Despite all the coverage of “medical” marijuana in Arizona, the news media’s own role in promoting this law has gone unreported. Yet it’s an important story.
In 2010, when Proposition 203 was on Arizona’s ballot, opponents predicted the pot would go mostly to drug abuse.
There was good evidence.
Colorado and Oregon had similar laws, and 94 percent of their medical marijuana patients claimed pain, which is easy to fake. Only 4 percent claimed cancer. Also, the patients were disproportionately young and male.
Supporters, on the other hand, insisted the law was only for serious illnesses like cancer. Which side people believed mattered.
The public could be expected to vote for Prop. 203 if they believed it was compassionate care, and against the initiative if they thought it was mostly drug abuse.
So reporters should have presented both sides of the debate.
Instead, one TV station, ABC15, did one story about the drug abuse masquerading as medical care in California.
The rest of the Arizona’s news coverage was almost entirely about pot’s role in treating serious illnesses, especially cancer.
For example, Cronkite News ran a story that did quote the opposition — in the 15th paragraph. But their headline, “Supporters: Ailing Arizonans would benefit from medical marijuana,” and the bulk of the story were about marijuana’s role in medical care.
Fox 10’s report on the initiative didn’t even mention the opposition; all they showed were interviews with two cancer survivors. Voters can hardly be blamed for thinking that’s all Prop. 203 was about. However, at least those stories attributed pro-marijuana statements to the people who made them.
Many news outlets actually took the pro-marijuana position and presented it as fact, despite evidence that it was factually wrong.
The Associated Press wrote: “This proposal would allow the use of the drug only for serious diseases including cancer.”
Phoenix Fox 10: “The question here is should it be legal here in Arizona for people who are seriously ill.” The Arizona Republic: “Proposition 203 would legalize marijuana for medicinal use.”
Phoenix Business Journal: “Arizona’s Proposition 203, which would legalize marijuana for medical use.” It’s as if the opposing argument didn’t even exist.
Also, reporters appeared to accept everything the marijuana lobby said. The Marijuana Policy Project called its Arizona campaign, “Stop Arresting Patients.” So in a live debate, I asked their lobbyist to name one genuine medical patient in jail or prison.
He couldn’t. That’s because patients aren’t being arrested; the very name of their campaign was dishonest. But why didn’t reporters ask that question?
They seemed unwilling to ever speak ill of marijuana.
In its September 2010 newsletter, the Glaucoma Foundation warned patients against using pot because it could make their glaucoma worse. That warning should have been newsworthy; the ballot measure listed glaucoma as a condition that can be treated with marijuana.
So Keep AZ Drug Free, the only registered opposition group, sent a press release to every media outlet in the state.
Not one reported it. Three months after Arizona’s program kicked in, I wrote a guest op-ed for The Arizona Republic with evidence that the opposition was right. Ninety percent of Arizona’s marijuana patients claimed pain, but were three-fourths male.
That’s statistically impossible; pain patients are mostly female.
But if our marijuana cardholders are really drug abusers who are faking or exaggerating their illnesses, it fits perfectly, because adult cannabis abusers are three-fourths male.
Reporters should have been interested in evidence that the pot was going almost entirely to recreational use, but no one contacted me.
Two reporters who were doing sympathetic stories about people helped by marijuana did call. They wanted my comments to give the appearance of balance.
But neither one would report on the people faking illness to get “medical” marijuana; they would only write positive stories about pot. So there is no balance. Proposition 203 squeaked by with 50.1 percent of the vote, and media bias clearly tipped the scales.
By emphasizing pro-marijuana arguments and downplaying opposing ones, reporters inappropriately influenced public opinion.
When I asked one reporter why his colleagues were so one-sided about marijuana, he said they probably believe pot should be legal.
Maybe they do, but their allegiance to marijuana shouldn’t override their professional ethics. They’re journalists, not cheerleaders. Their job is to inform voters, not decide for them.
— Ed Gogek, M.D., is an addiction psychiatrist and board member of Keep AZ Drug Free, a group that opposes legalization and “medical” marijuana laws.
In addition to the information above, I have attached these three articles for the readers consideration:
UK: The Independent – were we out of our minds-no-but then cameskunk (Marijuana)
Aus: The Australian – Cannabis takes Toll on Aborigines
The media works two angles regarding marijuana. First, gun control is a winning political issue for the left. As Gogek notes, much if not most of the violent crime we see in America is fueled not by guns, but by drugs. But the left who domintnate most of the mainstream media will win on the political climate if it sticks with gun control, as they know the Republicans are far more protective of 2nd amendment rights.
ReplyDeleteThus the desired affect of the left is for the public to be politically charged against the right and to blame Republicans every time there is a violent crime. Works niftily, yet more likely the lefts' favoritism toward narcotics is the REAL culprit behind so much crime.
Second, correct as that journalist admitted, the left leaning media is mostly pro marijuana legalization. It's a no brainer, look at where the most support is, in the blue areas of the blue states, mostly on the coasts where the left resides, plus so much of the mainstream national media that leans left, writes mostly favorable articles toward marijauna, often blatant lies to boot. (once again, I'm speaking generalities,)
A third reason, though more subtle and a bit confusing, is as a few of us understand, the real culprit behind so much violent crime is rooted in drugs, drug crazed individuals. For the pro cannabis crowd in the media to ever admit this, assuming they could ever grasp, let alone agree, would be tanamaount to an admission of guilt.
BTW, nobody in the media ever mentions the one hundred thousand innocent Mexicans who have been murdered because of America's mostly marijuana addiction. Tragic!