The marijuana user in US news media: an examination of visual stereotypes of race,culture,criminality and normification

Abstract

In the wake of growing legalization efforts, both medicinal and recreational marijuana use in the US is becoming more prevalent and societally acceptable. However, racial, criminal and cultural stereotypes linger in mediated visual portrayals. This study examines the extent to which mediated visual portrayals in mainstream news have been impacted by these recent legalization efforts. Employing a quantitative as well as a qualitative analysis of visual images used to represent marijuana use in mainstream news, this study draws upon the power of visual framing and the construction of social reality to examine how visual symbols and iconic signifiers are used to construct both stereotypical and ‘mainstreamed’ or ‘normative’ depictions of marijuana use. Analyzing 458 visuals across 10 different media outlets across the political spectrum, both before and after legalization of marijuana in Colorado, this study shows how news portrayals perpetuated stereotypes about marijuana users, particularly around criminality and pot-culture iconography. Relatively few depictions of marijuana users in the US are visuals of ordinary, ‘normal’ people or families. This study thus interrogates the relationship between representations of race, criminality and ‘pothead’ stereotypes associated with marijuana use, and how these visual representations differ amongst liberal and conservative news sites, finding that the political ideology of the news outlet largely influences the visual stereotyping of marijuana users. The study concludes by considering both the legal and cultural implications of how mainstream news visually represents marijuana use, considering how persistent decades-old representations were largely perpetuated rather than challenged in light of legalization efforts.

Keywords

culture marijuana race social construction of reality stereotyping visual stereotyping

Introduction

Both recreational and medicinal use of marijuana in the US has gained growing societal acceptance and legal backing. Recreational marijuana is now legal in four states and medicinal use of marijuana is legal in an additional twenty. The first state to open recreational dispensaries was Colorado in 2014 (Martinez, 2014). The current Trump administration’s policies to reverse Obama-era legal protections are threatening states that have allowed recreational marijuana use. Marijuana businesses, advocates and users are attempting to mainstream its usage: that is, to shed the stigma (Goffman, 1963: 31).

Lingering but fading stereotypes of the marijuana user are those of a dangerous and criminal racial minority (‘thug’), a lethargic and unkempt leech on society, or a young rebellious derelict (Haines-Saah et al., 2014; Lee, 2012; Simmons, 1965). The negative stereotypes and stigma associated with marijuana use have been cultivated in part by a long history of racial association and fear-inducing media propaganda (Lee, 2012; Simmons, 1965). Indeed, as recently as January 2018, a Kansas lawmaker resigned from his leadership position in the Legislature after false and controversial assertions he made stating that African-Americans were more likely to abuse marijuana than whites because of ‘their character makeup and ‘their genetics’ (Shoreman, 2018: para. 5). Media stereotypes create quick and easy shortcuts, but they are also blunt, unrepresentative and often blatantly false (Dennis, 2011: x; Lippmann, 1922: 25). They lead viewers to make judgments about the personality and character of others based upon false or exaggerated information and can also have lasting cultural and political consequences (Altheide, 1997; Dennis, 2011; Elliott, 2011; Ibrahim, 2010; McGhee, 2014; Newman, 1974; Pacula et al., 2003; Secord et al., 1976; Shoemaker et al., 1973).

Visuals in the media are particularly powerful in perpetuating stereotypes (Abraham and Appiah, 2006; Dente Ross, 2011; Entman, 1994; Gibson and Zillman, 2000). Images not only attract more attention than words alone (Domke et al., 2002) but are processed more quickly as they evoke an emotional response (Schwalbe and Dougherty, 2015). As Dente Ross (2011: 5) explains, visuals have the power and utility to ‘inscribe concepts into the minds of readers and viewers’. This is in part due to visuals’ subtlety, memorability, affect, viewers’ belief in the ‘truth’ of what they see (Abraham and Appiah, 2006; Lester, 2013; Messaris, 1996; Newton, 2001), as well as their pervasiveness in our contemporary mediascape (Nielsen, 2011; Rosen, 2005). Journalistic photographs in particular have been shown to sway public perceptions of societal definitions of normalcy and demarcate acceptable behaviors from unacceptable ones (Elliott, 2011; Fyfe and Law, 1988).

Further, the perception of the acceptability of certain actions and behaviors is influenced by one’s political disposition. A body of scholarly work suggests that the way different media outlets portray marijuana users – including visually perpetuating stereotypes–will be impacted by news outlets’ political ideologies (Berger and Luckmann, 1966; Benford and Snow, 2000; Dotson et al., 2012; Flanagin et al., 2006; Gans, 1979; Tuchman, 1978). Party platforms are ever more ideologically extreme in the US, just as issue activists are more ideologically polarized than ever before (Treier and Hillygus, 2009).

This article quantitatively and qualitatively examines the presence of visual stereotypes – racial, criminal, and cultural – as well as the visual mainstreaming of marijuana users – both before and after the legalization of marijuana in the first state to do so for recreational use in the US, Colorado. Headlines are examined to interrogate the relationship between visuals and words. This study contributes to an ongoing scholarly conversation about the role of visual framing in the construction of social reality. The study also seeks to discern whether there is a relationship between visual depictions of racial minorities’ other stereotypes about marijuana, adding to the existing body of literature on the visual stereotyping of racial minorities. Finally, the study examines whether these relationships differ before and after legalization, and across news outlets of differing political leanings.

Marijuana in the Us

Widespread acceptance of marijuana in the US declined in the early 1800s, as the drug began to be associated with ethnic minorities following the Mexican Revolution (Lee, 2012). Affluent white people blamed the problems of minorities on their marijuana consumption, and racial laws became commonplace. In the early 1900s, the first director of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, Harry Jacob Anslinger of Reefer-Madness fame, further cultivated stereotypes (Boyd, 2002; Lee, 2012; Sloman, 1998). Marijuana was effectively outlawed in 1937, defining its usage as deviant (Hagan, 1994). In the 1970s, Nixon classified marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug and, in the mid-1980s, First Lady Nancy Reagan began the ‘Just Say No’ media campaign, grouping marijuana with all other drugs (Lee, 2012).

Many marijuana users embrace and find humor in the associated stereotypes – lazy, aloof, less-than-intelligent and interested only in getting high while eating copious amounts of junk food. Users have formed an entire counter-culture, with its own ‘myths and folklore, social etiquette and pecking order, songs and language, heroes and humor’, giving it mystique and allure (Lee, 2012: 151; Sloman, 1998). But not all stereotypes lend themselves to this kind of self-deprecating humor. An early study by Simmons (1965) revealed that non-marijuana smokers perceive users as ‘criminal’, ‘greasy’, ‘indulgent’, ‘minorities’, and ‘bums’, who lack self-control and are trying to have a good time. Hathaway et al. (2011) found that users hide their usage, feeling like a pariah, criminal, or fearing being perceived as less intelligent.

However, as news stories circulate about cancer patients finding that marijuana alleviates pain better than other prescribed treatments or parent groups advocating for legalization for their children with epilepsy and other chronic diseases, the image of the typical marijuana user is changing. Indeed, even before its mainstreaming, scientific research refuted claims of the dangers of marijuana usage. As early as 1925, the US government investigated the effects of marijuana following rumors of its use in the Panama Canal work zone, concluding that marijuana had no appreciable deleterious influence on the individual using it (Lee, 2012). New York Mayor LaGuardia in 1944 commissioned a report investigating the link between violence and marijuana use. No such link was found, nor was a link found between marijuana use and the use of other drugs including morphine, heroin and cocaine, debunking the ‘gateway drug’ theory. Again in 1963, the White House Conference on Drug Abuse took place, concluding that the dangers of marijuana have been greatly exaggerated. And in Britain in 1968, a comprehensive study by Parliament concluded that marijuana has no harmful effects when consumed moderately, and is less dangerous than opiates, amphetamines, barbituates, and alcohol. Even the Nixon Administration’s comprehensive review of marijuana – the largest ever conducted by the US government – found no evidence of physical or psychological harms from marijuana (Lee, 2012: 123). In 1972, the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse reported that, while marijuana was not entirely safe, its dangers were greatly overstated (Zimmer and Morgan, 1997).

Many users call for scrapping the ‘stoner’ image in order for the practice to become more medicinally and recreationally mainstream, and to encourage further scientific research (McGhee, 2014). Proponents of legalization contend that the criminal status of marijuana is unwarranted, needlessly stigmatizes users, victimizes medical consumers and impedes science (Hathaway et al., 2011). They refute the truthfulness of claims toward the danger of the drug, saying that alcohol and cigarettes are more dangerous than marijuana (Roffman, 2013). They argue that legalization will free up prisons and add tax revenues, and claim that marijuana should not be coupled with other Schedule 1 drugs such as heroin (‘Legalising marijuana adds revenue, reduces law-enforcement costs’, 2012; ‘Marijuana legislation needs research, substance’, 2014; ‘Take opportunity to legalize marijuana’, 2013). Groups such as National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana (NORML, nd) and Moms for Marijuana International (MMI, nd) advocate for a research-based reasonable marijuana policy and reject stereotypes.

Stigma and Visual Stereotypes

Goffman (1963: 12) states that when a person deviates from societal expectations, he or she is said to have a stigma; a marked difference from societal normalcy. Further, a wide range of secondary imperfections are imputed upon the stigmatized on the basis of the original perceived flaw, and minor fallings of the stigmatized individuals are viewed as a direct result of their original stigma. A single stigma comes to be associated with a wealth of other negative attributes, or stereotypes.

Media stereotypes of all kinds are harmful not only to the group being stereotyped, but also to viewers, who are provided with blunt and skewed visual information (Elliott, 2011). Having been presented with ready-made media images of what various categories of people should look like and act like, ‘one is prone to jump to conclusions when presented with a person fitting descriptions of the category’ (Shoemaker et al., 1973: 67). Stereotypical photography demarcates the worthy from the unworthy, encourages people to make judgments about the character of others, teaches the public which lifestyles are acceptable, and can have societal consequences in terms of public opinion, which may turn into public policy (Elliott, 2011; Enteman, 2011: 20; Fyfe and Law, 1988; Secord et al., 1976).

Visual stereotyping research, however, continually suggests that the media disproportionately reproduce and reinforce stereotypical images based on race (Altheide, 1997; Ibrahim, 2010) religion (Fahmy, 2004) and gender (Newton and Williams, 2011). For example, Ibrahim (2010) found that both the exposure to a high frequency of this type of news and the exposure to particular threat frames about immigrants significantly increased anti-immigration attitudes. Similarly, Altheide (1997) found that audiences’ fear and antipathy towards immigrants can be triggered by media portrayals. Stringer and Maggard (2016) examined the relationship between media exposure and attitudes toward marijuana, and found that television and newspaper exposure has a significant positive relationship with a favor toward the drug from 1991 to 2012.

A large body of visual stereotyping research demonstrates a link between blacks and negative issues, including violent crime, drugs, poverty, prisons, drug-addicted babies, and AIDS (Abraham and Appiah, 2006). Entman and Rojecki (2000) coded and analyzed local television news in Chicago, and found that, although white and black criminals are given equal coverage, black criminals are more likely to be shown in jail clothes, with handcuffs, or grasped by police. What is more, far more coverage is given to white victims than black victims, which creates the illusion that African Americans are especially dangerous to other groups. Similarly, Dixon et al. (2003) demonstrated that whites were more likely than African Americans to appear as perpetrators, victims and officers in network news coverage of crime. The overrerpresentation of African Americans as passive and as criminals in visual forms of media has been found in a myriad of other studies (e.g. Kahle et al., 2007; Lewis and Proffitt, 2012; Mastro and Greenberg, 2000).

Much less stereotyping research addresses the media’s portrayal of marijuana users. Media portrayals of general drug use, broadly, are often sensational, distorted, exaggerated or stereotypical, and focus on only the most extreme cases (Ayres and Jewkes, 2012: 315; Coomber et al., 2000: 217; Murji, 1998). Haines-Saah et al. (2014) suggested, from their study of Canadian stories about medical marijuana, that the portrayal of marijuana users who are underprivileged, racial minorities, and women are more negative than portrayals involving non-minorities, males, and celebrities or athletes. Lewis and Proffitt’s (2012) study suggested that players’ different races are also related to how media framed their marijuana use differently – Olympian swimmer Michael Phelps’s use of marijuana was minimized and excused; however, black NFL player Michael Vick’s usage was framed as a criminal activity. In another non-visual content analysis, Vickovic and Fradella (2011) found that changes in presidential administration had an effect on newspaper coverage of medical marijuana. More recently, Lewis et al. (2016) examined coverage of medical cannabis in Israel, finding that the way in which cannabis is framed as a medical issue, policy issue, a law enforcement issue, or patient issue reflects the views of the outlet.

Media Stereotyping and Political Ideology

The literature is rife with studies showing the political polarization amongst news media platforms (e.g. Park and Thelwall, 2008; Tremayne et al., 2006; Wall, 2005). While liberals are more open to legalization of marijuana, especially medical marijuana use, most conservative Republicans remain resistant to embracing more lenient marijuana laws (see Graham et al., 2009). One can predict, with a high level of accuracy, the stance of most American politicians on a wide range of social issues by one binary (liberal vs conservative) variable alone: ideology (Luttbeg and Gant, 1985). Given the increasing salience of political ideology in America, it seems important to examine how ideology affects the visual stereotyping of controversial issues involving stigmatization, such as marijuana legalization.

Summary and Research Questions

The literature has demonstrated a history of stereotyping by the media. However, it has not addressed (1) visual stereotypes of stigmatized individuals – marijuana users, in this case – in a time of increased mainstreaming; (2) whether such mainstreaming efforts are associated with increased normified media portrayals; and (3) whether the political leanings of various media outlets influence these visual representations. Further, racial stereotypes associated with marijuana usage have been little examined. Thus, this study seeks to fill a critical void by addressing the following research questions:

RQ1: Did media outlets rely upon culturally defined iconic visual stereotypes to represent marijuana users?

RQ2: Did legalization in Colorado alter the visual representations of marijuana users before and after the act passed?

RQ3: Does the political ideology of the media outlet impact the visual representations of marijuana users?

RQ4:

(a) Is there a relationship between the depiction of racial minorities and criminality, and cultural stereotypes associated with marijuana use?

(b) If so, did this relationship change following legalization in Colorado?

Methods

The Pew Research Journalism Project collects annual data on the state of journalism, including the Top 25 online news sites, by visitors. This list was used as a population from which to select US online news sites. The list contained two conservative-leaning sites, six liberal-leaning sites, and two ‘neutral’ sites. While the categories are imperfect, a major trade publication was relied upon to ensure diversity in ideological representations. To even out the conservative and liberal sites, the researchers referenced Editor and Publisher’s listing of newspaper circulation statistics and ideology designations, and the three top conservative papers were added. Four conservative sites (Dallas Morning News, New York Daily News, New York Post, Houston Chronicle), four liberal sites (Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Washington Post, and Chicago Tribune), and two neutral sites (USA Today and Wall Street Journal) remained.

From each site, a search was conducted for ‘marijuana’. Screen shots of all articles that resulted from the search from six months before and six months after legalization in Colorado (1 June 13 to 1 July 14) were pulled. The total number of screenshots was 1,391 (579 before legalization in Colorado and 812 after). Every third screenshot from a random starting point was drawn (Fahmy, 2004). Stories without images, duplicate stories, and irrelevant stories were eliminated. The final sample was comprised of 458 images (206 conservative, 185 liberal, and 67 from neutral outlets; 190 from prior to legalization, and 268 from after).

Intercoder reliability

Four training sessions were held using images outside of the final sample, and multiple discussions in between resulted in refining of the codebook. The Cohen’s Kappas are as follows: political ideology: 1.0; pre/post publication: 1.0; pot culture stereotypes: 0.85; racial minority presence: 1.0; criminal depictions in image: 1.0; criminal depictions in headline: 0.97; normification: 0.78.

Coding and variables

Two independent coders classified images into three broad categories of visual representations that previous literature has shown to be persistent and stable visual iconography for marijuana use: cultural, racial, and criminal stereotypes. The coders initially used an inductive approach to examine the photographs, creating as many categories as possible (Simon and Xenos, 2000).

Pot-culture stereotypes included instances of marijuana users being portrayed as psychotic, sleepy or lazy, indulgently high, eating ‘munchies’, images of youth rebellion associated with smoking, stoned appearances, weed being used in combination with other drugs, the symbolic marijuana leaf on clothing, peace signs excess, multiple joints being smoked at once, exaggeratedly-large joints, laziness/unkemptness, illness associated with usage, addiction/pre-occupation/overzealousness for weed, and the visualization of smoke-filled festivals.

The race of the main figures (largest and most prominently placed) present in the image was coded as ‘white, non-white, and cannot tell’. Criminality was coded as ‘crime portrayed’, ‘crime not portrayed’, and ‘cannot tell’. Crime portrayals included visuals of handcuffs, mug shots, police, jail bars, cop cars, prisons, and jumpsuits. Images were also coded for presence of portrayals of ‘normification’ (Goffman, 1963). Images that normify marijuana included those of people that do not meet these previously established cultural stereotypes of a marijuana user, ones that depict users as everyday people. They included – but were not limited to – images of family, children, business people, older people, and individuals smoking pot in public environments with kempt appearances. Categories were not mutually exclusive; for example, the image could contain a minority and pot-culture stereotypes.

Coders also categorized the images as coming from liberal, conservative or neutral news outlets. The headlines that accompanied each image were also coded to add richness to the data and to examine how words were used to frame the images and to give meaning to what is seen. For example, for the racial visual stereotyping, headlines were used to examine whether images of racial minorities were associated with articles about crime; headlines with images of normification were examined to see if the linguistic framing also included markers of mainstreaming (i.e. stories about families advocating for children’s medical use or high-end executives using marijuana to treat anxiety). Lastly, qualitative textual analysis was used to illustrate several representative images from each category in order to describe in more depth and detail the ways in which signs, symbols, iconography, scenes, and specific social actors and groups were used to represent each visual frame. From the larger sample of visuals, researchers selected three to four images that acted as exemplars to represent each category, which is described in tandem with the quantitative results (see RQ1) in order to further bolster this study’s contributions to understanding how marijuana use is represented in US news media.

Results

Research question one (RQ1)

The first research question asked: ‘In what ways do media outlets rely on culturally inscribed visual stereotypes to represent marijuana users?’ This research question can be answered through descriptive statistics, as well as through qualitative descriptive analysis of a few representative images within each visual frame.

Pot-culture stereotypes

‘Pot culture’ stereotypes often incorporated counter-culture symbols and settings such as scenes of street/music festivals, pot dispensaries, party scenes with smoke-clouded crowds, tie-dye prints or banners, bandannas or flowered headbands, long hair, unkempt shaggy beards, men with braided hair or dreadlocks, oversized rolled joints, and Rasta colors and symbols. They appeared in 20.7 percent of images. One image from the 10 January 2014 Washington Post shows a medium-shot of a 20-something Caucasian man, wide-eyed through black spectacles, mouth agape in a large smile while he pursues glass cylinders (7 in the shot) that contain greenish-brown colored dried leaves, or ‘cured’ varieties of pot (as opposed to more ‘pure’ or natural cannabis leaves resembling a plant) (see Figure 1).

Figure 1.

Tyler Williams of Blanchester, Ohio, selects marijuana strains to purchase (Washington Post). © Theo Strommer/Getty. Reproduced with permission.

His expression is eager, anticipatory and longing, resembling a ‘kid in a candy store’. He appears to be in a retail space that sells legal marijuana as a few other shoppers linger behind him in the shot. The image and his expression read more ‘recreational’ than ‘medicinal’, and the headline, ‘Colorado lawmakers to feds: Let marijuana businesses bank’, highlights the potential market boom that such recreational use could bring the state.

Several other images, such as those featured in the 16 April 2014 web edition of the New York Daily News, all feature giant oversized ‘doobies’ or rolled joints, giant rolled marijuana cigarettes that appear through the camera angle to dwarf the hand holding the joint and/or the face of the person smoking it. In all cases, the joint is either burning and emitting pot-laced smoke into the air. In the case of an image of Rihanna (her face is not shown), she is in the act of lighting two giant rolled joints simultaneously, her hands holding two lit lighters while both joints protrude outward from her bright pink lips. The image is cropped right above her nose so that her eyes and forehead are omitted from the shot; only the caption identifies her as Rihanna. Other images either completely obscure the face of the smoker or simply show a hand holding the joint, the clear focal point of the shot used to emphasize the giant rolled cannabis cigarette.

Another way news organizations represented pot-culture stereotypes was to show crowds of young people in party-like or festival atmospheres covered in a shroud of smoke and/or actively smoking pot in open, public spaces. These images were often marked with illustrations of the iconic cannabis leaf, the number 420 (the date marijuana was legalized in the state), and other symbols iconic to the ‘hippie’ culture of the 1960s Woodstock era. Examples of this treatment include a close-up of an auburn-haired woman who appears in her late teens or early 20s, fingernails painted in multiple pastel colors, smoking a large rolled joint in an outdoor space (possibly a park or festival), smoke billowing around her face.

Similarly, another shows a close up of an older graying man with long hair and an overgrown beard, fitting the disheveled and unkempt hippie male stereotype, donning green cannabis framed sunglasses cast upward toward the sunlight and a white headband around his hair (LA Times, 22 October 2013). The image conjures up iconic images of Woodstock culture, as the focus is tight on the close-up of his face as a blurred crowd stands watching in the background.

The 9 September 2013 web edition of the New York Post features a high-angle shot of a 20-something Asian male smoking from a bong, his face lost in a cloud of smoke, while flags and t-shirts in the background symbolize Rasta culture – prominent yellow, red and green colors and an illustrated image of Bob Marley on a flag.

A similarly stereotypic image features an iconic figure of the free-spirited Woodstock era, Willie Nelson, known for his legal record of marijuana possession, smoking a joint in some sort of indoor space, perhaps a coffee shop, diner or his home. The high-angle shot shows the musician with a graying beard and long braids, eyes cast downward toward his joint, with a half-filled coffee cup containing symbols of the Texan flag and a large plate of dried marijuana leaves and hand-rolled cigarette papers on the table before him.

The 23 October 2003 web edition of the New York Post demonstrates a penultimate pot-culture image: a group of mixed-race young men look on while the camera focuses a medium shot on a shirtless man wearing a necklace made of cannabis leaves, in sunglasses and a green bandana, stuffing a giant rolled joint the size of a large burrito. The onlookers are masked not only by the soft focus of the camera but also by the cannabis smoke filling the air and covering their faces.

One arguably more controversial image blends religious iconography with cannabis culture (Dallas News, 22 April 2014). A middle-aged African-American man with long dreadlocks – symbolizing Rasta culture – appears in a medium low-angle shot with the sun’s reflections appearing almost ethereal behind him as he carries a sort of ‘cannabis-cross’ – a large post shackled to his wrists like a cross with large cannabis leaves protruding from it. His t-shirt carries the iconic pop art LOVE image created by Robert Indiana, a cannabis leaf inscribed over the ‘O’. Several flags on poles fly behind him, including the American flag, representing either a courthouse or other official government building. The headline, ‘Photo of a pothead and his 4/20 cross on Easter was offensive’, clearly marks the man as a social outcast and his actions as counter-cultural. Another (LA Times, 15 May 2014) shows a sign for a ‘MUNCHIES’ café featuring a cartoon-like cannabis leaf licking its lips and highlighting the symbolism of 420 (including captions like ‘Where you go after 4:20’ and ‘Wraps only $4.20).

Criminal stereotypes

In addition to the pot-culture stereotype, another 15.3 percent of images depicted scenes of criminal behavior. These images were also often correlated with racial stereotypes so that criminality associated with marijuana predominantly focused on minority users. For example, the 27 September 2013 edition of the New York Post shows a young black 20-something man in handcuffs, being escorted either into or out of a police van by a white male officer and a black female officer who appears to be holding some sort of paperwork relevant to the arrest (see Figure 2). The officers are in full police uniform complete with armed weaponry on their belts. The headline, ‘Girl, 3, brings 13 bags of pot to school’ reads even more ominously than the image (whom audiences presume is the girl’s father being arrested).

Figure 2.

‘Kelly Mena, 24, slipped the reefer into the pink backpack of a three-year-old girl.’

Other visual illustrations of criminality featured a young minority man in an orange jumpsuit, apparently in a court of law, with the hands of a uniformed police figure appearing behind him in the shot (New York Post, 28 January 2014). The headline positions the image even more so in the criminal frame: ‘Pot dealer admits shooting at cops – but only in self-defense.’

Still another image (Washington Post, 15 January 2014) features a long shot of a Hispanic man amidst an arrest. He stands outside his black SUV, pulled over on the side of a road, wearing a white tank top pulled up to expose his stomach with his hands stuffed in his jean pockets. Three armed militiamen surround him, two of whom have their guns pointed toward the suspect. The headline feeds fears of loose borders and the drug trade, reading, ‘A Mexican militia, battling Michoachan drug cartel, has American roots.’

Normification images

These images depicting the pot culture stereotype and criminality were markedly different from those representing ‘normification’. Normalizing or mainstreaming images often featured marijuana in a laboratory or medicalized setting, depicted as a ‘natural’ leaf rather than as a rolled cigarette or a brownie, and contained pictures of families and/or children. For example, the 9 January 2014 web edition of the Wall Street Journal features a close-up shot of a palm-sized cannabis leaf resting in the white latex-gloved hands of someone appearing to be in a laboratory or medical setting, dressed in a traditional white lab coat.

The close-up focus on the plant leaf simultaneously blurs the potted marijuana plants grown in the laboratory setting that form the background of the shot. The headline that accompanies the image reads, ‘An $88 million Nasdaq offering rides the marijuana bull market.’ The headline and image together position marijuana in the medical and economic realms, rather than as part of party pothead culture or that of an illegal and dangerous substance. Furthermore, portraying the cannabis leaf symbolizes the natural plant rather than a processed substance to be eaten or smoked, the leaf a ubiquitous symbol of the cannabis community.

Another image used to symbolize normification ran in the January 2014 edition of the Dallas Morning News and featured a broad-smiling, brunette Caucasian woman who appears to be in her mid-to-late 40s, wearing a black suit jacket with dark horned rimmed glasses and holding a large colorful poster advertising the upcoming Denver County Fair.

Along with adorably illustrated farm animals of a sheep and a rabbit, the poster prominently centers on an oversized baked pie featuring a crust design cut out in the shape of a cannabis leaf. The accompanying headline reads, ‘Canning, crafting, and . . . cannabis? Denver’s county fair adds pot-themed contests.’ Other fair attendees appear in the background of the shot, seemingly setting up their booths. The image and the headline together position marijuana as a baked good ingredient, using the iconic image of a pie (conjuring up the expression, ‘As American as apple pie’) to symbolically place the cannabis leaf as part of a folksy and family-friendly event like the county fair. Through this image, marijuana becomes anchored to tradition – albeit perhaps a new tradition – a non-threatening component of ages-old handcrafting artisanry and cooking.

Yet another way news organizations employed images to normalize marijuana was by showing images of families. For example, the 9 January 2014 of the New York Daily News’s website features a medium low-angle shot of an older Caucasian couple with graying hair who appear in their late ’50s or early ’60s.

The woman is cradling a gold-framed picture of a smiling toddler, presumably the granddaughter of the couple, her little tuft of hair pulled to the top of her head in a small bun. The expression of both the presumed grandfather and grandmother’s expresses tension, worry and anxiety, their mouths in a frown and eyebrows furrowed, gaze looking upward as if they are looking to a speaker positioned on a stage above them. They are among a crowd of other onlookers, although only the faces of the grandparents and the photograph of the little girl appear in the shot (see Figure 3). Another photograph, this one featured on the 18 February 2014 site of the San Francisco Chronicle, features a family who appears to be Hispanic, a low-angle shot of the mother tightly embracing her young teen daughter as the girl closes her eyes and rests against her mother’s shoulder. The father and younger brother gaze at them in the background of the shot, which appears to be taken in the family’s living room. The headlines of the two images (‘Medical marijuana gains traction in the deep south’ for the former and ‘Marijuana tested as treatment for epilepsy’ for the latter) firmly place marijuana in the medical realm and as a critical (natural) alternative to traditional prescription drugs for families desperate to help their young children or grandchildren. These emotional and intimate shots of culturally normative families and children present very different depictions of cultural stereotypes of marijuana users as criminals and derelict potheads.

Figure 3.

In a Tuesday, 28 January 2014 file photo, medical marijuana advocate Barbara Kutchback, of Monroe, GA, holds a photo of her 3-year-old granddaughter as she listens to other advocates tell of their children’s suffering, after a bill to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes was introduced in the State House chamber. © AP Photo/John Amis. Reproduced with permission.

Research question two (RQ2)

The second research question asked: Was legalization of marijuana in Colorado associated with a subsequent normification in visual images of marijuana users? Marijuana legalization in Colorado impacted the perpetuating of stereotypes of marijuana users in the media very slightly. There were more criminal stereotypes in images prior to (39, 20.5%) than following legalization (31, 11.6%), and these differences approached – but did not reach – significance (χ² = 8.63 [df = 4], p > .05).

Research question three (RQ3)

The third research question asked: ‘Does political ideology of the news outlet impact the visual stereotyping of marijuana users?’ Table 1 shows that conservative news sites depicted racial minorities in articles about marijuana significantly more frequently (26.2%) than either liberal (20.5%) or neutral news outlets (22.4%). This difference was significant (χ²= 460.80 [df = 6], p < .01) (see Table 1).

Table 1.

Racial stereotypes based on political ideology (%).

Political ideology	Racial(n = 107[23.3])	Non racial(n = 351[76.5])	Totals
Conservative	54 (26.2)	152 (73.8)	206
Liberal	38 (20.5)	147 (79.5)	185
Neutral	15 (22.4)	52 (77.6)	67
Totals	107 (23.3)	351(76.5)	458

χ²= 460.80 (df = 6), p < .01.

Conservative news sites also depicted criminality in headlines about marijuana significantly more frequently (22.3% for images) than either liberal (11.4% for images) or neutral news sites (4.5% for images). The relationship between criminal stereotypes of images and political ideology was significant (χ²= 475.19 [df = 6], p < .01. Table 2 shows the details of these results.

Table 2.

Criminal stereotypes of images based on political ideology (%).

Political ideology	Criminal(n = 70[15.3])	No criminal(n = 388[84.5])	Totals
Conservative	46 (22.3)	160 (77.7)	206
Liberal	21 (11.4)	164 (88.6)	185
Neutral	3 (4.5)	64 (95.5)	67
Totals	70 (15.3)	388(84.5)	458

χ²= 475.19 (df = 6), p < .01.

Table 3 shows that conservative news sites depicted pot-culture stereotypes significantly more frequently (27.2%) than either liberal (16.2%) or neutral news outlets (13.4%). The difference was significant (χ²= 468.70 [df = 6], p < .01). Table 4 shows pot-culture stereotype differences based on political ideology.

Table 3.

Criminal stereotypes of headlines based on political ideology (%).

Political ideology	Criminal(n = 126[27.5])	No criminal(n = 331[72.3])	Totals
Conservative	76 (37.1)	129 (62.9)	205
Liberal	39 (21.1)	146 (78.9)	185
Neutral	11 (16.4)	56 (83.6)	67
Totals	126 (27.5)	331(72.3)	457

χ² = 475.38 (df = 6), p < .01.

Table 4.

Pot-culture stereotypes based on political ideology (%).

Political ideology	Pot culture(n = 95[20.7])	No pot culture(n = 363[79.1])	Totals
Conservative	56 (27.2)	150 (72.8)	206
Liberal	30 (16.2)	155 (83.8)	185
Neutral	9 (13.4)	58 (86.6)	67
Totals	95 (20.7)	363(79.1)	458

χ² = 468.70 (df = 6), p < .01.

Politically neutral news sites visually depict normification in images significantly more frequently (9.0%) than liberal (8.6%) news outlets (Table 5). Conservative news outlets were significantly less likely to depict marijuana use as normal than either of the two other ideologies (1.9%). A chi-square test was performed, and the relationship between normalization and political ideology was significant (χ² = 468.79 [df = 6], p < .01).

Table 5.

Normalization based on political ideology (%).

Political ideology	Normalization(n = 26[5.7])	No normalization(n = 432[94.1])	Totals
Conservative	4 (1.9)	202 (98.1)	206
Liberal	16 (8.6)	169 (91.4)	185
Neutral	6 (9)	61 (91.0)	67
Totals	26 (5.7)	432 (94.1)	458

χ² = 468.79 (df = 6), p < .01.

Research question four (RQ4)

The first part of RQ4 asked whether there is a relationship between the depiction of racial minorities pot stereotypes. The results show that there is a significant relationship between images that depict the criminal aspect of marijuana usage and visual racial depictions. Significantly more racial minorities are depicted as criminals (21.5%) than are non-racial minorities (13.4%) (χ² = 473.34 [df = 4], p < .001). Further, significantly more racial minorities are associated with headlines with a topic about crime (42.5%) than are non-racial minorities (23.1%) (χ² = 473.34 [df = 4], p < .001). Likewise, more racial minorities are depicted as displaying significantly more pot-culture stereotypes (34.6%) than non-racial minorities (16.5%). These findings are also significant at p < .001.

RQ4(b) asked whether the relationship between criminal and cultural stereotypes and depictions of racial minorities changed after legalization in Colorado. Following legalization, significantly fewer images (16.1%) that contain a racial minority also contain the depiction of criminality than before legalization (28.9%) (χ² = 463.17 [df = 4], p < .000). Similarly, significantly fewer images (29.5%) of images that contain a racial minority also contain a headline about criminality than after legalization (60%) (χ² = 473.334 [df = 4], p < .001). Finally, the depiction of normification within images that contain racial minorities significantly increased from 2.2 percent of images to 8.1 percent (χ² = 459.00.17 [df = 4], p < .000).

RQ4(c) asked whether the relationship between criminal and cultural stereotypes and depictions of racial minorities differed amongst news outlets of different political ideologies. Within conservative news outlets, 24.1 percent of images that contain the depiction of a racial minority also contain a visual depiction of a racial minority, whereas only 21.1 percent of liberal outlets do, and 13.3 percent of neutral news outlets do (χ²= 463.20 [df = 4], p < .000). The pattern for headlines is somewhat different. For conservative news outlets, 47.2 percent of images that contain a racial minority also contain a headline depicting criminality, whereas only 34.2 percent do within liberal outlets, and 46.7 percent do within neutral outlets (χ² = 473.34 [df = 4], p < .000).

Addressing pot-culture stereotypes, 38.9 percent of images that contain a racial minority also contain pot-culture stereotypes, whereas only 31.6 percent have this relationship amongst liberal news outlets, and only 26.7 percent of images have this pattern within neutral news outlets. The differences between news ideologies and the relationship between the depiction of racial minorities and pot-culture stereotypes is significant (χ² = 467.30 [df = 4], p < .000. Finally, there is a significant difference amongst news outlets of different political ideologies and their depictions of normification in images with racial minorities (χ²= 459.00 [df = 4], p < .000). Specifically, 1.9 percent of images in conservative news outlets that contain racial minorities also depict normalization, whereas 10.5 percent of images within liberal news outlets do so, and 6.7 percent of images within neutral news outlets do.

Discussion and Conclusions

This study examined the presence of visual stereotyping about marijuana users by the US news media, employing both qualitative and quantitative analysis. As such, the present study adds to the visual stereotyping literature by empirically examining the existence of and relationship amongst visual stereotypes of two socially-stigmatized groups of people: marijuana users and racial minorities. This research also expands our understanding of how news visuals help construct the social reality surrounding controversial topics such as marijuana legalization, the results suggesting that the political disposition of news outlets indeed influences the perpetuation of visual stereotypes. Finally, this study adds insight into the media’s role in normifying particular groups and individuals over others through visual framing. Perpetuations of stereotypes about marijuana users by the media abound, particularly criminal stereotypes and pot-culture stereotypes, and are associated with racial minorities. Political leaning of the news outlet effects this perpetuation, and the legalization of marijuana did little to decrease these stereotypes.

This study starkly demonstrated the heavily politicalized nature of marijuana legalization (Berger and Luckmann, 1966; Benford and Snow, 2000; Dotson et al., 2012; Flanagin et al., 2006; Gans, 1979; Tuchman, 1978). Conservative news outlets depicted stereotypes more frequently than liberal or neutral outlets, and this pattern held true in both visuals and their accompanying headlines. Each stereotype about marijuana users was perpetuated more frequently by conservative news sites. Along those same lines, conservative news outlets were least likely to visually portray marijuana users as ‘normal’ everyday people. Politically-neutral news outlets were least likely to perpetuate criminal and pot-culture stereotypes, and were also most likely to use normalizing images to portray marijuana users. Further, more racial minorities are depicted as criminals than non-minorities, are shown with cultural stereotypes most frequently, and more headlines discussing crime pertaining to marijuana usage also depict minorities in accompanying images. These associations are greater amongst conservative news outlets than others. Nonetheless, legalization in Colorado significantly decreased this relationship between negative stereotypes associated with marijuana usage and the depiction of racial minorities, suggesting at least a small level of mainstreaming and lessened stereotyping.

These findings highlight how the sharp left–right divide and extreme ideological platforms of political parties in the US are reflected in the media representations, in particular through visuals (Bobbio, 1996; Treier and Hillygus, 2009). Ideologically influenced news reports have real political consequences for both public perception and public policy (Altheide, 1997; Ibrahim, 2010). As people tend to consume news outlets that reinforce their already-established values and beliefs, viewers’ pre-conceived stereotypes and assumptions about marijuana users will continue to be reinforced, which can impede the possibility for alternative discourses about the issue of marijuana legalization in the US (Ayres and Jewkes, 2012; Elliott, 2011; Newman, 1974; Shoemaker et al., 1973).

Marijuana’s longstanding association with criminality was bolstered by this study’s findings that showed a decrease in criminality following legalization in Colorado. This finding reflects the literature on portrayals of drug users in general, which suggests that users are demonized as the media tends to focus on crime, sensational news events, such as arrests and drug busts, and the most extreme cases of criminal acts rather than on typical users (Ayres and Jewkes, 2012; Bell, 1985; Blood and McCallum, 2005; Coomber et al., 2000; Murji, 1998; Taylor, 2008; Watts, 2003). By showing the criminality associated with marijuana use, normification is impeded, and negative associations with its use are reinforced.

Users were often shown as rebellious protesters: lazy, aloof, and unkempt ‘drains’ on societal resources, and radicals who embrace counter-cultural lifestyles. The symbol of the serrated cannabis leaf was depicted frequently, a longstanding iconic symbol of cannabis culture, along with Woodstock-era symbols of ‘hippies’, Rasta colors and iconography, and the number 420, defining a bonded culture of marijuana users. Users were depicted as youthful party goers and pleasure-seekers, and overly-enthused about marijuana. Most of all, these images of smoke-covered music festivals and 20-somethings rolling oversized joints demarcated ‘potheads’ from ordinary, everyday people. These signs, symbols and visual depictions of otherness were emphasized in news images to create hierarchies between the lazy, disheveled party-goers who abuse marijuana in recreational ways and settings from those families and executive elites who are turning to marijuana for its medical properties.

It is worth noting that, in all four categories, there are more images that do not contain stereotypes than ones that do. These images were predominantly those that depict a neutral image of marijuana itself – a leaf or processed drug. Some of these images were of a dispensary, presumably an effort on behalf of the news site to remain neutral. These non-stereotypical images could indeed counter-influence audiences in the same way that depictions of normification might, but this effect is beyond the scope of the present study.

There are a few limitations to this study worth noting. First, this study only examined images immediately prior to and following legalization in one state in the US. Thus, the fact that normification was not as prevalent, nor did stereotypes subside dramatically, may be due to the short timeframe and the fact that this study focused on the period in which the issue of marijuana was first being recognized and covered by mainstream media. Future studies should continue to look at normification of marijuana users in the media using a broader time frame, as legalization efforts have expanded and public opinion on the issue continues to shift. A second limitation of this study is that stereotypes about marijuana users have not been largely conceptualized as it is a relatively new area of study, in particular regarding visual representations. Future studies examining stereotypes of marijuana users would benefit from a more qualitative descriptive analysis. While qualitative analysis was used in tandem with quantitative analysis to unpack several exemplars in each category – a methodological strength of this study – a more expansive textual analysis of media portrayals could delve more deeply into the latent and manifest meanings used to represent marijuana use in the U.S.

A third limitation of this study is that of the sample. Editor and Publisher’s categorization of liberal, conservative, and ‘neutral’ outlets are imperfect, but it provided the most objective measure available at the time of this study. The ethics of visually portraying marijuana users in a more representative and balanced manner will become increasingly relevant as marijuana users shift from deviants and criminals to law-abiding citizens (Elliott, 2011). As marijuana usage becomes more mainstream and ‘normalized’, the persistent images of long- existent negative stereotypes associated with its usage will be largely shaped by the media’s visual portrayals (Altheide, 1997; Ibrahim, 2010; McGhee, 2014; Pacula et al., 2003). Indeed, a heavy ethical obligation rests upon media outlets to cover the issue of marijuana legalization accurately and impartially during a time of increased social and political divisiveness.

Broadly, this study suggests that ‘ready-made’ images of what marijuana users are supposed to look like are indeed being used and reinforced by the media (Dente Ross, 2011). As more states begin to acknowledge the false propaganda and exaggerations associated with marijuana’s history in the US through legalization efforts, the media will play a leading role in either reinforcing or debunking these myths through the representations they choose to visually illustrate the issue. The heavy reliance on stereotypes of marijuana users is an ethical issue, as media representations will influence how audiences draw conclusions about marijuana use, judge the character of its users, and continue to either stigmatize users or open up new spaces within commercial media culture for alternate, more mainstreamed marijuana use (Elliot, 2011; Enteman, 2011: 20; Fyfe and Law, 1988; Secord et. al., 1976; Shoemaker et al., 1973). The literature suggests that the implications of these visual representations are highly impactful, because images are memorable, emotional, and powerful in evoking and reinforcing stereotypes (Abraham and Appiah, 2006; Entman, 1994; Fahmy et al., 2014; Gibson and Zillman, 2000; Lester, 2013; Newton, 2001). Viewers of visual images tend to uncritically accept them as truth (Messaris, 1996; Newton 2001; Rodriguez and Dimitrova, 2008), in part due to their subtlety and implied meaning (Messaris and Abraham, 2001). In other words, while text-based and blatantly-communicated stereotypes might be met with resistance, the stereotypes about marijuana users communicated via visuals in this study are less likely to be questioned. By relying upon culturally inscribed stereotypes about marijuana users, mainstream news media continue to teach audiences about the acceptability (or not) of their lifestyles and imply judgments about users’ character and personality (Elliott, 2011; Enteman, 2011; Fyfe and Law, 1988).

Footnotes

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and publication of this article, and there is no conflict of interest.

Biographical Notes

TARA MARIE MORTENSEN received a doctorate degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of South Carolina, where she studies citizen photojournalism and its impact on professional photojournalism and visual stereotyping.

Address: Assistant Professor, University of South Carolina, 800 Sumter Street, Columbia SC 29205, USA. [ email: taram@sc.edu]

LEIGH MOSCOWITZ’s research examines the cultural production of news and the politics of media representation. She is the author of two books, The Battle over Marriage: Gay Rights Activism through the Media (University of Illinois Press, 2013) and Snatched: Coverage of Child Abductions in U.S. News Media (Peter Lang Publishing, 2015). Her ongoing work investigates media coverage of gay athletes in professional team sports and the televisual production of class and gender in popular reality TV shows.

Address: Associate Professor, University of South Carolina, 800 Sumter Street, Columbia, SC 29205, USA. [ email: MOSCOWIL@mailbox.sc.edu]

ANAN WAN is a doctoral student of Mass Communication at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. She earned her Masters degree in Journalism at the West Virginia University. Wan studies strategic communications, social media and visual communications.

Address: Doctoral student, University of South Carolina, 800 Sumter Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA. [ email: anan.wan90@gmail.com]

AIMEI YANG was pursuing a PhD at the University of Oklahoma when she found her true calling in PR – a field that combined her academic background in journalism and advertising with her personal interest in NGOs and activism communications. Prior to USC, Yang was an Assistant Professor at Dayton University. She is currently working with Annenberg graduate students on projects including how Chinese NGOs are helping the government develop soft power and how PR associations build connections across different countries, among others.

Address: Assistant Professor, University of Southern California, Annenberg, USA. [ email: aimei.yang@usc.edu]

References

Abraham

Appiah

(2006) Framing news stories: The role of visual imagery in priming racial stereotypes. Howard Journal of Communications 17(3): 183–203.

Altheide

(1997) The news media, the problem frame, and the production of fear. Sociological Quarterly 38: 647–668.

Ayres

Jewkes

(2012). The haunting spectacle of crystal meth: A media-created mythology? Crime, Media, Culture 8(3): 315–332.

Bell

(1985). Drugs and the media. Australian Alcohol/Drug Review 4(2): 235–242.

Benford

Snow

(2000) Framing processes and social movements: An overview and assessment. Annual Review of Sociology 26: 611–639.

Berger

Luckmann

(1966) The Social Construction of Knowledge: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge. Garden City, NY: Doubleday.

Blood

McCallum

(2005) Key Principles for the Reporting of Drug Issues: Final Report. Canberra: Australian National Council on Drugs.

Bobbio

(1996) Left and Right: The Significance of a Political Distinction. Cambridge: Polity.

Coomber

Morris

Dunn

(2000) How the media do drugs: Quality control and the reporting of drug issues in the UK print media. International Journal of Drug Policy 11(3): 217–225.

10.

Dennis

(2011) Preface. In: Ross

Lester

(eds) Images that Injure: Pictorial Stereotypes in the Media. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, x–xi.

11.

Dente Ross

(2011). Marking and demarking: Images, narratives, and identities. In: Ross

Lester

(eds) Images That Injure: Pictorial Stereotypes in the Media. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 5–8.

12.

Dixon

Azocar

Casas

(2003) The portrayal of race and crime on television network news. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 47(4): 498–523.

13.

Domke

Perlmutter

Spratt

(2002) The primes of our times? An examination of the ‘power’ of visual images. Journalism 3(2): 131–159.

14.

Dotson

et al. (2012) Media coverage of climate change in Chile: A content analysis of conservative and liberal newspapers. Environmental Communication 6(1): 64–81.

15.

Elliott

(2011) Ethical responsibilities and the power of pictures. In: Ross

Lester

(eds) Images That Injure: Pictorial Stereotypes in the Media. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 9–19.

16.

Enteman

(2011) Stereotypes, the media, and photojournalism. In: Ross

Lester

(eds) Images That Injure: Pictorial Stereotypes in the Media. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 20–30.

17.

Entman

(1994) Representation and reality in the portrayal of blacks on network television news. Journalism Quarterly 71: 509–520.

18.

Entman

Rojecki

(2000) The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and Race in America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

19.

Fahmy

(2004) Picturing Afghan women: A content analysis of AP wire photographs during the Taliban regime and after the fall of the Taliban regime. Gazette 66(2): 91–112.

20.

Fahmy

Bock

Wanta

(2014) Visual Communication Theory and Research: A Mass Communication Perspective. Chichester: Palgrave Macmillan.

21.

Flanagin

Stohl

Bimber

(2006) Modeling the structure of collective action. Communication Monographs 73(1): 29–54.

22.

Fyfe

Law

(1988) Picturing Power: Visual Depiction and Social Relations. London: Routledge.

23.

Gans

(1979) Deciding What’s News: A Study of CBS Evening News, NBC Nightly News, Newsweek, and Time. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press.

24.

Gibson

Zillmann

(2000) Reading between the photographs: The influence of incidental pictorial information on issue perception. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly 77: 355–366.

25.

Goffman

(1963) Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

26.

Graham

Haidt

Nosek

(2009) Liberals and conservatives rely on different sets of moral foundations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 96(5): 1029–1046.

27.

Hagan

(1994) Crime and Disrepute. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press.

28.

Haines-Saah

et al. (2014) The privileged normalization of marijuana use: An analysis of Canadian newspaper reporting, 1997–2007. Critical Public Health 24(1): 47–61.

29.

Hathaway

Comeau

Erickson

(2011) Cannabis normalization and stigma: Contemporary practices of moral regulation. Criminology and Criminal Justice 11(5): 451–469.

30.

Ibrahim

(2010) The framing of Islam on network news following the September 11 th attacks. International Communication Gazette 72(1): 111–125.

31.

Kahle

Whiteside

(2007). Another disaster: An examination of portrayals of race in Hurricane Katrina coverage. Visual Communications Quarterly 14(2): 75–89.

32.

Lee

(2012) Smoke Signals: A Social History of Marijuana – Medical, Recreational and Scientific. New York: Simon and Schuster.

33.

‘Legalising marijuana adds revenue, reduces law-enforcement costs’ (2012) Editorial, The Seattle Times. Available at: http://seattletimes.com/html/editorials/2019226549_edit502themoneyxml.html (accessed 30 July 2019).

34.

Lester

(2013) Visual Communication: Images with Messages. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

35.

Lewis

Proffitt

(2012) Bong hits and water bottles: An analysis of news coverage of athletes and marijuana use. Journal of Sports Media 7(1): 1–21.

36.

Lippmann

(1922) Public Opinion. New York: Harcourt Brace.

37.

Luttbeg

Gant

(1985) The failure of liberal/conservative ideology as a cognitive structure. Public Opinion Quarterly 49(1): 80–93.

38.

‘Marijuana legislation needs research substance’ (2014) Editorial. The Pitt News, 7 January.

39.

Martinez

(2014) 10 things to know about the nation’s first recreational marijuana shops in Colorado. CNN.

40.

Mastro

Greenberg

(2000) The portrayal of racial minorities on prime time television. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 44(4): 690–703.

41.

McGhee

(2014). For pot to go mainstream, ‘stoner’ image will require a makeover. The Denver Post, 3 March. Available at: http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_25251952/pot-go-mainstream-stoner-image-will-require-makeover (accessed 1 March 2017).

42.

Messaris

(1996) Visual Persuasion: The Role of Images in Advertising. London: Sage.

43.

Messaris

Abraham

(2001) The role of images in framing news stories. In: Reese

et al. (eds) Framing Public Life: Perspectives on Media and Our Understanding of the Social World. Abingdon: Taylor and Francis, 215–226.

44.

Moms for Marijuana International (nd) Available at: http://www.momsformarijuana.com/ (accessed 21 September 2014).

45.

Murji

(1998) The agony and the ecstasy: Drugs, media and morality. In: Coomber

(ed.) The Control of Drugs and Drug Users: Reason or Reaction? London: Harwood, 69–85.

46.

Newman

(1974) The effects of stereotypes upon perceptions of deviance. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology 7(3): 135–143.

47.

Newton

(2001) The Burden of Visual Truth: The Role of Photojournalism in Mediating Reality. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

48.

Newton

Williams

(2010) Visual ethics: An integrative approach to ethical practice in visual journalism. Journalism Ethics: A Philosophical Approach : 331–350.

49.

Nielsen

(2011) How long do users stay on web pages? Available at: http://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-long-do-users-stay-on-web-pages/ (accessed 1 March 2017).

50.

NORML.org Working to reform marijuana laws (nd). Available at: http://norml.org/ (accessed 21 September 2014).

51.

Pacula

Chriqui

King

(2003) Marijuana Decriminalization: What Does It Mean in the United States? (No. w9690). Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research.

52.

Park

Thelwall

(2008) Link analysis: Hyperlink patterns and social structure on politicians’ web sites in South Korea. Quality & Quantity 42: 687–697.

53.

Rodriguez

Dimitrova

(2008) Proceedings from the International Communication Association, Montreal, Canada: The Levels of Visual Framing. Visual Studies Division.

54.

Roffman

(2013) Legalization of marijuana: Unraveling quandaries for the addiction professional. Frontiers in Psychiatry 4(50): 1–3.

55.

Rosen

(2005) The image culture. The New Atlantis: A Journal of Technology and Society. Available at: http://www.thenewatlantis.com/archive/10/rosenprint.html (accessed 18 September 2009).

56.

Schwalbe

Dougherty

(2015) Visual coverage of the 2006 Lebanon War: Framing conflict in three US news magazines. Media, War & Conflict 8(1): 141–162.

57.

Secord

Backman

Slavitt

(1976) Understanding Social Life: An Introduction to Social Psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill.

58.

Shoemaker

South

Lowe

(1973) Facial stereotypes of deviants and judgments of guilt or innocence. Social Forces 51(4): 427–433.

59.

Shoreman

(2018) Kansas lawmaker who made racist remarks resigns chairmanship. The Kansas City Star, 9 January. Available at: http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article193727729.html (accessed 1 March 2017)

60.

Simmons

(1965) Public stereotypes of deviants. Social Problems 13(2): 223–232.

61.

Simon

Xenos

(2000) Media framing and effective public deliberation. Political Communication 17(4): 363–376.

62.

Sloman

(1998) Reefer Madness: A History of Marijuana. Chichester: Macmillan.

63.

Stringer

Maggard

(2016) Reefer madness to marijuana legalization: Media exposure and American attitudes toward marijuana (1975–2012). Journal of Drug Issues 46(4): 428–445.

64.

‘Take opportunity to legalize marijuana’ (2013), Editorial. The Daily Iowan, 5 September. Available at: http://www.dailyiowan.com/2013/09/05/Opinions/34442.html (accessed 1 March 2017).

65.

Taylor

(2008) Outside the outsiders: Media representations of drug use. Probation Journal 55(4): 369–387.

66.

Treier

Hillygus

(2009) The nature of political ideology in the contemporary electorate. Public Opinion Quarterly 73(4): 679–703.

67.

Tremayne

et al. (2006) Issue publics on the Web. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 12(1): 290–310.

68.

Tuchman

(1978) Making the News. New York, NY: Free Press.

69.

Vickovic

Fradella

(2011) Medical marijuana in the news. Southwest Journal of Criminal Justice 8(1).

70.

Wall

(2005) Blogs of war: Weblogs as news. Journalism 6(2): 153–172.

71.

Watts

(2003) ‘Headlining heroin’: Policy change and reporting the heroin problem. Media International Australia Incorporating Culture and Policy, August, 108: 67–81.

72.

Zimmer

Morgan

(1997) Marijuana Myths Marijuana Facts: A Review of the Scientific Evidence. New York: Lindesmith Center.