Bias, the Media, and Research on Drug Use

(See: Drugs in American Society, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9theditions, Erich Goode, McGraw-Hill, 1999/2005/2008/2012/2014. Chapter 5/6)

Is there bias in the news media?

• Factual bias:
  • Does the media source have the facts right?
    • Information sources
    • Professional standards (verification)
    • Generalizability
• Selection bias:
  • Which and what sort of facts are being presented?
    • Objective data
    • Interpretive data
    • Analysis

Theories of media bias

• Ruling elitist theory: Depicts the media as a tool of the dominant group
  • Institutional dominance
    • Hegemony--the media as a structural mechanism, operates, as all superstructural elements, in the interests of the "status quo."
  • Corporate conspiracy
    • Elite control, and conscious operation, of media outlets-- in the interests of the existing power structure.
• Money machine
  • The bottom-line is profit:
  • Profit may be tied to ideological orientation (elite dominance), but typically not.

• Populist theory
  • The media caters to the interests of the masses.
  • Whatever draws mass appeal is covered.
  • Sensationalism

• Professional Subculture theory
  • Norms and values of professional journalism
    • verification of sources
    • accuracy
    • human interest
    • target audience
  • Sort of a conflict between objectivity and "selling the news."

Sensationalism and drugs: relevant to all four theories.

1. Diverts attention away from structural issues (control people rather than change social structures).
2. Blood, guts, sex, and drugs sell
3. The masses seem to love a "hot" story
4. Dramatize a story to "drive it home."

New Drugs in the media

• Marijuana in the 1930's
• LSD in the 1960's
• PCP in the 1970's
• Crack in the 1980's
• Ecstasy from the 1990s and beyond.
• Methamphetamine

Janet Cooke Story

Reporter wins Pulitzer prize for article on "Jimmy" the 8-year old heroin addict (Washington Post, September 28, 1980). Turns out to be a fabrication.

• Do 8-year old addicts exist. Probably. How many--few.
• How likely is it for addicts to encourage their children to shoot-up?
• Would addicts give away heroin?

Crack related homicides

• Starts in 1985 (media coverage)
• "Startling" rise in crack-related murders by 1989
• Reported as "random violence."
• Link to "ruling elite theories" [issue of a government conspiracy to a) distribute crack, and b) to use it as a way of deflecting attention away from other issues]
• Link to "money machine" issues and "populist" theories, too.

Research Issues

• Lying in social science research
  • People are surprisingly honest
  • Certainly, under-reporting is a reality
  • Relative accuracy, and long-term trends.
• Sampling
  • Representative samples
  • Missing cases
• Statistics
  • Descriptive (how many, who, where, which)
  • Inferential (correlations and causality)
    • Temporal element
    • Logic and spurious correlations
    • Constants (control variables)
    • Examples
      • Drugs and crime
      • Alcohol and violence (see also)

Sources:

• ADAM (lost funding 2014)
• DAWN (lost funding 2011)
• MTF
• NSDUH
• Pulse Check (lost funding 2004)

Rates and Patterns

1. Overall Prevalence Rates (see MTF 2014)
• Lifetime
• Past year
• Past month
• Daily (20 out of 30 days)
2. Continuance Rates
• User loyalty
  • current use/ever used
  • Legal versus illegal
• Drugs likely to be given up
3. Consumption Levels
• Amount and frequency of use
• Cigarettes: 425 billion consumed in 2001 (versus 85 billion drinks)
4. Life-cycle rates
   • Use linked to age categories
   • Aging out phenomenon

Patterns and Trends in Drug Use

URL: http://www.umsl.edu/~keelr/180/mediabias_research.htm
Owner: Robert O. Keel rok@umsl.edu
References and Credits for this Page of Notes
Last Updated: Thursday, October 5, 2017 12:05