I. Intro
A. Introduce topic- how substance abuse is portrayed in films
B. Drugs portrayed in Hollywood films: Flight & Wolf of Wall Street
a. Portrayed in positive way, do not show negative effects
b. Drugs “advertised”
II. Body Part 1- Hollywood films portrayal of drugs
Question: How does Hollywood films portray drugs with examples from the films and what are the characteristics that films portray drugs and how do they influence the audience?
A. Portrayal of drugs in Flight
1. Drugs didn’t affect his mental focus
2. Drugs make person more conscious (cocaine)/ benefits
3. Lawyer/ defendant has him do drugs to “sober him up” before going to trial because he drank all night (advertise consciousness)
4. Video 1 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AY2bqWkDcoQ
B. Portrayal of drugs in Wolf of Wall Street 1. Positive outcome/ partying
C. Drugs being “advertised” in Hollywood films with positive benefits 2. Video 2 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UdokQz4Q7pY
III. Body Part 2- Themes/ Statistics
Question: How do drugs impact the character in films in a negative way?
A. Drugs portrayed in movies?
i. “Greater than 90% of movies depicted drug, alcohol, tobacco or over the counter/prescription drug abuse.” (Cape, G. S. 2003, page 163) ii. “Selective abstraction- focusing on one detail taken out of context and ignoring other salient features of the situation- appears to be a common cognitive process when referring to movies with illegal drug abuse.” (Cape, G. S. 2003, page 166) iii. “Unlike cocaine, which has sometimes been portrayed as glamorous or funny.” (Cooper, M. 2014, February 5, page 1) iv. “Marijuana these days are, in line with its gradually more general acceptance, usually portrayed with humor and nostalgia.” (Cooper, M. 2014, February 5, page 2)
Question: What are the misunderstandings to the audience or misrepresentation of drugs in Hollywood films?
B. Are drugs portrayed in a positive light or negative light
i. “22% of characters who appeared to be under the age of 18 drank, with 40% of them experiencing consequences as a result of their alcohol consumption” (Stern, 2005, p. 334) ii. The audience assumes drugs give a positive effect that influences the audience to do or try drugs. iii. This statistic has high numbers, which have grown over the years, which Americans are viewing substance abuse with positive effects as they try new drugs. iv. “Alcohol appeared in 68 percent of the films, tobacco was the next most common, then cannabis and other illicit drugs appeared in 8 and 7 percent respectively. It is argued that this portrayal causes observational learning and therefore leads people to try the substance in question”
C. Drugs in todays society
i. “a preadolescent or adolescent who smokes tobacco or drinks alcohol is 65 times more likely to use marijuana, than someone who abstains” (Strasburger,2010, p. 791). ii. “the average teenager is exposed to 85 drug references a day” (Strasburger, 2010, p. 793). iii. “Adolescents who use tobacco, alcohol, and drugs are likely to experience short- and long-term negative health consequences, more so than their abstaining peers” (Borzekowski, D. L., & Strasburger, V. C., 2008, p.433) iv. Drugs are apart of the today’s “norms” in society
IV. Body Part 3- Show negative effects
Question: What are the statistics of individuals who take drugs each year and what is the number of deaths related to drug abuse?
A. “Every day in the United States, 113 people die as a result of drug overdose, and another 6,748 are treated in emergency departments (ED) for the misuse or abuse of drugs.2 Nearly 9 out of 10 poisoning deaths are caused by drugs.” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
B. “At the turn of the century, tobacco accounted for over 435,000 annual deaths in the United States” ((Borzekowski, D. L., & Strasburger, V. C., 2008, p.433)
C. “In the United States, approximately 85,000
