Media, Policy and the Law: the Case of Crystal Methamphetamine
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Media, Policy and the Law: The Case of Crystal Methamphetamine Pota Forrest-Lawrence A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Law University of Sydney 2016 To the memory of my grandmother, Pota Caralis, who passed away during the writing of the thesis. Abstract Crystal methamphetamine has been constructed by Australian media as the most dangerous illicit drug of the twenty-first century. Such representations, so readily available in print media commentary, have transformed the image of the drug from relative obscurity to a drug worse than heroin and a modern-day folk devil. Media calls for swift and urgent political action to address the methamphetamine problem have urged policymakers to respond to this ‘national drug threat’. This thesis explores the media construction of crystal methamphetamine, its users, manufacturers, importers and those who policed them over the period 2000-2009. It examines whether, and if so, to what extent, media have contributed to the development of illicit drug policies and legislation during this period. The state of NSW was selected as a case study for this analysis. A total of 433 print media articles and six methamphetamine-related policies and laws were subject to a discourse analysis. It is argued that media created a ‘new ice risk’ that encouraged punitive policy making. The research reveals that the media response to the drug during this period drew on law enforcement, public health and government discourses. Embedded within this media response were competing and contradictory discourses of the ‘methamphetamine user’, ‘the enforcers’ and ‘the folk devil drug’ and their respective discourse strands. These discourses and strands, fuelled by dramatic metaphors, research evidence and expert commentary, contributed to a media narrative that presented the public and policymakers with an image of a risky and dangerous drug. Through the convergence of these discourses, a ‘new ice risk’ was created that became part of the larger risk environment. This ‘risk’ fed off a ‘culture of control’ that had developed in government responses to problematic social issues. Media and policymakers thus worked together to produce a punitive response to a drug purported to be a major threat to society. i Acknowledgements Writing a doctoral thesis has been a long and arduous process. I would like to thank many people who have helped and supported me as I manoeuvred my way to what was at times very unfamiliar terrain. First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisors Professor Gail Mason and Professor Murray Lee for their invaluable support throughout the years of my candidature. In particular, Professor Gail Mason who read draft versions of many chapters and always offered insightful and detailed comments that resulted in a much improved work. Your knowledge, guidance, patience and encouragement have been much appreciated. Many thanks go to my postgraduate computer lab colleagues who provided friendship and emotional support throughout the years: Linda Steele, Carolyn McKay, Nasreen Nasrijal, Caroline Saint, Kate Owens, Belinda Reeves, Felicity Bell, Amanda Porter, Louise Boon-Koo and Catherine Renshaw. A special thank you is owed to Dr George Ridgway, who provided thorough feedback on earlier draft chapters of the thesis. Your meticulous attention to detail was extremely helpful. I would like to express a big thank you to David Hall, Linda Glover, Danmin Taruno, Jenny Pilottos and the rest of the staff at Bexley North Library, for their ongoing support during the final stages of my thesis. I have spent many hours at your library and during that time you have all been wonderful and accommodating. To my dear friends Dr Nayantara Pothen, Dave McCahon and Justin Lange, thank you for your amazing friendship and advice over the years. Thank you to my former colleagues at Western Sydney University and the NSW Ombudsman for their ongoing support, particularly Zoe Moses and Selena Choo, for their understanding and flexibility over the many months while I was completing my thesis. ii To my mother Christina and my sister Zoe, you are both exceptional and inspiring women who have been a great pillar of support. Mum, thank you for your unconditional love and support over the years. I owe you so much! Zoe, your help with Endnote after all the files got corrupted was invaluable. Thank you. You kept me sane! Finally, to my beloved husband Joshua. I could not have done this without your love, patience, understanding and encouragement. Your humour and wittiness have always put a smile on my face. You are and will always be my inspiration. This thesis was reviewed and edited for grammar, structure, tone and syntax, and proofread, by Lorraine Shannon (chapters 1 to 8) and Paul Dower (chapters 9 and 10). iii Declaration of Originality I hereby certify that this thesis is entirely my work and that any material written by others has been acknowledged in the text. The thesis has not been presented for a degree or for any other purposes at The University of Sydney or at any other university or institution. iv List of Figures Figure 1: Components of a Jager and Maier inspired discourse analysis 94 Figure 2: Total Australian media articles 103 Figure 3: South Australia media articles 103 Figure 4: Northern Territory media articles 103 Figure 5: Queensland media articles 104 Figure 6: Victoria media articles 104 Figure 7: Australian Capital Territory media articles 104 Figure 8: Western Australia media articles 105 Figure 9: New South Wales media articles 105 Figure 10: Tasmania media articles 105 Figure 11: National media articles 106 Figure 12: Media articles for 2000 to 2009 108 Figure 13: Total number of newspaper articles (2000 to 2009) 109 Figure 14: 2006 newspaper articles 111 Figure 15: Print media references to the Standen and Lloyd cases 112 Figure 16: Articles that discuss methamphetamine use/user 114 Figure 17: Description of methamphetamine consumer according to year 115 Figure 18: Use of the term ‘addict’ according to newspaper 115 Figure 19: Articles on ‘addicts’, crime and violence 116 Figure 20: Use of the term ‘young’ recreational user according to newspaper 117 Figure 21: Recreational user described as ‘at risk’/vulnerable/victims 117 v Figure 22: Direct sources that appeared in media articles 118 Figure 23: International methamphetamine-related issues 119 Figure 24: Law and order: international side 120 Figure 25: Domestic methamphetamine-related issues 121 Figure 26: Law and order: domestic side 122 Figure 27: Number of arrests over the 2000 to 2009 period 122 Figure 28: OMCGs identified in print media articles 123 Figure 29: Descriptors of methamphetamine 124 Figure 30: Negative descriptors according to newspaper 125 Figure 31: Types of metaphors and expressions 126 Figure 32: Metaphors and expressions according to newspaper 126 Figure 33: Discourses, respective strands and corresponding laws and policies 231 List of Tables Table 1: Circulation and readership of newspaper figures 107 vi List of Acronyms ABC Australian Broadcasting Corporation ACC Australian Crime Commission ACT Australian Capital Territory AFP Australian Federal Police AIC Australian Institute of Criminology AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome AMA American Motorcyclists Association ANCD Australian National Council on Drugs AOSD Amphetamines and Other Synthetic Drugs APC Australian Press Council ATS Amphetamine Type Stimulants BOCSAR Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research Cth Commonwealth CMC Queensland Crime and Misconduct Commission Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Outline of CMO Future Activities relevant to the Problems of Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking Customs Australian Customs and Border Protection Services HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus Hon Honourable IDRS Illicit Drug Reporting System LSD Lysergicaciddiethylamide MCCOC Model Criminal Code Officers Committee MCDS Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy MDMA Methylen-dioxi-meth-amphetamine MLC Member of Legislative Council MP Member of Parliament NCADA National Campaign Against Drug Abuse NDARC National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre NDSHS National Drug Strategy Household Survey NSW New South Wales NSWCC New South Wales Crime Commission NSWPF New South Wales Police Force NT Northern Territory OMC Outlaw Motorcycle Club OMCG Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs PCP Phenylcyclohexylpiperidine SDO Act Serious Drug Offences and Other Measures Act 2005 TOR Terms of Reference UK United Kingdom UN United Nations US United States of America WA Western Australia WWI World War 1 WWII World War 2 vii TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION I ............................................................................................................................ 1 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 2 1.1 WHY METHAMPHETAMINE? ................................................................................................................... 3 1.2 MEDIA AND ILLICIT DRUGS ...................................................................................................................... 9 1.2.1 The Truth is Out There ................................................................................................................. 9 1.2.2 Media Representations of Illicit Drugs and Illicit Drug Users..................................................... 11 1.2.2.1 International Focus ..........................................................................................................