Pubdate: Wed, 01 Jan 2003
Source: Reason Online (US)
Copyright: 2003 The Reason Foundation
Contact:  http://www.reason.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2688
Author: Jacob Sullum
Cited: Office of National Drug Control Policy ( www.whitehousedrugpolicy.org )

Critical Defect

The New York Times Just Says No

"The basic ethic of news reporting," explains a booklet produced by the New 
York Times Newspaper in Education Program, is to "convey reliable 
information from trustworthy sources, present the information objectively, 
and acknowledge both sides of an issue." The booklet then proceeds to 
violate every one of those principles.

In Focus on Marijuana, a new lesson guide for middle and high school 
teachers, the Gray Lady lends her venerable name to "anti-drug education" 
that praises evenhandedness while ignoring contrary viewpoints and teaches 
"critical thinking skills" by passing along propaganda. The 85-page 
booklet, produced in cooperation with the Office of National Drug Control 
Policy, exemplifies the current vogue in "substance prevention," which 
eschews "didactic approaches or scare tactics" in favor of "interactive 
teaching techniques." The lesson plans are full of questions, but there is 
still only one right answer.

Students may have some questions of their own. According to Lesson 1, for 
example, itis a "myth" that "marijuana is not addictive." Yet a New York 
Times article in Lesson 4 refers to "the debate over whether marijuana 
is...habit-forming." Lesson 1, which suggests that itis reckless to try 
marijuana because some people use it to excess, notes in passing that the 
same could be said of alcohol. Lesson 5, ostensibly about the dangers of 
smoking marijuana, focuses mainly on tobacco. Similarly, Lesson 7 is 
supposed to be about "drugged driving," but almost all the data it presents 
deal with alcohol.

Along with the contradictions and non sequiturs, there are plenty of 
questionable claims. An article by a physician asserts that "marijuana 
today is anywhere from 10 to 20 times as potent as what was passed around 
at Woodstock." The lesson guide says itis a "myth" that "marijuana makes 
you feel relaxed and laid back," suggesting that pot smokers are just as 
likely to be become "enraged" and aggressive.

Focus on Marijuana urges teachers to "impress upon students the importance 
of evaluating information for themselves and finding trustworthy sources of 
information." The lessons may well accomplish that goal, but probably not 
in the way The New York Times intended. 
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom