WFOR Sweeps Scare Tactics

Herald Watch is going to go off-topic for a second and discuss a story that just aired on WFOR CBS 4. February is a sweeps month which means that local news broadcasts are filled with sensationalistic stories that can be teased all night long so that you'll watch.

Tonight's offering comes from Jennifer Santiago and is about Salvia Divinorum, a hallucinogenic herb that is 100% legal in Florida as of this writing. Santiago's story was about how the herb is becoming more and more popular. It included a segment in which she confronted a Coconut Grove head shop operator who immediately kicked her out. Apparently Santiago had sent someone in with a hidden camera to buy Salvia and the person was not asked for ID. The head shop operator claims that they don't sell anything to anyone under 18. But we never really get to see the person who bought the stuff so how do we know she wasn't 35 years old?

But the most disturbing thing about the report from a journalistic standpoint was the claim from Kathleen Chidester, the mother of Brett Chidester who allegedly died as a result of using Salvia. I say allegedly because the report was so sketchy on the the details that it left one wondering what really happened to the boy. Mrs. Chidester mentions briefly that he killed himself with Carbon Monoxide. The mother goes on to claim that her son's writings after he tried Salvia "prove" that it was responsible for his death.

Now I'm not condoning any drug use and Salvia may be dangerous but Santiago's report does nothing to educate anyone about how the drug works, what is known about it, and what the real dangers might be for those who try it. The dead boy may have been seriously depressed to begin with and the drug may or may not have contributed to his death but Santiago's report raises more questions than it answers. For example, if use of the drug is widespread as Santiago claims in her report and it's as deadly as Mrs. Chidester claims then how come we don't hear more about Salvia deaths?

A big thumbs down to a sensationalistic and uninformative report on a subject that could be truly important. The thing is, that after watching it, I'm disinclined to believe that it is.