News media framing sets public opinion that drugs is the country's most important problem

Responses by the public to the question of whether drugs was the United States' most important problem ranged from under 5% to over 60% during the 9 years from 1985 to 1994. Time series analysis showed that changes in this opinion could be explained by the press describing drugs as a crisis. Other types of drug discussion contributed negligibly. In the reverse direction, public opinion about drugs was a weak but significant contributor to press coverage.