I wrote about that viral video of a cop supposedly overdosing by touching fentanyl—a medically impossible feat—& the perils of media regurgitating state claims without scrutiny.
Recycling a police press release is not journalism.
My latest @reason: reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
Recycling a police press release is not journalism.
My latest @reason: reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
Media outlets—local, national, & international—jumped all over this video, released by @SDSheriff.
A sampling of headlines from @CNN, @Newsweek, @sacbee_news, & @Independent
A sampling of headlines from @CNN, @Newsweek, @sacbee_news, & @Independent
What most every publication left out: You cannot overdose on fentanyl by touching it.
What about airborne transmission? It takes 200 minutes for unmasked workers who produce fentanyl to register a dose of 100 mcg, which is still not an overdose.
reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
What about airborne transmission? It takes 200 minutes for unmasked workers who produce fentanyl to register a dose of 100 mcg, which is still not an overdose.
reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
This isn't the first time this narrative has taken shape in the media—both locally & nationally—despite scientists screaming from the mountaintops that it's literally not possible.
Here's a @washingtonpost headline from 2017 & and a @yorknewstimes piece from earlier this year
Here's a @washingtonpost headline from 2017 & and a @yorknewstimes piece from earlier this year
There are a few possible explanations for the phenomenon. One is the "nocebo effect," the opposite of a placebo, where you panic over a drug bc you know it *could* be dangerous.
In any case, police depts should know better by now. So should the media. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
In any case, police depts should know better by now. So should the media. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
Copying and pasting a press release from the gov't is not good reporting. And it has real-world effects.
Fentanyl hysteria has contributed to extremely punitive punishments in connection with the drug. We've expanded the drug war based on a fantasy. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
Fentanyl hysteria has contributed to extremely punitive punishments in connection with the drug. We've expanded the drug war based on a fantasy. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
Media critics zero in on journalists for sensationalizing police stories & having a bias against cops.
There's some truth to those claims. But the reverse—media giving deference to cops without question—is also a problem, & it largely goes unnoticed. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
There's some truth to those claims. But the reverse—media giving deference to cops without question—is also a problem, & it largely goes unnoticed. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
It's not exclusive to faux drug overdoses.
Here's a @MiamiHerald headline from Nov about cops busting a "human trafficking" operation. The piece reads like an ad for the Tallahassee Police Dept. One problem: The actual police report shows a bunch of arrests for...prostitution.
Here's a @MiamiHerald headline from Nov about cops busting a "human trafficking" operation. The piece reads like an ad for the Tallahassee Police Dept. One problem: The actual police report shows a bunch of arrests for...prostitution.
Yet the @MiamiHerald glossed over that disconnect. The piece was written by their breaking news team—which has won several Pulitzers. Yet it's not unlike the journalism we saw this weekend.
A good indication of where we're at. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
A good indication of where we're at. reason.com/2021/08/09/san…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
