Pubdate: Sun, 08 Jul 2007
Source: North Shore News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2007 North Shore News
Contact:  http://www.nsnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/311

MYTH ADDICTS

THE revelation this week that stories of candy-flavoured crystal meth 
are almost certainly false should serve as a cautionary tale not only 
for the public, but also for the media.

Tales of the deadly drug supposedly marketed directly to children 
spread like wildfire in recent months. While nervous citizens are in 
part to blame, the flames were fanned in large part by the press, who 
were all too eager to report it.

The phenomenon points to a persistent flaw in the media's approach to 
crime. In our pursuit of the cathartic - especially of stories that 
invoke anger or outrage - we focus on the dark side of society to the 
point of misrepresenting it.

Just last month, an Ipsos Reid poll showed just 12 per cent of 
Canadians believe crime is dropping, despite the fact it has been 
doing so for years, according to Statistics Canada.

There is no question the media are complicit in this misperception. 
Serious crime makes eye-catching headlines, so we seek it out 
regardless of the trend. If there is no murder here, we'll report one 
from the next city.

In this environment, it is no wonder USA Today and even our local 
papers would jump on a story about candy meth without solid evidence 
of its existence. And it is no wonder the public would believe it.

We in the media must be careful to take a measured approach to 
reporting, reminding the public of the real dangers they face, while 
at the same time keeping them in perspective.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman