Pubdate: Fri, 14 Jul 2000
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2000 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053
Fax: (213) 237-4712
Website: http://www.latimes.com/
Forum: http://www.latimes.com/home/discuss/
Author: Barry R. McCaffrey
Note: The author is the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy
Related: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n970/a07.html

FILM DEPICTIONS OF DRUG USE

Regarding The Times' July 12 editorial: The Office of National Drug Control 
Policy is not providing any form of financial reward to the film industry 
to encourage accurate depictions of drug use in the movies. Nor are there 
any plans to reward studios for anti-drug depictions. No financial 
incentive has ever been offered or planned to encourage the accurate 
portrayal of drug use.

The costs of drug use to our families and nation are real and substantial. 
Each year 52,000 Americans die from drug-related causes. The additional 
societal costs of drug use to the nation total over $110 billion per year. 
California feels these impacts as badly as anywhere else.

Our outreach efforts toward the film industry focus on providing technical 
assistance (including access to experts, research and the most up-to-date 
information). These efforts are part of a long history, both within this 
agency and through the National Institutes of Health, of working with the 
entertainment community to help ensure accuracy. We are providing them with 
the science-based information; they can choose to use it on their own terms.

The goal of our National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign is to provide young 
people and the adults who care about them with the facts needed to empower 
our youth to reject drugs. Through the full power of this public health 
campaign--from television to the Internet to community-based outreach--we 
are now reaching 95% of America's young people on an average of 6.8 times 
per week with research-based, effective drug-prevention messages.

These messages are effective at reaching young people. Since its launch in 
March of 1999, our Freevibe.com Web site has received over 1.8 million page 
views, with the average visit lasting over 7.4 minutes. Television programs 
incorporating anti-drug messages have resulted in over 100 million teen 
impressions and 250 million adult impressions. Most importantly, we are 
beginning to see changes in youth drug-use attitudes and behaviors. The 
National Household Survey released in 1999 reported that overall youth drug 
use (children ages 12 to 17) in the U.S. fell by 13% from the prior year. 
Youth inhalant use plummeted 45%, cocaine use fell 20% and marijuana use 
dropped 12%.

Barry R. McCaffrey, Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy, 
Washington
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D