The presence of oscillations in the media framework and fragmented interpretations in the coverage of the crack consumption

Abstract

The study presented in this article is based on the assumptions that the Jornal Nacional (National News), broadcast by Rede Globo (Globe television networking), is a reference and large audience newscast and that the press, in focusing on a certain subject and presenting a specifi framework for some theme – in this case, crack use and the social consequences of this use – inflences, to some extent, the public perception of the topic. What are the frameworks given by media coverage to crack use and the social implications of the drug on televisionthrough the newscast called Jornal Nacional, broadcast by Rede Globo? The goal is to understand the frameworks provided by this newscast about crack consumption, based on the analysis of how it organizes informative content. The content analysis was applied to the reports exhibited in JN from 2012 to 2017 and to interviews with reporters responsible for the coverage of the crack. We identifid that the newscast framed the crack use and the social implications of the drug use as a public health problem and as a chronic (to a lesser extent) social problem, on the one hand; and as a public safety issue to a greater extent on the other hand. The way of this newscast organizing and to give meaning to the issue can potentially inflence the formulation of public policies, as well as the way of society interpreting the issue and to give meaning to the social context of the crack consumption phenomenon.