MPH 602 Week 2 Media Coverage Analysis Example

Arrests, Seizures and a Few Rescues: A Content Analysis of How Local News Covered Overdose in a Southern Colorado County Over Four Years

[Student Name]

University of Phoenix

MPH/602: Public Health Communication and Advocacy

Week 2 Assignment

[Instructor Name]

[Date]

The county, its news outlets, the sample of stories, coding results and quotations are composites written for a model paper; state data and research findings come from the sources cited.

In March, a local television reporter called the county health department for comment on a large fentanyl seizure by the sheriff. The public information officer realized she could not remember the last time a reporter had asked the department about overdose prevention rather than a crime. The department decided to analyze how local media had covered overdose. This paper presents that analysis.

Why Coverage Matters

News coverage shapes what the public and policymakers believe causes a problem and what should be done. If overdose appears mainly as crime, audiences may support arrests over treatment and naloxone and may see people who use drugs as threats rather than neighbors at risk.

The Sample

The team searched the archives of the county's daily newspaper, a weekly Spanish-language paper, one television station and a public radio station for stories from January 2022 through December 2025 containing overdose, fentanyl or naloxone. Of 214 stories found, 120 were randomly selected, 30 per year, stratified by outlet.

The Coding Scheme

The coding scheme was adapted from a national study of opioid news coverage, which used a structured instrument to measure causes, solutions, consequences and depictions of people who misuse opioids (McGinty et al., 2016). Categories included the primary frame, criminal justice, public health or personal tragedy; causes named; solutions named; sources quoted; and terms used for people who use drugs. Two coders coded 20 stories together to agree on rules, then coded the rest independently, discussing disagreements.

Coder Agreement

On a test set of 20 stories coded separately, the two coders agreed on the primary frame for 17 and on sources quoted for 19. Disagreements mostly involved stories that mixed an arrest with a family's loss; the coders agreed to code the frame that took up the most space in the story.

Finding One: Volume

Coverage rose in 2022 and 2023 with fentanyl seizures and fell in 2024, then rose again in 2025. Coverage tracked law enforcement announcements more than overdose deaths: the busiest months for stories were those with major seizures, not those with the most deaths.

Finding Two: Frames

Of 120 stories, 71, or 59%, used a primarily criminal justice frame; 31, or 26%, a public health frame; and 18, or 15%, a personal tragedy frame. Stories built around seizures, arrests and prosecutions dominated.

Finding Three: Causes and Solutions

The most frequently named cause was drug trafficking, in 64% of stories. The most frequently named solutions were arrests and seizures, in 58%. Naloxone appeared in 22% of stories, treatment with medication in 9% and fentanyl test strips in 4%.

Finding Four: Sources

Law enforcement officials were quoted in 63% of stories, prosecutors in 21%, health officials in 18%, family members of people who died in 14% and people who use drugs or are in recovery in 6%.

Finding Five: Headlines and Images

Headlines amplified the criminal justice frame: words such as bust, seized and dealer appeared in 38% of headlines. Television stories most often showed tables of seized pills and handcuffed suspects. Only four stories showed a naloxone kit, and none showed a person administering it.

Two Stories Compared

Two stories from the same week in 2023 show the difference. One television story led with a record seizure, quoted the sheriff and ended with a warning that fentanyl is everywhere. A radio story the same week followed a mother who had reversed her son's overdose with naloxone, quoted a physician on treatment and ended with where to get free kits. Both were accurate; only one gave audiences something to do.

Finding Six: Language

Stigmatizing terms, such as addict, junkie or abuser, appeared in 41% of stories, mostly in quotes from officials. Person-first terms appeared in 12%.

The National Pattern

The county's coverage mirrors national findings. An analysis of 673 news stories from 1998 to 2012 found that although experts deemed opioid analgesic misuse a public health crisis, the news media more often framed it as a criminal justice issue, with illegal drug dealing the most frequently named cause and law enforcement the most frequently named solution, while fewer than 5% of stories mentioned expanding treatment (McGinty et al., 2016). A decade later and a thousand miles away, the local news was telling the same story.

Why Language Matters

Words carry judgments. In a randomized study, 516 clinicians read a vignette describing a person as either a substance abuser or having a substance use disorder; those who read substance abuser agreed more that the person was personally culpable and that punitive measures should be taken (Kelly & Westerhoff, 2010). If trained clinicians respond this way, general audiences may respond more strongly.

Checking Coverage Against the Data

State data offer a reality check. CDC's provisional counts show Colorado's yearly overdose toll reached its high point in 2023 at 1,926, dropped by nearly 300 the next year and then climbed again to 1,819 in 2025, with deaths involving stimulants rising alongside fentanyl (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2026). Local coverage rarely mentioned stimulants, and stories in 2024 celebrating seizures did not note that deaths had fallen partly because of naloxone and treatment expansion.

Missing Voices

People who use drugs, people in recovery, treatment providers and harm reduction workers were rarely quoted. Spanish-language coverage was more likely to quote family members and health workers, suggesting a different approach worth learning from.

A Social Media Snapshot

A brief look at the county's most followed community pages found posts about overdose were shared most when they involved arrests or local deaths, and comment threads often blamed people who died. Posts from the health department about naloxone drew few shares. The department's social media strategy will need to borrow what works in local news: named people and specific stories.

Lessons for the Department

The department will share the findings with local editors in a short meeting, framed as information rather than criticism. It will also offer reporters a roster of spokespeople, including physicians, a peer recovery coach and a family member willing to speak; send a style guide on person-first language; pitch stories on naloxone rescues and treatment; and provide data briefs when seizures are announced, so coverage includes prevention.

Limits

The sample excludes most social media, where many young adults get news, and it cannot show how audiences actually interpreted the stories. Coding involves judgment, although two coders reduced bias. Four years may not show long-term trends.

Conclusion

Local overdose coverage from 2022 through 2025 was dominated by crime frames, law enforcement sources and stigmatizing language, while naloxone, treatment and the voices of people affected appeared rarely. National research shows the same pattern and experimental evidence shows why language matters. Comparing coverage with state data revealed missed stories. The department now has a plan to offer reporters the sources and stories that a public health frame requires.

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2026). VSRR provisional drug overdose death counts [Data set]. data.cdc.gov. https://data.cdc.gov/d/xkb8-kh2a

Kelly, J. F., & Westerhoff, C. M. (2010). Does it matter how we refer to individuals with substance-related conditions? A randomized study of two commonly used terms. International Journal of Drug Policy, 21(3), 202-207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2009.10.010

McGinty, E. E., Kennedy-Hendricks, A., Baller, J., Niederdeppe, J., Gollust, S., & Barry, C. L. (2016). Criminal activity or treatable health condition? News media framing of opioid analgesic abuse in the United States, 1998-2012. Psychiatric Services, 67(4), 405-411. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201500065