February 4, 2014
Two network television news segments, major US newspapers and wire sources report that heroin use in the US has skyrocketed. NBC Nightly News (2/3, story 3, 2:30, Williams) reported, “The death of…star Philip Seymour Hoffman at 46 is bringing attention to a heroin problem that is exploding among people in all walks of life across our country.” NBC News correspondent Kate Snow explained, “Heroin use in the US nearly doubled over the last five years. More than a quarter million people a year end up in the” emergency department.

The CBS Evening News (2/3, story 2, 2:00, Pelley) reported, “The northeast and some other parts of the country are seeing an increase right now in deaths from heroin laced with additives.”

The Wall Street Journal (2/4, A5, Campo-Flores, Elinson, Subscription Publication) points out that according to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the number of people in the US using heroin increased nearly 80% between the years 2007 and 2012. Meanwhile, overdose deaths caused by heroin increased 55% between the years 2000 and 2010, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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