63% Call Drugs Nation’s Biggest Problem : Poll Finds Concern Soaring; Heavy Media Coverage Seen as Factor

Three months of intense media coverage has helped convince most Americans that drug abuse is the nation’s most pressing problem, a new Times Mirror News Interest Index released today suggests.

Sixty-three percent of Americans now see drug abuse as “the most important problem facing this country today,” compared to only 27% of those questioned in May, according to the poll, conducted Sept. 7 through 10 by the Gallup Organization. Only wars and economic disasters have registered such a large consensus in the past.

Press attention is a probable factor in that change. Drug coverage has quadrupled in the major newspapers, news magazines and wire services since June. And, on television, all three major network news divisions recently featured the issue for an entire week, coinciding with President Bush’s televised address to the nation. The amount of coverage is unprecedented.

Not Following Issue

But, although Americans seemed persuaded of the dangers of the drug problem, they are not paying unusually close attention to the issue. Overall, 49% of Americans said that they were “very closely following” stories about drug abuse in the United States--about the same number as followed such stories as the apparent murder by Mideast terrorists of Marine Lt. Col. William R. Higgins and the drought in the Farm Belt last year.

And some details of the drug story have not penetrated well. Only 24% could identify William J. Bennett as the nation’s drug czar.

By contrast, an astounding 71% knew that the trial of TV evangelist Jim Bakker had been temporarily suspended because Bakker had suffered an emotional breakdown.

Even with his lack of name recognition, Bennett can take some solace. Only 9% of Americans very closely followed the tax evasion trial of New York hotel queen Leona Helmsley, despite considerable fascination with her by the nation’s media.

39% Watched Drug Talk

The survey found also that 39% watched at least some of President Bush’s nationally televised address on drugs, but only 14% were still tuned in at the end.

Although many Americans may not be playing very close attention to the stories about drugs, they apparently are pleased that the story is getting great attention. Only 4% said that the drug issue was receiving too much coverage.

The change in public opinion about drugs has come at the expense of other issues. In May, the issue of greatest concern to Americans was the economy, cited by 34%; in the latest survey, only 16% saw the economy as the most important problem.

After drug abuse at home and the war on drugs in Colombia, Pete Rose’s banishment from baseball was the third most closely followed story in the last month (30%), followed by the trial of Bakker and the discoveries of Voyager 2 (both 22%).

Incidents of Violence

Incidents of racial violence in New York City and Virginia Beach, Va., were next, closely followed by 19% of Americans, although they were of most interest to nonwhites and Easterners.

The survey interviewed 1,238 adults. Gallup said the results could be wrong by as much as plus or minus four percentage points and could be influenced by mistakes or bias in the wording of questions.