cannabisnews.com: When Conspiracy for Good is Bad





When Conspiracy for Good is Bad
Posted by FoM on January 28, 2000 at 07:42:07 PT
Column
Source: Christian Science Monitor
Outrageous, what the television networks have done. I don't mean poisoning the American mainstream with sex and violence. Much worse, they've been caught red-handed conspiring with the government to spread propaganda against drug abuse.The law requires television, in return for the free use of the public airwaves, operate "in the public interest, convenience, and necessity."
In their defense, it should be said that the networks didn't act out of some high-minded notion of obligation to society, but for money. But that's not enough to excuse this departure from profit over everything.You see, Congress appropriated a billion dollars for antidrug ads in the media, reckoning that this was a good investment, since illegal drugs cost America $100 billion and 2,000 lives a year. To get a bigger bang for the buck, Congress required the media to match dollars for ads with free antinarcotic messages.At first, the networks did that through public-service ads, shown mainly when few were watching.When prosperity made these time slots more valuable, the networks shifted to inserting antidrug messages into entertainment shows.That is actually much more effective, as I learned some years ago when I attended a public-health conference on smoking.It found that just having the hero not pick up a cigarette in a sitcom was more helpful than any number of ads.Having a character in "Friends" swear off cocaine, for example, or somebody in "Beverly Hills 90210" say "no" to marijuana is a constructive way of not glamorizing drug abusers as role models for teenagers. Drug czar Barry McCaffrey's office would then check the scripts to make sure the mandate of Congress was being fulfilled.There was no secret about this arrangement to anyone who followed the public appropriations hearings. But the Internet magazine Salon, looking for a scoop, exposed this act of public-private cooperation.Then, the white knights of the printed press rode to the rescue of the First Amendment, which was being imperiled by letting government officials see sitcom scripts."A deeply unhealthy arrangement," said The New York Times."Networks trade integrity for a few commercials," said USA Today.But then, guess what? It turned out that 250 newspapers, including The New York Times and USA Today, have similar arrangements, matching paid antidrug ads with free antidrug ads.And so, this government-media conspiracy for the public good turns out to be bigger than we thought.It makes one wish that television would go back to making money the old-fashioned way - with sex, violence, and million-dollar quiz shows.Published: January 28, 2000(c) Copyright 2000 The Christian Science Publishing Society.Related Articles:Editorial: Just Say No - 1/27/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4505.shtmlOur Visionary Drug Czar - 1/21/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4419.shtmlSkip the 1st Amendment, Just Give Em Their Profits-1/19/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4377.shtmlTV, Drugs & Civil Liberties - Ministers of Truth-1/18/200http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4370.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #2 posted by billyfargo on July 01, 2001 at 10:12:39 PT:
Looking from Britain
Looking from Britain, the American systems of government rule and order look positivley middle ages. Its the way young people are held back from doing what they please, feeling like everything is on hold and unavailable because a few hundred old men in suits cant decide whats best for their well bieng(bank balance). My generation is living in a world designed from post war fear, the older generations building on empty values that no longer apply in this place we call home. Our parents were guinea pigs,scared and shaped by the system that saved them and their parents from death by war or famine or unemployment or any other factor that the govenments of the world take resonsibility for. YES we are ready for change, and its only gonna come from mine and others younger than my generation. People say you grow older and forget about your views, i say that is untrue. The day you realise something isnt right with the world and the way it is run, thats the day you wake up. How long can this continue for? What are they stalling for?
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on January 28, 2000 at 09:32:45 PT
Finally, someone said the word
Conspiracy.A word a great many people feel uncomfortable with. For good reason. But what the government has done at all levels, had been a conspiracy from the beginning. It has lied to you (Reefer Madness!) it has abridged your rights as citizens (Marijuana Tax Act, use of unidentified informants as accusers) stolen from you without regard to due process (RICO and the forfeiture 'laws' that stem from it) and it has even killed some of us (Scott Thomas, Mario Paz, Esesquiel Hernandez, et al) and the perps of the murders have gotten off scott-free - because they committed their sins in the name of their jihad.Conspiracy? You betcha. The whole bloody history of this, from the connections between millionaire financiers (Hearst), their Banker allies-in-government (Mellon), and their (supposed public servant) bootlickers (Anslinger) to the modern day collusion of pharmaceutical companies in lobbying the government to allow only their cannabinoid (Marinol) to have any legitimacy are a simple matter of connect-the-dots. The latest shenanigans are but the tip of a 63 year old iceberg. And a very dirty one at that.
[ Post Comment ]

Post Comment


Name: Optional Password: 
E-Mail: 
Subject: 
Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message]
Link URL: 
Link Title: