The ongoing fight to legalize marijuana is one viewers are
exposed to 24/7. We are constantly
seeing news coverage or skits on well know television sitcoms such as Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report,
etc. Essentially anything we read or watch makes some relevant comment or
entire segment towards the legalization or use of marijuana. However, my
argument is not whether we are or are not constantly exposed to the issue.
Rather my argument is that if the federal government is mostly still against
legalizing marijuana (although slowly it looks like it may come around) why is
it that we constantly see it exposed to children, and even to adults on
television programing? While I am supportive of the legalization of marijuana
(not for my own personal use, because I don’t smoke Mary-J) it boggles my mind
that the government although frequently fighting against it, appears to have no
set regulations on how television channels can (in a sense) promote the use of
marijuana. While I did no extensive research on the matter, I mostly went with
areas in which I have seen this minor issue promoted.
I must state that while this is not an issue I am passionate
about, it is one that I find interesting, and kind of funny at the same time.
If the federal government is not supportive of a drug (which by the way has
proved to improve health conditions and have little to no health effects) why
do we continue to see it on television? One would assume that if the federal
government is on the fence about legalizing it we would see less promotion of
this drug on television. However the case is that we see this on television
programs more than ever before, and even on family orientated channels such as
ABC Family and CBS!
In this blog, I present two different situations (and one
for shits & giggles); the first is from the series Pretty Little Liars
episode 13 of season 1 where marijuana use is exposed but not “socially” (or
parentally, if that’s even a word) accepted. The second is from the series Awkward episode 4 of season 1, where
weed is exposed by the parents, making it acceptable by adults. I believe both
are important to discuss because of who is actually using the drug, especially
in a era where it seems that most parents are so against the use of this
recreational drug.
Pretty Little Liars
as we all know (even if we don’t watch the show) is about high school teenage
girls; but even though that is the age group it is intended for, we know that
there are always children younger than the ‘teenage age’ watching this program. As we know PLL is on cable, and cable has
fewer restrictions than broadcast television. I believe however, that the
exposure of illegal narcotics should pertain to all television networks
regardless of the type of network it is.
Either way, what happens in this episode is Emily (one of
the original four) whose mom already disapproves of her life ‘choices’ (because
she is a lesbian) walks in on her and Maya, her girlfriend, playing footsie. As
her mom freaks out, Maya leaves and also forgets her bag. Angry a while after,
she rummages through Maya’s bag and finds marijuana in a mints container.
(whoops!) The show continues with an argument between Emily and her mother, and
Maya getting ratted out. Strongly supporting the disapproval of teenagers
smoking. In an article by CBN.com, the Parents Television Council states that
the ages in which kids are most vulnerable is between the ages of 12-17.
Exactly the age this series is intended for! While Emily’s mother shows great
disapproval and rats Maya out who ultimately gets sent to a juvenile camp. This
portrays the idea that even though an attractive character is using a drug
recreationally, there are still consequences. Rather than this is okay and
acceptable behavior because we saw it on television. (FYI- currently there is
only 2 states that have legalized ‘recreational’ marijuana use Washington State
and Colorado) Pennsylvania, the state where PPL is based, has not legalized
it.
Which brings me to my next point, while Emily’s mom
disapproved of the idea of her girlfriend smoking, the parents of Jenna
Hamilton on Awkward seem to have different opinions on the matter. Of course
age may play a factor, seeing that they are pretty young lenient parents. In
episode 4, Jenna’s parents decide to toke up in a parking lot. Unfortunately we
don’t see much of the parents getting stoned in the series (seriously such
funny parents, side note in later episodes, Jenna becomes quite the smoker.)
Either way, this episode shows an approval of recreational use, because the
parents are doing it, then it must be okay it’s then seen as socially
acceptable.
Furthermore it is safe to say that although the federal
government, as of now is against the legalization of marijuana, I only see this
issue becoming more and more common. In an article by The Boston Globe, they
stated “pot is everywhere on TV.” That statement couldn’t be truer. Another
point is that television sitcoms are in a sense based on public interest, and
to an extent connected to what is happening in the world. As social acceptance
of certain issues change, producers are more likely to include those in their
storylines. Which then makes sense on why there seems to be less strict
regulations on how the exposure of drugs is displayed on television, regardless
of what networks shows are on.
Lastly, my shits and giggles situation is from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. (mostly
because I’m on a sunny binge!) All four seasons I’ve watched have had some sort
of drug representation, from Frank smoking marijuana to Dennis and Sweet Dee being addicted to meth. This displays the issue that drugs are a reality in America, and it is
something we will continue to see be exposed to on television.
Frank Reynolds: [taking
a massive bong rip] Holy shit Deeandra, this is wacky. I want you to go
download me a hoagie off the Internet.
Works Cited
"Awkward. Ep.4 The Scarlet Eye." MTV. N.p., n.d. Web.
Gilbert, Matthew. "Casual Marijuana Use Becomes Common on TV." The Boston Globe. N.p., 18 June 2013. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
Johnson, Lorie. "Marijuana Use the New Cool on TV?" CBN News. N.p., 14 May 2010. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
"Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack." Www.imdb.com. N.p., n.d. Web.
Theo. "Countdown to Season 2: "Know Your Frenemies", Episode 113 Recap!" All Your Entertainment. N.p., 26 May 2011. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.
This is an interesting view on drug promotion in American and a very relevant topic to our society today. While we do see a lot of drug coverage on the news, we often don't realize that television shows displaying use of drugs in their episodes is another form of drug promotion. Shows like Workaholics, Weeds and Freaks & Geeks always had an underlying theme of drugs and rebellion, but that isn't to say that marijuana was always the hot topic. In Workaholics, the main characters are shown smoking in almost every episode, but the show never really shows how the drug affects each of their individual lives (for better or worse). In Weeds, marijuana is obviously the main idea behind the show yet the main character (Nancy) doesn't smoke herself and doesn't condone her kids taking part in her business. Freaks & Geeks was interesting in that it used marijuana to help decipher the freaks from the geeks. The geeky kids were always shown looking down upon the kids who used the drug, referring them as freaks while the freaks who were shown using the drug were often portrayed as being burnout bums who sit around and do nothing all day. Lindsay (the main character) tried the drug herself and ended up having a horrible experience with it. So while I do agree with the idea that drugs in television is a form of promotion by the mere fact of exposing its audience to the drug, it isn't always shown in the most positive manner.
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