CT REPORTING ON DRUGS LOP-SIDED

ONCE again The Canberra Times has displayed its reporting bias on the issue
of illicit drug abuse.

On Wednesday (February 23) the International Narcotics Control Board, an
agency of the United Nations, issued its strongest warning yet that
heroin-injecting rooms such as the one being planned by the ACT Government
would contravene Australia's international obligations by "aiding and
abetting the commission of crimes and drug trafficking".

This warning, central to the debate over the injecting-room issue, rated
just two sentences in the following morning's Canberra Times, tucked away
anonymously in your "In Brief" column. One might compare this with the
extensive coverage given to the same news item by your Sydney counterpart
[the Sydney Morning Herald], which devoted a full column to reporting the
warning and related comment.

Predictably, despite all but ignoring the original INCB statement, on
Friday your paper was able to devote over half a column of news space with
a prominent headline, to comments by Health Minister Michael Moore and
others rubbishing the UN agency's warning.

The community organisation of which I am president has received many
complaints about The Canberra Times declining to print anti-drug letters
while day after day continuing to publish the letters of drug-law
liberalisation advocates.

How about giving the other side a fair go, just for a change?

Peter Trickett, Fraser