THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DRUG POLICY, VOL 7, NO 2,1996
DRUG ISSUES AND THE SWEDISH PRESS
Arthur Gould, Department of Social
Sciences, Loughborough University
THE RESTRICTIVE LINE
The restrictive line has come to dominate public policy debate about drugs in Sweden in
the last 15 years. While the liberal reputation the country enjoys on a range of welfare,
sexual and international issues may be justified, liberal arguments concerning illegal
drugs are not welcome. The term drogliberal
has become almost a term of abuse. Restrictive ideology is based upon a clear
set of inter-related assumptions.'
All narcotic drugs are addictive and dangerous. No distinction should be made between soft and hard drugs. And all use is misuse.
Policies that depend upon either (a) maintaining a high standard of living, full employment and social security to prevent drug misuse or (b) on prioritising those engaged in the sup, ply of drugs, are doomed to fail. Once drug misuse has spread and its medical and penal costs have become prohibitive, the authorities are forced to entertain liberal policies such as prescribing, harm reduction, decriminalisation and legalisation. In short. they capitulate to the problem.The only succesful strategy from the outset must be to concentrate on discouraging consumption in the first place by making the life of the user uncomfortable and by making drug use itself (as opposed to the manufacture, sale and possession of drugs) an imprisonable offence. (1)
The operationalising of this policy at the local and national levels has been documented elsewhere (Gould 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994a, 1994b). Previous research has shown how the restrictive ideology articulated by a doctor, Nils Bejerot, and campaigned for by groups such as the NItional Association for a Drug-free Society (RNS~and Parents Against Drugs (FMN) throughout the 1980s, had by the end of the decade gained widespread support amongst political parties of the right, left and centre and thepenat and sociatwork establishments. While some members of the medical profession had argued in favour of syringe exchange schemes, there is little evidence that they otherwise dissented from the basic precepts of the restrictive approach (Gould 1993, 1994a). Opinion surveys would seem to suggest that the general public was also behind official policy. What opposition there was to the restrictive line came from the National Association to Help Addicts and a few academics (RFHL, 1989; Tham, 199 1; Lenke and Olsson, 1992).
How does one explain this Swedish deviation from the European norm? My own attempt to do so has focused on a combination of factors to do with the country's strong temperance tradition,(2) the salience of the social work profession, national insecurity and cultural values (Gould 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994a, 1994b). This paper is an attempt to describe the role of the press in the maintenance of the restrictive line and in the presentation of a range of drug issues. Sweden's system of press subsidies is intended to promote a high degree of political balance and variation. This it does in terms of party political representation very well. There is also a system of accountability which is meant to ensure balance through, for example 'space for rejoinders' (Weibull and B(buiriesson, 1991). This is achieved in part through the practice of debate articles in which an argument put forward by a public figure one day might subsequently be countered by another. In theory, at least, one might expect the press to present a range of views on a particular issue but what hap, pens in the situation where there exists a political and public consensus - as in the case of drugs?
DRUGS AND THE PRESS
It is not unusual for the press in any country to take a harsh view of illegal drugs. The amplification of the drugs issue in the UK was noted by Young in the early 1970s (Young, 1973). More recently, Kohn has drawn attention to the way in which the press sensationalised heroin misuse in the 1980s (Kohn, 1987). Crack cocaine in the US has received similar coverage (Reinarman and Levine, 1989). The demonising of drug pushers and barons is a usual feature of press and television companies and the death of an 'innocent addict' often the basis for creating a moral panic about the threat of drugs to the fabric of society. It has to be said, however, that alongside articles about the narcotics menace, it has been possible, in the UK for example, to argue for legalisation and give publicity to those promoting harm reduction and de,criminalisation.
In Sweden similarly, there is evidence of both sensationalism and balance. Although a recent study byThamhas shown how newspapers and journals in Sweden have used the narcotics issue to represent Swedish traditions and values as under attack from alien forces (Tham, 1991), articles about syringe exchange schemes seemed to result in a fair treatment of both sides of the debate (Gould, 1994a). This raises the question of whether those who have criticised the press for its treatment of narcot~cs issues have been selective and ignored the extent to which articles representing a variety of views and standpoints have been published. To this end, the authorhas carried out a systematic analysis of all articles concerning drugs in the Swedish national press over a 6-month period.
METHODOLOGY
The period selected was 6-months from the decision to carry out the investigation (November 1991 to April 1992) when it was not known what future issues would arise. A centre-right four partycoalition had been elected in the previous September and all that could have been said with any certainty was that the new government might be slightly more restrictive on illegal drugs than the Social Democrats who had held office throughout the 1980s and that the largest party in the coalition, the Conservative party, favoured a liberalisation of alcohol policy.
There are only four national newspapers consisting of two tabloid and two quality broadsheets. 'The tabloids, which produce evening only editions, are the social democratic Aftonbladet (Afton) and Expressen (Ex) which is liberal. The broadsheets are Dagens Nyheter (DN), which is liberal and Svenska DagbUt (SvD), which is conservative. It was decided initially to select all articles in which the headline referred to illegal drugs or drug-related problems or behaviour. 'Articles were coded for basic characteristics, the subject of the item and any policy issue raised. ' Comments made to heighten or reduce concern about drug issues, and favourable and unfavourable comments on specific drug polices were also coded. Codes were also used to facilitate the selection of items for qualitative analysis. (3)
THE RESULTS OF THE QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
In total there were 238 articles on illegal drugs, 21 less than the number of articles on
alcohol. It can be seen from the Table 1 that the number of articles was highest for Svenska
Dagbladet. Many of these were, however, extremely short consisting of brief news
agency items. As would be expected, the tabloids were much more likely to devote whole
pages to an item, often accompanied by disproportionately large photographs. There was
also a greater tendency for the tabloids to carry more than one article on an issue on the
same day or to run a series of articles over a number of days.
Nearly half of the tabloid items contained stories that were highly personalised (i.e. they referred extensively to the experiences of particular individuals to make a more general point). Dagens Nyheter did this toa much lesser extent and SvenskaDagbladet hardly at all. During the period under consideration very few editorial articles on drugs appeared and only 7% of all articles were written by non,journalists (most of these consisted of readers' letters). Over 90% were news items with editorials, debate, feature articles and letters making up the rest. Articles that mentioned specific drugs were more likely to mention heroin and cocaine followed by hash. Ecstasy, amphetamine and steroids were least likely to be mentioned. Of the 238 articles on illegal drugs, the principal subject of 160 (67%) was crime-related (in contrast only 27% of alcohol articles were crimerelated) with the remainder concerned with drug misuse and drug-related problems (18%) or drug polices (13M.
It had been expected that many of thearticles might contain negative references Q drug misusers, drug-dealing immigrants or foreigners, refer to Sweden's aim of a drug-free society, or make considerable use of abstinenceoriented organisations such as RNS and FMN. Inthe event, the numbers ofarticles was extremely small suggesting that the press avoided the usual stereotypes and gave little publicity to the views of the restrictive lobby.
However, the 238 articles on illegal drugs contained 103 statements which could be said to heighten concern about drug issues and only 12 which could be said to reduce concern. Though not conclusive in itself this finding does illustrate the role of the press in amplifying social problems. The rank order of those making such statements are as shown inTable 2.
It can be seen that nearly 60% of these statements were made by members of the penal and non-penal professions. Of the 12 statements which could be said to reduce concern, half again were made by the penal and non-penal professions. Clearly, it is professional employees whose views are most sought after on drug issues. Spokespersons for restrictive and liberal drug organisations hardly appeared at all. This tends no credence at all to the suggestion that RNS and FMN might have a disprortionate amount of explicit coverage in the press.
Only 63 of the 238 articles on illegal drugs referred to policy issues. When comments favourable to liberal policies were combined with comments unfavourable to restrictive polices to give a PROLIBERAL total and favourable restrictive and unfavourable liberal comments were combined to give a PRO-RESTRICTIVE total, they numbered 17 and 34 respectively. On the face of it, this might suggest a fair hearing for the liberalcase, untilwe discover that 13 ofthe 18 liberal comments were entirelydueto a few articles written by one journalist for Dagens Nyheter. Half of those who made pro,liberal com, ments were non-penal professionals while half those making pro-restrictive comments were politicians and penal professionals (see Table 3). Again, restrictive and liberal organisations were not cited at all.
The great majority of articles that referred to policy issues contained neither favourable nor unfavourable comments.
Similarly, it can be said that the overall tone of eight articles concerning policy issues was liberal and the tone of 16 articles was restricitive. Again it would seem that the 1 iberal view was not entirely neglected, but this too was largely due to a few articles by the same journalist in Dagens Nyheter. Only one of the four national newspapers was prepared to give space to a positive consideration of liberal arguments.
Discussion of quantitative results
The quantitative results give little credence to the suggestion that Swedish newspapers
give considerable coverage or support to the restrictive line. When every article over a
6-month period is included, the overall impression does not convey the strong restrictive
messages one might have expected. The overwhelming majority of articles canneitherbe said
to heighten concern over drug issues nor to express support for restrictive policies. Most
articles can therefore be said to contain relatively factual and objective reporting even
if a small minority of articles is clearly weighted in favour of the restrictive line.
This conclusion is largely due to the preponderance of what can be described as a daily diet of articles, which in the main simply report arrests for drug and drug-related crimes and seizures of illegal drugs by customs and the police. It could be argued that the almost subliminal effect of such articles - no matter how factual - is to reinforce in the readers'minds the social disapporoval of illegal drugs, but this would be a rather tenuous basis upon which to claim that the Swedish press propagated restrictive ideolog)~
However, as will be seen in the following sections, a more thorough reading of less routine, more substantial, articles does suggest that Swedish national newspapers do indeed endorse the restrictive line
THE RESULTS OF THE QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS
It was important that the qualitative analysis of a smaller number of articles could
not be said to have been selected to reinforce an outcome that confirmed the author's
interpretation of swedish drug policy. It was therefore decided to include all articles
that dealt with liberal and restrictive policy issues, feature articles, debate articles,
editorials, series that ran over more than a day and/or groups of articles published
side-by-side on the same day. Such a selection could not be said to favoura particular
ideological outcome and it could be argued that, by definition, such articles represented
important editorial decisions that rose above the routine inclusion of daily news items.
Articles on liberal policies
Two liberal policy issues were given coverage: the revelation that two of the Conservative
Prime Minister's advisers had at one time made statements in support of the legalisation
of cannabis; the other the policy of harm reduction.
The two advisers had apparently made their statements to a conference of the Young Conservatives in 1991 before the Centre,Right coalition under Carl Bildt was elected. The revelation was made in a journal, published by the National Board of Health and Social Affairs, which promoted the restrictive line (Linnell, 1992). Most of the articles allowed little or no space for 'legal isers' to put their case. Svenska Dagbladet under the headline DRUG LIBERALS CAUSE ANXIETY quoted a Centre party spokesperson as saying that it was frightening that government advisers should consist of known legalisers. This, he claimed, clearly contradicted the strong signal that drugs were unacceptable inSweden (SvD, 1992b). The restrictive line could be under threat if government advisors thought differently. Dagens Nyheter added to the sense of conspiracy by saying that there was a'hidden'degree of opinion in favour of legalisation which had grown within the Young Conservatives and had now'moved into government offices and close to Bildt'WN, 1992h). One 'legaliser' was given the opportunity to state his private view in a sentence, while the other was variously reported as having changed his mind.
The issue was followed up by the four newspapers in different ways. Svenska Dagbladet described how a civil servant in the Department of Health and Social Affairs addressed a conference of the National Association for a Drug-free Society reaffirming the Government's committment to the restrictive line. He attacked a document produced by a number of European Cities in favour of a degree of decriminalisation and went on to say that'We say no to a society which accepts people being turned into chemicallycontrolled rats' (SvD, 1992c). He said that a few years ago it would have been unimaginable that a Swedish organisation could have supported something once regarded as'madness'.
Aftonbla&t enlisted the support of a senior physician to attack those whoconsidered cannabis no more harmful than alchohol. He claimed that the cannabis used today was 'five times stronger than that used in the 1960' (Afton, 1992g ).The physician went onto detail the harmful effects of cannabis - psychosis, hallucination, panic attacks, impotence, confusion, schizophrenia. He also took sideswipes at Liverpool, the model for harm reduction often invoked by restrictivists, where the authorities had clearly'given up'the fight against drugs and taught young people in school how to use them less harmfully.
Expressen chose to attack a Social Democrat who had aligned himself with the new liberalism of the Conservatives. The Social Democrat was given the chance of attacking the 'temperance apostles, the calorie counters and the health fascists wLo wanted to tell people what theycouiddo withtheir ownbodies'(Ex, 1992o). But Expressen went on to deny that there was any kind of link between the liberal policy advocated by the newspaper on alcohol and those who wanted more liberal drug laws. 'Alcohol', it claimed 'was part of Swedish culture and social life and onehad to strike abalance between the good and evil aspects of drinking'. Why the same respect could not be afforded and the same balance sought for the drugs of other cultures, was not explained.
Not only was the Prime Minister himself often quoted as rejecting right wing 'flummery' but Dagens Nyheter carried a large article giving the views of drug addicts, one of whom who said, in the words of the headline 'I HAVEN'T THE STRENGTH TO HUNT FOR HEROIN' (DN, 1992 1). He'was terrified by liberal ideas about drugs that were being aired yet again in Sweden'. He and others, very eloquently, managed to endorse a number of aspects of the restrictive line. One condemned the legalisation of drugs and the provision of free syringes in other European cities as this would result in increased drug misuse and the spread of drug-taking downwards in age. Another claimed, contrary to what social workers said, that new recruits were on the increase and that Swedish authorities ought to be tougher in the protection of the young and 'our land'. Others thought that joining the European Union meant more involvement in organised crime and that the police should stop all drug dealing.
In all of the above articles, legalisation was not only explicitly and implicitly attacked but was elided with harm reduction as a means of defending the Swedish way against the capitulation common in other European countries. In none of the articles were the proponents given a real opportunity to present their case.
The opposite could be said to be the case with the four feature articles on harm reduction and decriminalisation written by Kerstin Vinterhead, a well-known Swedish journalist, for Dagens Nyheter. In one she defended Dutch policy as more pragmatic, more gentle and as successful as the harder line taken in Sweden (DN, 1992a). In a second, the views of an American advocate of harm reduction were given ample expression (DN, 1992g). Ina third, a doctor in Sweden's only syringe exchange scheme, was given the chance to complain about a new investigation into her project by
opponents whose minds were already made up (DN, 1992m). In the last article, problem drug users using Oslo's mobile syringe distribution scheme spoke very highly of the way in which the scheme had helped them (DN, 1992n). Vinter. head's articles certainly presented Dagen Nyheter's readers with a clear liberal point of view, evidence that harm reduction, at least, can be discussed in a positive way. Nevertheless, as will be seen below, her newspaper was just as likely as the other three to give prominence to restrictive messages.
Articles on restrictive policies
Articles that dealt with restrictive policies were also examined to see whether the
coverage was balanced or had a clear tendency to favour either the policies or the ir
critics.
Vinterhead, as part of the series mentioned above, wrote an article which outlined the Swedish approach to drugs policy and contrasted this with the approach adopted in other European countries. She herself did not criticise the restrictive line but gave space, to two criminologists, to air their critical views. Aftoribladet was critical of the way in which those arrested for drugs offences were isolated in Swedish cells for many weeks in comparison with Denmark where a much smaller proportion are put into i.solation. This criticism of one aspect of Sweden's hard line used the plight of a young female film actress, whose parents were outraged by the length and severity of isolation she received (see also p. 36). Her own lawyer and the head of the Prison and Probation Administration provided support for the criticism.
Svenska Dagbladet reported in January on research that claimed the compulsory care which adults received under the law on the care of misusers (LVM) was almost a complete failure since most alcoholics and addicts reverted to their habits on release. This was not reported in the other nationals.
There was then some criticism of the restrictive approach. More typical, however, were pleas for tougher measures. Two features in Aftoribladet gave considerable coverage to two male herointakers, one ofwhom had died while the otherwas said to be (lying (Afton, 1992e, 1992f ). Both stories were a platform for the father of one and the mother of another to criticise the policy of compulsory care
2 not because its ineffectiveness might make it unnecessary - but because the caters lacked the appropriate skills and knowledge. The mother of the dead heroin user said her son was at his most calm when in prison for theft. She wanted capital punishment for dealers. The father of the other drugtaker, a famous actor, pleaded for tougher abstentionist treatment along the lines of Narcotics Anonymous. This was followed by another short article which presented the 'facts' about heroin in Sweden. Heroin misuse was on the increase, it claimed; those who used heroin needed to take increasing quantities of the drug to achieve the same effects; such dependence drove male misusers to theft and female misusers to prostitution.No attempt was made in either article to explain drug dependence in any other way than through the nature of heroin itself. No hint of personal, familial or social problems which might have precipitated heroin dependence was considered. The cause of the one son's problem was attributed to the permissive climate prevailing when he was a teenager. WM and the authorities had failed because they did not use a sufficently strict approach in the treatment they offered. The only outside authority cited was RNS, whose spokesperson simply insisted that the only way not to become addicted was never to try drugs in the first place.
This call for tougher measures was already being addressed by the Government. Dagens Nyheter and Svenska Dagbladet had both reported the proposal to introduce prison sentences for those found guilty of using drugs (DN, 1991; SvD, 1991b ). Ministers were given the opportunity of justifying such a meaure, claiming that it would'hetp those hit by drugs'and that it would enable 'care to take place at an earlier stage'. One Minister's remarks were made to a meeting of RNS supporters. No mention of any criticism of this measure was made in either article. Indeed, Dagens NyheteT (the newspaper which published Kerstin Vinterhead's liberal articles, see above) carried an editorial a few days after its report implying that the whole country was behind the change in the law and that elsewhere in Europe, tegalisers (or 'drug defeatists' as they were called) were happy to see the socially exctuded'constantty and freely drugged' (this presumably refers to drug maintenance programmes) if only to stop them stealing from others. Not only was a repressive Swedish measure being dressed up as caring but European harm reduction was caricatured as expedient and exploitative.
The same indulgence was afforded proposals by large companies to test their employees compulsority for drugs in the name of company security and product quality. In one article a union representative complained that this was a public relations stunt aimed at increasing sales (DN, 1992k). In the other, a prosecuting lawyer claimed that as far as drugs were concerned, 'there was no such thing as a trivial offence'(SvD, 1992a).
Feature articles
Articles on drugs can add credence to restrictive policies not by entering into policy
debates but by exaggerating the problems created and threatened by drugs. To a
considerable extent feature articles did exactly this.
Most feature articles on narcotics had a foreign connection. They were about the problems faced by other countries or the threat they posed to Sweden or Swedes. Dagens Nyheter reported on the number of Swedes serving longsentences inforeigrigaols mainly for drug offences (DN, 1992b, 1992c). In another issue, Spain was described as a country which as a result of its previous liberalism ondrugs was now paying a high price. The headline claimed that drugs were Spanish society's 'biggest problem'whereas unemployment was seen as a secondary problem. Legalisation was debated but was not approved of officially. It was pointedly stated that Spain did not have a lawforbidding the USEof drugs (unlike Sweden of course). Assertions about the scale of the problems in Spain (70 000 heroin addicts; 90% of prison sentences linked to drugs) were madewithout explanation or discussion (DN, 1992d).
Expressen published an article on drug mafia activities in St Petersburg (a port on the Baltic and not too far from home). The city was reported tohave 20 000 addicts. The story was a very personalised one which focused on a young man whose'happy'child, hood deteriorated after truancy led to theft, prison and unemployment, after which he became'curious' about drugs even thoughhe knew of the daggers. The point of the story was to show the despair and cynicisinreached by those who experiment with drugs. It is the drugs that are blamed for the young man's condition, rather than whatever it was that had led him to truancy, crime and unemployment in the first place (Ex, 199 1 c). (6(
Subsequently, three full page articles appeared in Expressen about that area of South East Asia known as the Golden Triangle. No mention was made of the fact that the journalist was an RNS sympathiser.' The picture presented was that of authorities vainly trying to eradicate poppy fields. The partial success of the Thai authorities was contrasted to the fourfold expansion of opium production in Burma and Laos to 2000 and 3 50 tons a day respectively. The trade in the drug reached out to all corners of the world, including Sergels Torg in the heart of the Swedish capital, through the triad and other secret societies (Ex, 1992t). Follow,up stories concentrated upon an expoliceman in Thailand who had become an addict and a young tourist guide who had got into drugs to feed her poor mother (Ex, 1992u, 1992v).
Aftoribladet under the headline THE DRUG THAT KILLS, reported from Spain and England, where the drug ecstasy had become very popular, that several hundred young people had died while many others suffered from the side-effects of depression, sleep problems, tiredness and memory loss (Afton, 1992d).
Implicit in all these stories is that drugs lead to tragedy for individuals and - if society is not tough enough - social decay. These themes are hammered home on the domestic front also. In a very personalised item, Dagens Nyheter publicised the experiences of a young girl who gave talks to school pupils about her drug experiences. She had begun to smoke hash at the age of 12 and slowly descended into cannabis psychosis.
'The person in me died, I became a robot, I was a nobody.
(DN, 19920' She was asked by a member of the audience what school and her parents should have done. School, she insisted, should have dealt with her more severely and taken her to the psychiatric service. Her parents should have been 'harder' on her and been willing to grasp what was wrong withher. The lesson was pushed home by the revelation that half of her old friends were dead and the others in young people's homes.This article was coupled with another which emphasised that the drug problem in Sweden was hidden. A social worker (and an advocate of the restrictive line - though again this was not men. tioned) claimed that amongst immigrants there was abig drug and alcohol problem because they were not in touch with social services. Drug agencies saw only the tip of a problem, which was growing due to the worsening employment situation. New recruits to the drug scene were beginning to use drugs recreationally. These were not social outcasts but 'ordinary people'(DN, 1992f).
It is interesting to note that, when itsuitsjournalists, an emphasis can be placed upon the success of the Swedish model in reducing the size of the drug problem, whereas on other occasions they can give considerable coverage to the growing scale of drug misuse. Indeed, when such a position is taken, far from it being suggested that the restrictive line may not be working, it is argued that the problem is created by the authorities being too liberal. In another Dagens Nyheter article, the headline asserted that HARM FROM DRUGS IS ENORMOUS.The police were quoted as saying that drug misuse was on the increase and that the amount of drugs seized by them was between 6% and 8% of the total used, An estimate of the cost to society was put at 120 billion kronor, without any indication as to how such a figure had been calculated. A sub headline suggested thatthe police were worried bycautious lawsandthe calls for liberalisation'. No evidence was given for such calls but it was claimed that legalisation would lead to disaster. It was regretted by the police that they were hampered by laws which prevented them from using infiltration, provocation, plea bargaining for informers and bugging devices (DN, 1992o). A debate article, written by a spokesperson for the Conservative party, in Svenska Dagbladet also claimed that the drug problem was ~oaring and blamed the previous Social Democratic government's 'catastrophic' cutting of police resources, for failing to make drug use an imprisonable offence and for underestimating the scale of the problem (SvD, 1991a). Only a policy built on 'restrictive' ass umptions could, in his view, succeed in creating a drug, free society.
Expressen condemned a different set of authori, ties for their lack of toughness in dealing with drug misuse under the headline ASSISTANCE FOR DEATH (Ex, 1992r). The article blamed the death of a young female drug misuser on the willingness of the authorities to give her social assistance. Notonly did social services delay demanding that she undertake treatment for her problem, but when they finally stopped paying her rent, the courts allowed an appeal against the decision. In passing it was mentioned that she had undergone a period of compulsory care, which obviously had not succeeded. Moreover the evidence for her drug,related death was far from conclusive. She had died in a car crash while under the influence of amphetamine. This did not discourage the paper from printing a further article in which the social affairs minister was given the space to say that there was clearly a weakness in the law which should be reviewed (Ex, 1992s).
News articles: series and groups
Expressen attacked the courts for their misplaced generosity in two articles that ran on
consecutive days concerning a social services department which had paid a claiment's drug
debts (Ex, 1992m, 1992n). The front page headline read GOT K124 000 [E12 0001 FROM THE
SOCIAL TO PAY DRUG DEBT. The department had initially refused to pay the claim but had no
choice when the claimant subsequently appealed. By the time that the decision had been
overturned by a higher court the money had been paid out. The second of the two articles
named the errant judges with a headline WE ONLY FOLLOWED THE LAW positioned under their
three photographed faces.
Foreign authorities came under fire when two Turkish drug dealers were set free after being deport~ ed from Sweden. It was alleged they had used their ill gotten gains to buy their release (Ex, 1992k). A subsequent article revealed that one of the Turks had taken out Swedish citizenship (Ex, 19921 . He was not only entitled to return to Sweden but had a right to a Swedish pension, which could be paid even if the man continued to live in Turkey. This article is a good example of a newspaper's attempt to fan outrage on a number of fronts - against drug dealers, social benefits and 'foreigners'. The right to the Swedish pension had no rational relationship to the alleged corruption in Turkish society but drugs provided a useful irrational connection.
Expressen had an opportunity to applaud the action of the courts a few days later when another Turkish immigrant was given a 19-year prison sentence. On 8 April this was reported in a short article (Ex, 1992p). The following day a similar size article appeared accompanied by one photograph spread over two whole pages of the man in his cell under the headline 19 YEARS FOR DRUG CRIME (Ex, 1992q). The additional pieces of information contained in the second piece concerned the man's family. The Turk made it clear in interview that he would shoot any man who tried to supply drugs to his daughter. Not only was he a drug dealer and a for, e igner but a hypocrite to boot.
Drug issues can be sensationalised by connecting them with other social problems. The world of decadent celebrities can also provide such a background. In April, both Expressen and Aftonbladet devoted five full pages (including three whole front pages) each to an anonymous film star who had been arrested at a film premier on suspicion of having committed a serious drug crime (Afton, 1992a, 1992b, 1992c; Ex, 1992b, 1992c, 1992d). There was little hard news in the story, which in the absence of the celebrity might have merited a few lines. She was pleading not guilty to having dealt in cocaine and LSD. Her boy-friend was beingsought in connection with ecstasy dealing. Aftonbladet seemed to take a sympathetic line from the beginning (subsequently it was outraged by the young woman's continued isolation, see above). The film star was decr ibed as 'beautiful and talented'. A headline reported her lawyer as complaining thather arrest was a scandal. She could have been arrested any number of more discrete times in the previous week, he claimed. It was as if the police wanted to play up the situation'to get greater mass media coverage of the arrest'. Aftonbladet connived in the latter while seeming to deplore it. 1~
Expressen used the story to focus, in*two add itionat articles, on the way young people were increasingly resorting to stimulants such as amphetamine and ectasy. Moreover, they were mixing their drugs.Hash on Thursday. Spirits on Friday. And ecstasy on Saturday. Such appears to be the new drug culture out amongst the young (Ex, 1992e).
Ecstasy appeared at 'nightly orgies of marathon dancing'. Young women were quoted as saying that they could only dance 12 hours at a time with the aid of drugs. Parents were warned by police to be on the lookout for ecstasy tablets.
This coupling of personalised articles with those addressing a more general trend occurs frequently. Another example can be found in the treatment given in March by Dagens Nyheter and Expressen to the use of anabolic steroids. Expressen focused on a celebrity who had once used anabolic steroids to build up his body. He cited old friends who had suffered side effects but had ignored them (Ex, 1992h ). The accompanying article was built around quotations from experts who warned of the dangers as steroids were being used not only for training by athletes but by those who wanted merely to fight on the streets. An American doctor claimed that 30% of users had serious mental problems. In the US the problem had become an'epidemic'. Sweden too was in danger as steroids were'flooding in from the East'(Ex, 19920. In an interesting afterthought at the end of the article, the journalist made the point that previous expert information about steroids which had proved to be false had made young bodybuilders cynical:
'We couldn't trust doctors before, why should we do so now when they talk about the
side effects.'
There may have been a lesson here for Expressen and its staff but there was little sign of
its being learnt as the article went on to claim that steroids were responsible for
aggressive and domineering behaviour, citing an American bodybuilder who had killed his
small son after taking steroids. It is just this kind of simplification that hinders
rather than helps genuine education and prevention. Sensationalism before sense.
The day before, Dagens Nyheter had also warned of such drugs coming from Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. Easier accessibility was resulting in the spread of use, downwards in age, to school children. The accompanying article quoting experts claimed that steroids could cause depression, anxiety, sleeplessness and mental disturbance (DN, 1992i, 1992j). Both of articles made good use of the metaphors of drugs'flooding in'from'foreign coun, tries'and'spreading'to wider sections of the Swedish population.
In December Expressen had revealed another route into the People's Home for drugs (Ex, 199 1 a, 199 lb, 1991d). A postman who sorted letters in a Stockholm suburb intercepted packages containing heroin from Thailand to fictitious addresses. This story gave rise to three articles all of which stressed that the heroin had been sold'almost entirely to chit, dren and young people'between the ages of 13 and 17. Little evidence was advanced for what was described as a'hero in epidemic'other than the'tens'of youngsters who had sought help for their dependence at a county clinic.'Tens 'later became' we know that at least 30 are affected while the police claimed that the 'darkfigure is very great'. In spite of the claim in restrictive ideology in Sweden that there is no distinction between 'hard' and 'soft' drugs, newspapers like Expressen use it when it is convenient to do so. In the first of the two articles, heroin is described as one of the 'absolutely strongest drugs which results in dependence from the first day', while the second begins with the tate of a teenager who started by smoking hash.
Many of the ingredients of the classic tabloid approach to drugs are illustrated in this mini-series insidious entry into the country, the corruption of the young, the allure of soft drugs, instant dependence on hard drugs, the epidemic. Blame is placed on social services by parents for not providing sufficient recreational opportunities for the young but nowhere is itsuggested thatthe misuseofdrugs inthis area was created by anything other than the addictive nature of drugs themselves. No-one asks why young people are becoming problematic drug users.
Two months later Expressen carried, two articles on THE NEW DRUG TAKERS spread over two pages consisting largely of a photograph of 'Patrick' behind prison walls (Ex, 1992f). The'factual'article consisted of a social worker and doctor from a wellknown clinic (the restrictive ideology of which was not mentioned) for the young. The experts claimed that drug misuse was spreading from the deprived groups of youngsters to those from well-estabtished circles. Patrick, was then used, in the accompanying personalised article, to illustrate how experimenting with hash at 14 led to injecting amphetamine some years later. In answer to the question ...
'You used drugs for 7 years before someone did anything. What do you have to say about that?'
Patrick replied:
'I don't know. It's difficult to talk about. It wasn't my parents' fault that I began to
smoke hash. I was curious but not all young people experiment. But certainly it would have
been good if someone had intervened in time.'
Again the cause of the problem is drugs themselves the solution is early intervention by the authorities. No attempt is made to discuss any other problems Patrick may have had to induce him to misuse drugs. A reference to the shock of his father's premature death at the age of 55 is glossed over.
Aftonbladet in a 2-day spread in April, under the front page headline KILLER DRUG IS SPREAD IN SWEDEN, did allow some speculation that the present generation of youngsters had been abandoned to day-nursery care and neglected by their parents as a possible explanation for drug misuse amongst the young, but otherwise relied upon the usual scare tactics (Afton, 1992i, 1992j). In the US, it stated, the new drug - ice - had been connected with half the murders in San Diego and was spreading like 'wildfire'; 'one puff and you can become psychotic'; Hawaiian research had shown severe damage to new born children; it was so cheap it was tseen as a threat to the whole of society'. Ice had been used in Sweden and could spread especially amongst the young at rave parties. The first of the articles claimed 'in the last half year a whole range of new drugs had flooded into Sweden'. The second developed the theme of school children being especially vulnerable under headline SCHOOL CHILDREN SMOKE HEROIN. Much of the material seemed to be a reworking of Expressen's December articles with the added information that one high school was subjecting all of pupils to urine tests. Unfortunately the school nurse did not yet have the results. Again it was stated that new drugs were flooding into Swedenand anex-head of Americas Drugs Enforcement Agency said that, 'There now existed a powerful stream of drugs directed towards Sweden'.
Discussion of qualitative results
In contrast to the quantitative aspect of this analysis, the qualitative results clearly confirm that the Swedish national press tends to reinforce the ideas and assumptions associated with the restrictive line. One of the four newspapers gave substantial space to arguments in support offlartn reduction butno newspaper gave space, beyond one or two comments, to arguments in favour of decriminalisation or legalisation. Moreover, the line taken by its one maverick liberal journalist was clearly rejected by her newspaper, Dagens Nyheter, in a significant editorial. Where, in other articles, those cited took a liberal line, their position was made clear, and condemned. However, onfour occasions, knownsupporters of the restrictive line were given space for their views but it was not seen as necessary to say that they were supporters of the restrictive line or RNS. It was assumed that their views were 'normal'.
There was little evidence of substantial criticism or questioning of exisiting policy. Indeed, anyfaiture of existing policies or measures was more likely to be seen as a justification for more severe, tougher measures and policies. When other countries were pottrayed as having growing problems of drug misuse, their liberal policies were blamed. When evidence was presented of growing drug problems in Sweden, far from blaming the restrictive line, there were calls for its reinforcement.
Other countries were seen as capitulating to drug problems, while Sweden was portrayed as fighting them. Foreigners and foreign countries were the source of drugs and Sweden constantly in danger of them flooding into the country. Drugs, their addictiveness and damaging consequences wer~ blamed for other social problems but rarely were the social problems of Swedish society described as being the cause of drug misuse.
CONCLUSION
This analysis of articles concerned with illegal drugs has not shown and could not show that Swedish newspapers are a major influence on the country's drugpolicy. It has already been argued elsewhere that the reasons for the restrictive line go deep into Swedish culture and its temperance tradition. What the quantitative data of all the articles failed to show but has been revealed in the qualitative analysis of a significant sub-sample, is that the press reinforces many elements of the restrictive line and gives little space or credence to liberal alternatives.
Paradoxically, the 6-month period covered by this study was one in which a number of articles, particularly in Expressen, argued in favour of a more liberal approach to alcohol policy. In one important editorial, the newspaper attacked Sweden's restrictive line on the retail sate of alcohol.
'By bringing up generation after generation in the belief that queues [at state-run liquor stores] are an absolute necessity for the survival of Swedish culture - through talking about alcohol as 'forbidden fruit' - the state monopoly contributes to the infantilism amongst Swedes and their drinking habits.' (Ex, 1992a)
A similar comment could be made about the treatment of drug issues in Expressen and the rest of the Swedish national press.
ADDENDUM
Snus: the national drug
In the context of fears about new and foreign drugs flooding into a country, it is
enlightening to examine what happens when the boot is on the other foot. Seventeen per
cent of Swedish men and 2% of Swedish women, use what in Sweden is referred to as snus.
The English translation is snuff, but oral tobacco better describes this strange
substance, a lump of which is inserted between a user's gum and lip to enable the nicotine
to enter the blood stream. To those unfamiliar with the habit, watching someone
'inject'snus is almost as revolting as watching some, one inject heroin. But in Sweden it
is a macho habit which researchers are at pains to demonstrate is not as damaging to the
heart as smoking tobacco and only (my italics) five people die a year from mouth cancer
caused by snus (SvD, 199 1 c; Afton, 199 1).
When the European Parliament voted to ban snus while negotiations
concerning Sweden's possible membership of the European Community were ongoing, Expressen
reported that the Swedish tobacco industry together with civil servants were trying to
make the power holders in Brussels understand this'Swedish national product' (Ex, 1992g).
A Swedish journalist was quoted as saying that the Europeans were simply trying to nip the
future possibility of tobacco,related harm in the bud. But as Expressen pointed out in an
editorial a few days later, the snus question could determine whether the Swedes decided
to vote for entry into Europe. The rest of the leader was concerned with other countries
'concerns over Maastricht and political union. Clearly snus was a comparable issue. Within
two weeks, Expressen's EC
correspondent was saying that snus was no small matter.
'Bureaucrats in Brussels who wilt in the future rule over us, have decided that we should
not use snus.' (Ex, 1992i)
He went on to admit he hated the stuff, but like Voltaire would go to the grave for
the right of others to use snus. It is salutary to reflect on the outrage expressed about
'foreign' drugs, their effects on individuals and society (whether hard or soft) and the
need to stem the threatening flood and the lack of sympathy for another group of countries
trying to do the same thing with a Swedish 'national' drug.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to thank the Swedish Embassy for allowing me to have access to their copies
of the four national newspapers analysed here.
REFERENCES
Books and journal articles
.Newspapers
Aftonbladet (Afton) 0 991) Snuset prisas - skonar hj5rtat, 28th November. (I 992a) Vi m5rkte att hon levde vilt, 10th February. (1 992b) Hon ~r mycket mAlmedveten, I Oth February. (I 992c) Filmstj5rnans pojkvin greps, 12th February. (1 992d) Diskodrogen som d6dar, 3rd March. (1 992e) Heroinet d6dar min son, 17th March. (19920 Heroinet d6dade Krister, 19th March. (1992g) "Marijuana fem gAnger starkare 5n pA 60-talet", 24th March. (I 992i) Mordarknarket sprids i Sverige, 1 Sth April. (I 992j) Sklolbarnen r6ker heroin, 19th April.DagensNyheter(DN) (199 1) S5tt alla knarkare I fingelse, 29th November. (I 992a) Mj uk linje mot knark, 11 th January. (I 992b) Livstidsstraff hotar svensk, 20th January. (I 992c) Knarkbrott vanligast, 20th January. (I 992d) Heroinister fA stryk, 9th February. (1992e)'Minton§rstidArborta', 15thFebruary. (1992f) Dolt missbruk blir synligt, 15thFcbruary. (1992g) Gratis sprutorbromsarhiv, 16thFebruary. (1992h)R§dgivarevillslAppaknarkfritt, 17thMarch. (I 992i) Skolpojkar tar dopingpreparat, 18thMarch. (1992j) Missbruk leder till kronisk smirta, 18thMarch. (1992k) Drogtestistorskala, 18thMarch. (19921) 'Jag orkar inte jagar mer heroin', 19th March. (1992m) Kritikersynarsprutbytesprojekt, 21stMarch. (1 992n) Rena sprutor direkt pA gatan, 16th April. (I 992o) "Knarkets skadorenorma", 23rd April. Expressen (Ex) (199 1 a) Posten var heroincentral, 14th December. (199 1 b) HAr s51j s heroin till skolbamen, 15th December. (199 1 c) Knarkmafflan i St Petersburg, 1 7th Decern ber. (1991d) KGB grep knarkledarens svenska kurir, 17th Decem. ber. (1992a) Det~rnAgotfel PA systemet, 4thJanuary. (1 992b) Svensk filmstjjrnor greps, 9th February. (1 992c) Hen bar svikit oss alla, 1 Oth February. (1 992d) Polisen jagar pojkv5nnen, 11 th February. (1 992e) Maraton,danserna marknad ffir nya ungdoms-droger, na, 11 th February. (1 992f) De nya knarkama, 27th February. (1992g) Snusetstoppas, 12th March. (1 992h) Svullo dopade sig, 19th March. (1992i) Idag tar ungdornaranabola steroider for att slAss pA stan, 19thMarch. (1992j) Snus~rintenAgonskitsak, 25thMarch. (1992k) Koptesigfriafbrknarkmiljonerna?, 27thMarch. (19921) Frislippte knarkhandlaren kan R svensk pension, 28th March. (1 992m) Socialen betalade 124000 for mannens knarkskulder, 29thMarch. (1 992n) Vi fbj Ide bara lagen, 30the March. (1 992o) Art knarka i liberalismens namn, 5th April. (1 992p) 19 Ars ffingelse - svenskt rekord, Sth April. (1 992q) 19 Ar for narkotikabrott, 9th April. (19920 Bidrag till dbds, 13th April. (1 992s) Vi ska se Over lagen, 13th April. (1 992t) Det nya opiumkriget, 21 st April.(I 992u) Knarkpolisen sorn blev heroinist, 22nd April. (I 992v) Knarklangare fbr mammas skull. Svenska Daghladet (SvD) (1991 a) Antalet missbrukare uppe i 30,000,23rd November. (1991 b)'F5ngelse f6r knarkare', I I th December. (1991c) V§Idsam d6d vanlig bland haschmissbrukare, 27th November. (1992a)'Het'linief6rknarktips, 17thjanuary. (I 992b) Drogliberler oroar, I Sth March. (I 992c) Regerings nej till laglig narkotika, 2 2nd March.
1. These statements have been compiled from a reading of the works of Nils Bejerot (Bejerot 1978; Bejerot and Hartelius 1984) and of NarkotikafrAgan the journal of RNS, the National Association for a Drug-free Society.
2. 'In Sweden, the temperance tradition led to a rationing of alcohol from 1916 to 1955. Compulsory care for adults with alcohol problems was also introduced in 1916 and survives to this day. Alcohol is expensive and cannot (except for low alcohol beer) be obtained in supermarkets or grocery stores. State-run liquor stores are open only on weekdays frorn 9.30 am until 5.00 pm with late night opening on Thursdays until 7.00 pm. During the period of the study, a number of articles appeared, particularly in Expressen, complaining about the length of queues over the New Year period.
3.
6 The journalist not only contributed
to NarkotikafrAgan, RNS's own journal, but had written a book on the the country's drug
problems which was promoted by the association for its restrictive credentials.
Arthur Gould, Senior Lecturer
in Social Policy, Department of Social Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough,
LEI I 3TU, UK.