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CheebaMonkey

Lies and the Lazy Reporters Who Repeat Them
AlterNet | May 6, 2004

On May 5, newspapers and news broadcasts around the country carried alarming stories about a new study of marijuana published in that day's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. "Stronger marijuana makes more addicted," screamed the Los Angeles Daily News. "Abuse and dependence rise as pot becomes more potent," headlined the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Rising marijuana potency, the stories claimed, was leading more Americans to become addicted to the devil weed.

Small problem: The theory that pot that is more potent is getting people hooked is almost certainly wrong. But none of the newspaper stories gave the slightest hint that might be the case.

The government-funded study on which the stories were based, "Prevalence of Marijuana Use Disorders in the United States," was conducted by scientists from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. It compared survey data from 1991-92 to 2001-02, indicating an increase in marijuana "abuse" or "dependence," as defined by the DSM-IV, the American Psychiatric Association's official diagnostic manual for mental disorders. The study's authors hypothesized that the most likely cause for this increase is "increased marijuana potency." As the Atlanta Journal-Constitution story, picked up by the Daily News, put it, "It's not your parents' marijuana." Wire stories used by most other papers took roughly the same line, though in less shrill language.

None of these stories chose to mention a salient fact: The "potent pot" hypothesis is pure speculation. As Mitch Earleywine, University of Southern California associate professor of psychology and author of "Understanding Marijuana" (Oxford University Press, 2002) notes, there is no scientific evidence that marijuana that is more potent leads to greater levels of dependence. Indeed the JAMA article makes no claim that any such evidence exists.

Second, as the JAMA article notes, under DSM-IV criteria, people can be classified as marijuana "abusers" if they experience "legal problems related to marijuana use." The FBI Uniform Crime Reports arrest tabulations show that marijuana arrests skyrocketed from about 300,000 in 1991 to well over 700,000 in 2001. What may be simply the results of shifting law enforcement priorities were presented in both the study and in news reports as the dire effects of "potent pot." Strikingly, the JAMA article fails to identify which abuse/dependence criteria increased, and by how much.

That alone should have led an inquisitive reporter or two to ask if there might be an alternative explanation to the "potent pot" theory. But the journalists covering the story failed to ask this most basic question even though the study contained a giant red flag: The increased "abuse" occurred almost entirely among young blacks and Hispanics. There was no similar increase among whites in the same age group.

Young blacks and Hispanics have no special access to high-potency marijuana, and there is no evidence that THC affects black and Hispanic brains differently than those of whites. But people of color are well documented to be at disproportionate risk for arrest for drug crimes.

None of this was discussed in the Journal-Constitution story, or in the AP, Reuters and Scripps-Howard wire stories that were reprinted across the country. Indeed, what is striking about all of these stories is their similarity to the National Institute on Drug Abuse's press release. None of these esteemed newspapers or wire services chose to quote even a single expert or advocate skeptical of the government line. None of them seems to have considered the possibility that our government might spin the data in order to match its Drug War policies.

For shame.

[CheebaMonkey: The idea that potent pot is somehow more dangerous is ridiculous. The more potent the cannabis is, the less smoking a user has to do. A higher potency ends up causing less harm.

Saying more potent pot is dangerous is like saying whiskey is more dangerous than beer.

Better stay away from that Everclear.]

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DaDornta

Anyone that's ever smoked cannabis won't even listen to these stupid lies. Everyone that smokes knows that after a certain point you just can't smoke anymore, and thats well below the LD-50...

Who cares if some researchers published a poorly defined study? Anyone with half a brain will know that the research is pure speculation and full of holes.

But it IS alarming that outright lies can just go unchecked like this...

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Plainsman1963

Back in the day, when I was taking broadcast journalism classes, we were taught to independently verify from 2 other sources...Minimum.

Seems like now they just rip off the AP wire (or wherever) and run with it. They aren't reporters, they are just mouthpieces, by and large. <sigh>
Never mind. That's why I'm a hermit.

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"America is at that awkward stage. It's too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards." - Claire Wolfe

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Logos

Kinda makes one wonder about the truthfulness of any story that is reported. When you know that the are capable of lying about this, they are capable of lying about anything. Sort of like the DEA, or the federal government in general.

Hard to trust someone who keeps so many secrets, and tells so many obvious lies...

What was it that Satan was so good at again?

Father of ?ie?...

Logos

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The more I learn, the less I know.
THC Ministry | The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ | The Reluctant Messenger of Science and Religion
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Hydrosan

Here's a thought...

Why not publish a list of shame!

Every reporter who repeats government lies, without presenting facts, could have their name up in lights could give em 'stone hearts' awards, tallies could be kept of the worst offenders, I wonder who would come out on top:¬D

It might just encourage them to start telling the truth, an unbaised article could carry double +++rep to weigh against previous verbatum shinanigans

given a bit of time we could see reporters putting out more accurate spin on the news so they can get on the right side of the truth line on the list:¬D

shame i have to come up with these ideas in the first place

It still needs some work:skep:

San

 

SacredJellybean

From all the fear our government's anti-drug programs have instilled into us, most people are so accustomed to the belief that "illegal drugs = bad under any circumstances" that they won't even question the idea when the media reinforces it. Either that, or they're too scared to openly confront the issue. Therefore, I think any adverse drug effects - fact or fiction - are pretty safe report without doing any actual research.

urite4594

woo hoo

Pufnstuf

Unfortunately, most of the sheep in this country will hold as gospel anything the mass media feeds them. (including judges)

A little off topic:



In 2001 I had a conversation with the Chief Justice of the 10 Circut Court of Appeals in Denver while sitting in a bar having a drink. ( I just started talking to an old guy who was the only other person in the place and he mentioned he was a judge) It was 2 o'clock in the afternoon on a weekday and he was absolutely hammered. We started talking about marijuana and he was giving me the lowdown an why it should always be illegal in a drunken slurred speech (he was drinking hard liquor straight up...and you DO remember this stuff clearly when you witness it firsthand), when I interrupted him and asked if he had ever tried pot ( I had some great stuff on me), he said "Hell no!, the stuff is dangerous. All the medical journals and studies say so." I couldn't believe how ignorant this person was. He was judging something and condeming people who use it without ever personally trying it. What absolutely floored me was what he said next. I had mentioned going to Amsterdam when he interjected and went off the subject and told me that he and his wife just returned from England where they stayed in a hotel that was several hundred years old and they had both seen the female ghost of the original owner who had died in 1600 something standing in their room. He was absolutely unwavering in his belief they saw a ghost. This my friends is the head honcho of the Federal Appellate Court of Appeals 10th Circut who at some point may hold your life in his hands babbling on that he saw a ghost.
It absolutely sickened me.

My disclaimer: I call this guy the chief justice... I have no idea if this is the correct term. I do know that whatever the court he was the ranking or sitting judge because he kept mentioning that he was the top dog. That is until he got up, staggered outside and got into his Range Rover and drove off. How do I know? Because I followed him outside to make sure he didn't fall down and hurt himself. And by the way, he refused the bartender's offer for a cab.

Absolutely true story and I will swear to it!

sar

Does anyone think this war against this plant will ever end? I think the alcohol and drug companies are the main people behind why it isn't legal. I mean I could be wrong, but from what I can tell. These two would be the ones that would stand to lose if marijuana were ever legalized. I ask this question of people all the time, if they had a choice between alcohol or marijuana, which do they prefer? Why don't we just boycott the alcohol?

SevenLeafs

Well, I can tell you one thing, I used to drink beer, whiskey, vodka, rum, anything you would imagine. It's normal, you go out, you have a couple of drinks with some friends etc etc... Since I began smoking I have cut down on alcohol BIG TIME, I only drink whiskey from time to time (off course, that's if I have no green friend) and I don't like it as much now, my body somehow tells me "hey, what the hell are you drinking this for? you're screwing yourself up and you don't have as much fun as you have with ganja.... WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?". and off course I listen

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Condition grounded but determined to try
Can't keep my eyes from the circling skies
Tongue-tied and twisted just an earth-bound misfit"
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