overdose. Individuals' changing tolerance levels and the danger of using heroin in combination with alcohol must also be considered.