Bartolo 1 Zack Bartolo Dr.

E Multimedia WR 7 April 2014 Marijuana: The Media and its Influence on the Public Marijuana and the hemp plant have been a part of civilizations for tens of thousands of years. The first recorded use of marijuana dates back to 2737 BCE as a medical use for an Emperor in China. Since then, every part of the plant has been used for countless purposes all over the world. Up through the 1920s in the United States, the plant was required to be cultivated in many states for the production of paper and the bud was easily accessible in any drug store for personal usemany states needed to grow marijuana in order to produce paper, while the bud of the plant was sold in pharmacies. . However, in the 1930s, a negative association with the plant began forming. Due to its its mind altering, and hallucinogenic effects, marijuana was and still iswas and continues to be classified by the DEA as a Schedule I drug, , putting it in the same category as heroin, LSD, Quaaludes, and ecstasy. Throughout the 20th century, the negative stigma with the drug grew exponentially. This view was the result of different mediums of media coverage oning the subject. The public soon saw marijuana as a killer drug, an Assassin of Youth, a gateway drug to harsher substances, and a cause of insanity and violent crimes. These extreme associations with marijuana stemmed were seen infrom print based media, broadcasted propaganda, and governmental public service announcements. Throughout the 20th century, various forms of commercial and print based media were used to construct a negative perception of marijuana in the publics eye today. Throughout the 20th

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Bartolo 2 century, the commercial and print based media produced propaganda stemming from the United States Government view of marijuana, creating a negative perception of the drug in the publics eye today. Larry Sloman, marijuana historian and author of Reefer Madness: The History of Marijuana in America outlined the introduction of marijuana stemming from governmental campaigns and how the media covered the topic. Harry J. Anslinger first introduced the dangers of marijuana to the commercial media in 1930. Anslinger was a marijuana prohibitionist who was appointed the first commissioner position at the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. Anslinger was the leader and founder of thefounded and lead the war on drugs in America. He launched a nationwide commercial media campaign promoting arguing marijuana use to cause temporary insanity. Poster advertisements were at the basefoot of this campaign. One of the most famous posters labeled marijuana as The Devils Harvest while showing a picture of a green devil holding an attractive girl with a marijuana cigarette in her mouth. Anslinger also used poster messages to advertise marijuana as an Assassin of Youth. An example of this poster advertisement is shown in Figure 1 below.

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Figure 1

Bartolo 3 These advertisements sent a beam of fear into the public. Larry Sloman, a marijuana historian, stated in his book, Reefer Madness: The History of Marijuana in America, Letters came to the Bureau from all over America expressing amazement and horror at this new menace that the media was showcasing ( (RM107). The public began to listen and show interest in Anslingers media anti-marijuana campaign. Fear and interest of marijuana use flooded the public.This was the beginning of marijuana being shown in a negative light for years to come. Anslingers route to outlaw marijuana was so extreme that he branded the minds of the public with irrational statements that did not include supporting evidencethat he had no backup for. O.H. Griffin, an analyst of marijuana prevalence in the New York Times stated, Anslinger seemed to have carried his scare tactics to an extreme, and once he had his law and regulations in place, he did not want the hysteria to continue (772 )hyperbole). Anslinger simply wanted to pass drug trafficking laws, but his means of using the poster advertisements and commercial mediamedia to affect the entire society were too irrational. Anslinger created false and misleading propaganda in hopes to improve society , but by using the commercial media to get his points across he had created a very real and terrifying image of marijuana in the publics eye minds. From the turn of the century up through Anslingers nation wide media propaganda schemecampaign, thaere was a big association between marijuana and minorities was developed. In the early 1900s, Mexicans began to bring marijuana into the United States and started to use it recreationally. This was another one of Anslingers driving forces behind his campaignAnslinger made this association another main points of emphasis in his campaign. At that time period, minorities did not have equal rights and there was a

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Comment [AC3]: Where did all of this information come from? Its not general knowledge, so it has to be cited. If its all coming from the same source, that source needs to be established early on, with voice markers and parenthetical citations throughout to make it clear where the borrowed information is coming from. Comment [AC4]: Good source integration here.

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Bartolo 4 huge stigma towards different ethnicities. Anslinger was known for saying and printingprojecting athis link between minorities and reefer (another name for marijuana) by stating that, Reefer makes darkies think they are good as white men. This statement tied the already negative views of minorities with new but powerful perception of marijuana. Anslinger encouraged the belief that white men did notnt smoke marijuana, and thaconcluding that it was the minorities to blame minorities were to blame for the drug marijuana use in America. The racism of from this statement, mixed with the new propaganda of marijuana , added fear and anger toin the publicspublics perceptioneye. The print based media then expanded the pre-existing notion of marijuana created by the Government. In 1936In 1936, , a man described a rape that happened accusatively due to marijuana use in the Daily Courier, a newspaper in Colorado. Sloman recited the mans accusation, "I wish I could show you what a small marihuana cigarette can do to one of our degenerate Spanish speaking residentsthe greatest percentage of our population is composed of spanishSpanish speaking persons, most of who are low mentally, because of social and racial conditions" (58). This was just one of many individuals thatwho sent in feedback to news stations regarding positive feedback to thefeelings towards the anti marijuanaanti-marijuana propaganda. The problem with most of the media stories that were being released was their location. Hyperbole Griffin stated, Most media coverage was highly regionalized and limited to areas where marijuana was perceived to be problematic. Often, this occurred in areas that had large concentrations of Mexican immigrants (773). This skewed the number of cases that the public saw in the media , as well as the types of people they believed to be users.types of people believed to be using the drug. After a few years of the media focusing on Mexicans as the proprietor of the recreational use of

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Comment [AC7]: WOW. What an amazing quote to illustrate the racism underscoring Anslingers presentation of the drug during this time.

Comment [AC8]: Important point of analysis. Nice job.

Bartolo 5 marijuana use in the United States , the printed media began to target all of societies unfavorable members. Reefer madnessSloman concluded Consumption of the drug was attributed not only to Mexicans, but also to "Negroes, prostitutes, pimps, and criminal class of whites" (27). Not only were these stories based off of Anslingers false statementsfalse premises, butbut also they also victimized minorities of all kinds while disregarding the working class of Caucasians. The tie between marijuana and minorities allowed the general public to continue ththieirs fear and disgust towardshatred of marijuana. In 1936, the commercial media used the base of the anti-marijuana propaganda took an approach toto drive the extreme views of the drugmarijuana into the public. The film Reefer Madness, directed and produced by Louis J. Gasnier, was an anti-marijuana propaganda film that based its entire plot around marijuana being a killer drug. The film portrayed people who used marijuana the drug experiencing insanity and crazed hit and run accident, manslaughter, attempted rape, and suicide. One of the big scenes in the film showeds a woman smoking marijuana and laughing, while a man who is under the influence of marijuana is beating someone to death. This film further influenced the publicspublics view on marijuana and convinced people that the drug was the cause of murders and other violent crimes. Soon after the film was released, American newspapers began to fill up with similar styled headlines. Sloman gave the example of one of these headlines, such as Murders due to Killer Drug Marihuana Sweeping United States (58). Kenneth Clark, a respected journalist for Universal News Service reported, "Shocking crimes andof violent crimes are increasing. Murders, slaughterings, cruel mutilations, mailings, done in cold blood, as if some hideous monster was amok in the land (58). The media had rallied up everyone and convinced them of the drug that was killing Americans.

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Comment [AC9]: Hit-and-run

Bartolo 6 Not only was the public convinced that marijuana was killing Americans, but they now were given the scenario of marijuana causing people to kill each other. Nebraska Cannabis Coalition, a research group on the historical reforms of marijuana stated, Hysterical voters demanded action without seeing or hearing about any scientific research about marijuana or proof of the supposed harm that comes from smoking it. This false, but very real hysteria swarmedwas swarming the nation, all with the media acting as the mediator. The association with violence added on to the already existing stigma of marijuana being attributed to minorities and the Assassin of Youth. Print based media was also used to enforce petition againstagainst marijuana use in the 1920s. This time period is historically known as the Jazz Era. Musicians, especially in Louisiana, began to experiment with new tempos, beats, and sounds, which translated into swing music. This music began gaining popularity all over the United Statess, and it began to develop an association with marijuana.along with the negative associations towards marijuana. Musicians were said to smoke the drug because it was the only way to explain this newallowed them to create and justify the "devil inspired" music to be being fast, wild, and unorthodox. This fast paced new sound was said to be a result of the insanity that marijuana bringoughts to an individual. The entire jazz community fell victim to this stigma of musicians using marijuana. Reefer MadnessSloman stated, "The comparatively few musicians who are addicted to its use have gained for the entire music profession a reputation among law enforcement officers, and to some extent among the general public, that is most unsavory, and everyday bring disgrace and worse to the good reputation of the great majority who do not use it." (193). All of the major television studios including NBC publicized commercials supporting the anti-marijuana movement and its association with

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Comment [AC10]: Fascinating pointbut where did you find this out?

Bartolo 7 jazz musicians. The studios put out commercials labeling the drug as "The Black Side of Swing", referring to marijuana acting as the poisonon that tainted music. The reputation of jazz musicians using marijuana soon rolled into musicians becoming suppliers and sellers. This heightened the pre existing stigma towards the music community even further. Now, any musician who was looked at as a user was now perceived to be a seller. This reputation became so generic that anyone who even looked like a musician was given this label. Sloman quoted aAn employer of NBC studios during this time period that claimed stated, "anyone wearing a bow ttie and carrying a musicians case would be regarded by marijuana peddlers as a potential purchaser at places frequented by musicians" (Reefer Madness 200). The television studios in particular attacked the jazz community and developed a propaganda creating a negative outlook on the musicians due to inflated claims of marijuana use. The anti marijuanaanti-marijuana stigma was touching multiple aspects of the public, developing a solid negative association with the drug. The media showed no sign of slowing down its coverage of the anti marijuanaantimarijuana campaign. In the 1950s, a public service announcement wasprinted media and public service announcements were used put in place to declare marijuana a Gateway Drug. This term referred to the statementclaim concluding that anyone who smokes marijuana will inevitably use other harsher drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine. The claim linked hardcore drug addicts towith marijuana users. Nebraska Cannabis Coalition stated, The media circulated the myth that most heroin addicts were led down the path to disaster by marijuana and that most marijuana users become addicted to harder drugs. The Gateway drug phenomenon harvested great publicity. People were already scared of the youth using marijuana and now they began to

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Bartolo 8 develop a deeper fear of children to using harsher drugs. As the hysteria swept the nation through public service announcements, the media began to generate additional print based propaganda. One of the most popular pieces of work depicted an unknown figure in the background opening the door to a pair of skeleton hands with syringe, also headlining, Pot Opens The Door, shown below in Figure 2.

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Figure 2 This piece of propaganda showed the public that if marijuana fails to kill you, then it willwould open the door to harsher drugs that are assured to kill you. The skeleton hands in the picture depict this message. Going even further, the printed media added a new ad promoting what marijuanas gateway characteristics do to the brain. A printed public service announcement depicted a frying pan with a sizzling fried egg. The message behind this concludedset forth the idea that drugs fry the brain. With the frying pan acting as the effects of the drugs, and the frying egg depicting the brain, it sent yet another frightening message to the public. The public service announcements and the printed media directly persuaded the public on marijuana being a Gateway drug. The idea of marijuana being
Comment [AC11]: When you reference visual pieces like this, it may be helpful for readers to include the image within the body of the text (labeled as Figure 1, Figure 2, etc., according to MLA guidelines), so that we can see exactly what youre describing.

Bartolo 9 linked to harsher drug use was yet just another way for the media to drive the negative perception of marijuana into the eyes of public. The use of public service announcements became more prevalent in the Ronald Regan erafrom the Government was used more religiously in the Ronald Reagan era. President Ronald Reagan declared the first official War on Drugs as a governmental priority. However, Nancy Reagan, the first lady, was the organizer of all of public service announcements released. Martin A. Lee, an expert in the societal history of marijuana, quoted Ms. ReganReagan as she continued to impact the publicspublics stigma of marijuana through national television by stating use when she stated on national television, , If you are a casual user, you are an accomplice to murder(162). (162 Smoke Signals). This statement kept the negative perception of marijuana alive while continuing to fuel the hysteria. The main goal of the War on Drugs public service announcements was to protect the youth from this drug. Repeating history, Ms. ReganReagan developed a new list of consequences of smoking marijuana. Smoke signalsLee summarized and analyzed Ms. ReganReagans speeches and public service announcements, by stating parents groups and other government financed fronts churned out anti pot propaganda so ridiculously one-sided that it read in sum like a rabbit religious tract, a litany of unending horrors-marijuana causes cancer, brain damage, schizophrenia, homosexuality, uncontrollable weight gain, birth defects, and, yet again, the amazing allegation that pot smoke makes men grow large breasts. (162). The Ronald ReganReagan era used public service announcements and presidential speeches to spread strictly negative views on marijuana. This approach continued the trend of showing marijuana in a negative light to the general public.

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Bartolo 10 The 1990s were the first time that marijuana began to take on a different light in the eyes of the public. Marijuana being governmentally regulated and approved for its medicinal benefits sparked a more positive outlook on the drug. Scientific research has found overwhelming data that suggest that marijuana has tremendous therapeutic components. Marijuana has been prescribed to people with HIV and cancer to help reduce pain and increase appetite, as well as children who are suffering sporadic seizers. The results marijuana as an alternate to other drugs has been substantial. As of 2014, there are 20 states that have legal medical marijuana that requires a patient user identification card. As medical marijuana began to gain popularity among the public, the commercial media covered success stories, research studies, and political debates. It is also evident in todays culture to see movies, television shows, and public figures supporting the use of marijuana. Hollywood has created numerous films such as Pineapple Express that is solely about marijuana use and dealing the drug. This comedy stars James Franco and Seth Rogen, who pride themselves on being called Hollywoods Biggest Stoners. The perception of marijuana has taken a huge change in the media and in all mediums of publicity. We start to see a sense of condoning the drug use while ridding of the extreme stigma that was created through the past decade. Although people are starting to see marijuana use under a different light, the generation of our parents still hold tight to the negative association with the drug. Marijuana: Its Legal, Now What?, a poll taken in Colorado, one of two states to legalize recreational marijuana use, measured the attitude towards the drug among its residents. The study concluded, 85 percent of parents agreed that marijuana can have strong negative consequences on the still-developing brains of teenagers, and 85 percent agree

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Bartolo 11 that marijuana use at a young age can hurt performance in school and impact a young persons future (5). There are still poster advertisements being distributed by the media associating marijuana use with failure and labeling them as potheads. This association is shown in Figures 3 and 4 below.

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Figure 3

Figure 4

Adam Nagourney of the New York Times stated this about the changing views of marijuana, It is losing whatever stigma it ever had and still has in many parts of the country, including New York City, where the kind of open marijuana use that is common here would attract the attention of any passing law officer. Although the perception of marijuana is becoming more positive in present day, the negative stigma that was

Bartolo 12 developed through the print based media and public service announcements still have an overwhelming impact on societal viewsthere is still a lingering negative perception of its use. Marijuana is recreationally and medically used without as strong of a less of a negative outlook, however, in the majority of the country it is still frowned uponthe generations that lived through the propaganda still carry this stigma. The negative perceptionThe stigma that was given to marijuana through different mediums of media still carries greater weight in the eyes of the public today. The negative stigma towards marijuana has been around for the majority of the 20th century. The Government used public service announcements and anti-marijuana campaigns to create negative associations of the drug with minorities and violence. Once the Government released these announcements the commercial and print based media began to stem its coverage towards marijuanas association with jazz musicians and being a Gateway drug. The publicity on the drug caused the public to claim a strong negative perception with its use for many decades to follow. Although this stigma is still present today, there have been signs of change in the perception of marijuana use. Due to research towards the effects of the drug and the legalization for medical use, marijuana has started to gain more social acceptance. As the stigma of marijuana is changing exponentially, the public is seeing changes in Governmental policy. 20 states currently have legalized medical marijuana and 2 states have legalized the drug for recreational use. If the positive stigma of marijuana continues to trend it is only a matter of time before all states legalize medical marijuana and we see more states adopt the drug for recreational use. Marijuana has not yet been legalized everywhere because of the still existing negative stigma that has been attached to it for decades.Due to different forms of commercial and print based media,

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Comment [AC12]: Notice that youre drifting away from advertisements and various media campaigns that youve been focusing on up to this point. Whats the current anti-drug campaign look like? IS there one? How is that rhetoric similar to/different from what youve described up to this point in the essay? Formatted: Superscript Formatted: Line spacing: Double

Bartolo 13 marijuana has developed a negative stigma in the eyes of the public. The anti-marijuana campaign spread over the 1900s, using different methods to create different associations with the drug.

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Works Cited Anslinger, Harry. Assassin of Youth. 1937. Photograph. cannabis.nedWeb. 6 Apr 2014. <http://www.cannabis.net/assassin-of-youth.html>.

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Anslinger, Harry. Reefer Makes Darkies Think The'yre as Good as White Men. 1937. Photograph. n.p. Web. 6 Apr 2014. <http://www.voc-

Bartolo 14 nederland.org/2010/10/proposition-19-de-lange-schaduw-van-harry-janslinger/>.

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Anti-Marijuana Swimmer Ad. Digital image. Australian National Drugs Campaign Marijuana Swimmer. N.p., 3 May 2010. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.

Gasnier, Louis, dir. "Reefer Madness." Motion Picture Ventures: 1936. Television.
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Griffin, O. H. "Sifting through the Hyperbole : One Hundred Years of Marijuana Coverage in the New York Times." Deviant Behavior 34.10 (2013): 767-81. Print. Lee, Martin A. Smoke Signals: A Social History of Mairjuana-Medical, Recreational, and Scientific. Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY: Scribner, 2012. Print. Lottman, George. The Black Side of Swing. 1938. Photograph. Reefer Madness MuseumWeb. 6 Apr 2014. <http://www.reefermadnessmuseum.org/otr/SFChronicle.htm>.

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"Marijuana: Its Legal, Now What?." A Marijuana Attitudes Survey. The Partnership at Drugfree.org, 16 07 2013. Web. 7 Apr 2014. <http://www.drugfree.org/wpcontent/uploads/2013/07/Marijuana-Attitudes-Survey-Summary-Report.pdf>. "Marijuana's Nemesis Harry J. Anslinger." Feb 11, 2011 2011.Web. <https://sites.google.com/site/nebraskacannabiscoalition/marijuana-s-nemesisharry-j-anslinger>.
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Bartolo 15 Pothead Ad. Digital image. Office of National Drug Control Policy, 3 Sept. 2011. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. <http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ONDCP_Pothead.gif>.

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Pot Opens The Door. 1950. Photograph. TumblrWeb. 6 Apr 2014. <http://cryptofwrestling.tumblr.com/post/39682770962/pot-opens-the-door1950s>.
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Preidt, Robert. "More Doctors Than Consumers Say Medical Marijuana Should Be Legal: Survey." CBS News. 02 04 2014: n. page. Web. 6 Apr. 2014. <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/more-doctors-than-consumers-say-medicalmarijuana-should-be-legal-survey/>.

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Sloman, Larry. Reefer Madness: The History of Marijuana in America. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 1979. Print. The Devil's Harvest. 1942. Photograph. n.p. Web. 6 Apr 2014. <http://ayay.co.uk/background/b_movie_posters/cautionary/devils-harvest/>.

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