Comparison of Drug Representations in TV Dramas

‘90210’
Drugs are represented as serious with stresses on the punishments in the episode. Further episodes show that Adrianna gets her life back on track easily which is pretty unrealistic. But the portrayal of how drugs can ruin a life is realistic, it also shows that adults aren't needed to kick a drug habit (as seen in Waterloo Road). This demonstrates a high level of responsibility and teenagers can relate to certain situations.

‘Skins’
Despite its far-fetched, pushing boundaries approach, Skins is quite realistic. Teenagers can remember, or at least relate to, situations shown and the characters are approachable in a way that many teenagers aren't in TV dramas.

‘The OC’
The OC glosses over drug use immensely and is therefore the most unrealistic in its approach. There is no drug use actually shown on screen it is only implied, and then the effects are too OTT for anyone to relate to.

'Waterloo Road'
Waterloo Road plays along the storyline that only adults are able to (or responsible enough) to help with drugs. They also see it as an inherently bad habit which isn't present within many pupils, using the character you would least expect (and would never do it in real life) to be the person using drugs. This makes it unrealistic as the characters who are involved in the storyline are not believable as ever wanting to use drugs.

Drugs in 'Waterloo Road' (4.5)

In episode 5 of series 4 of 'Waterloo Road' there were 81 references to drugs verbally or through images. Below are some points I picked out/quotes to show the attitude of the show towards drugs:

- Banner of "Waterloo Road says no to drugs" outside was changed to"Waterloo Road says more drugs please"
- "Are you ready for the drugs awareness day?"
- "It's not like we're trying to label the kids as a bunch of dopeheads"
- Marley (head boy) lights up a 'spliff' with paper
- "Treating us like junkies, for what, a bit of a smoke at the weekend?"
- Gotta go to this drgs thingy"
- "Don't want messages like this [banner] going out to the pupils do ya?"
- Secret taker"
- "Right rebel"
- Drugs & alcohol awareness leaflets
- Drugs awareness campaign
- Drugs education classes
- "Life of crime"
- "The only people having fun with drugs are the dealers"
- Sting of teacher with drugs
- Cheek swabs
- "When you live with someone who gets off their face every night, you'll see"
- "they'll pack you off to drugs awareness sessions"
- "Legalise Drugs Now" picture with teacher holding banner (in 70sish)
- Questioning Steph (French teacher) about drugs
- Banner at the end (55mins)

Drugs in '90210'

- Drugs are mentioned at the end of the catch up clip which starts the show "welcome to the big league" (drug dealer to Adrianna)
- 4:34 Adrianna putting drops into eyes when Naomi comes over to her
- 5 mins Naomi implies Adrianna has a drug problem (a continuation of what had been building up from the previous episode)
- Naomi says "I hear thing, I know things" to Adrianna when confronting her
- 7:30ish Adrianna messing up lines when practising for her audition, 7:36 shows her using cocaine to settle her nerves

• She takes it from the lipstick container & wipes it over her teeth after sniffing it
• She has no problem doing her lines after she's taken drugs

- 13:47 Adrianna in a car when her mother says she's celebrating getting her film part, it's assumed that she's doing drugs
- 21:10ish Kimberly says to a guy in detention "so, detention, bad kids...any idea where a girl can score some party favours?"
- 21:46 Naomi picks lipstick case out of Adrianna's bag

• Find out Naomi used to do drugs - "I know this lipstick container" to which Adrianna replies "I know, it was yours"

- 22 mins Naomi says "I experimented then I stopped"
- 22:25ish police do a drugs search
- 22:34 Adrianna admits to Naomi "You're right, I'm using but it's not like I am addicted, I can stop whenever I want, I'm just like under so much pressure from my mum..." when the search starts
- 22:46 Cops pull weed from a guy's locker

- 22:50 Adrianna panics and says "I'm gonna get busted, I'm gonna get kicked out of school, I'm gonna lose the movie, I'm gonna lose everything"
- Naomi takes the drugs from Adrianna to save her friend
- 23:15 Shows Naomi putting drugs down the toilet and flushing before police come in

• See Naomi being led away in cuffs to a car

- 22:33 Cop says to Harry "the coke was in the lipstick"
- Harry defends drugs bust by saying "I don't want drugs on this campus"
- Harry accuses Ryan Matthews of defending drug dealers when he said Harry's actions were a bit extreme
- Harry said (on the students having rights) "they don't have the right to bring drugs to campus"
- Annie saw what happened and said "those weren't her drugs Ethan"
- Adrianna talks about the C & C Club when Annie & Ethan confront her, which turns out to be the cocaine & champagne club, which Naomi initiated her into
- According to Ethan, Naomi "realised how stupid it [taking drugs] was"
- Naomi's mum raids her room to look for drugs
- Naomi sees her dad as being able to "make it [drug charges] go away " with money
- 27:20 Naomi, whne talking to Adrianna, who gets upset, says "hey, maybe it [rehab] coudl be a good career move"
- Scripting reveals drugs make it harder to go to collage, get a job & likely to go to jail/juvenile detention
- Undercover cop (Kimberly) being used to try and catch a dealer or supplier
- 39:24 At the end see Adrianna on the floor with paramedics, intercut with Naomi leaving a message on Adrianna's phone, as Adrianna had overdosed
- Episode ends with Naomi saying (in a message to Adrianna) "you're dead to me"

Drugs in 'The OC'

There's really not that many drugs in The OC even though I picked an episode where they are mentioned.

They come mostly towards the end (31 mins) when Trey takes what is assumed to be cocaine using his key, which had been hidden down the side of the sofa. The shot is cut before you can see him taking it, it's assumed he does before he attempts to rape Marissa. There's no focus on teh drugs as it's a clean cut US teen drama.

Institutional Information

90210
Episode: "Hollywood Forever" (series 1.7)
Broadcast date & time: 02/03/09 at 9pm
Channel: E4
American - sold to UK, Australia (cancelled after 4 episodes), India, Ireland & Finland

Skins
Episode: "Chris" (series 1.4)
Broadcast date & time: 15/02/07 at 10pm
Channel: E4
British - sold to Ireland, Australia, France, New Zealand, USA

The OC
Episode: "The return of the Nana" (Series 2.20)
Broadcast date & time: 31/05/05 at 8pm
Channel: C4
American - sold to Britain, Canada, Australia

Waterloo Road
Episode: 45 (Series 4.5)
Broadcast date & time: 04/02/09 at 8pm
Channel: BBC1
British

All dates, times & channels UK

Representation

Representation of the following is important and must be accurate:

• Gender
• Ethnicity
• NHS & hospital management plus other services

It must be challenging and questioning to the audience too

Realism

The concept of realism is as follows:

• Characters & storylines are plusible to provide the effect of reality for the audience
• Mise-en-scene is vital in creating the effect of reality. It suggests representation issues and appeal to the audience
• Camerawork aims to convey realism despite being stylised
• Sound, the use of predominantly diegetic sounds adds to the realism

BLK discussion points

1. Focus group planned for Saturday - check questions in advance with one of us
2. Think through theoretical concepts of realism and representation. Use 'easier' text books to pin these down rather than academic books which can be too detailed.
3. Institutional context - find out facts, production co's, broadcasters, international network rights etc

Focus Group Questions

Below are some questions/areas I want to talk to my focus group about:

I want them to think back to the TV they watched when they were younger (if they can remember) and name issues that they remember being represented in them, specifically drugs
Do they relate to the drug use in the clips?
How they see the drugs being represented in each clip?
Do they think the representation is realistic?
Can they relate to the relate to the representations?

Questionnaire

Here's the results of my questionnaire, which I will update as I get more results

Key:

‘90210’
‘Gossip Girl’
‘Skins’
‘Shameless’
‘The OC’
‘Waterloo Road’

Age (please write): 17, 18, 18, 17, 16, 17, 17, 18
Gender:
□ Male xxxxxx
□ Female xx
Which platform(s) do you use to watch TV? (Please tick all that apply)
□ Terrestrial TV xxx
□ Freeview xxx
□ Virgin Media xx
□ Sky xxxx
□ Internet streaming xxxxxx
□ On Demand service xx
□ BT Vision x
□ Other (please specify)
- P2P
Did/did you watch any of the following TV programmes? (Please tick all that apply)
TV Programme
Every Episode xx xx xxxxx xxx x
Every Second Episode xx
Less Regularly xx xx x x
Very Rarely x x
Never xxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxx xx x
I used to watch it, but don’t anymore xx
Why do/did you watch the following TV programmes? (Please tick all that apply)
TV Programme
I enjoyed it xx xxxxx xxxx xxx
I liked the characters x
I relate to it
My friends/family watch it xx xx x
There’s nothing else on at the same time x xx x x x
Do you watch any of the following TV programmes at times other than their original broadcast date? (Please tick all that apply)
TV Programme
+1 Service (eg C4+1, E4+1 etc.) xx x xx xx
On Demand (eg. 4OD, BBC iPlayer etc.) xxxx x xxx xx
DVD Boxset xxx x
Downloaded x
I recorded it x x x x
Repeat xx x x
Do any of your friends take drugs?
□ Yes xxxxxx
□ No xx
□ Prefer not to say
Have you ever taken drugs?
□ Yes (go to 9) xx
□ No (go to 10) xxxxx
□ Prefer not to say (go to 10) x
Why? (Please tick all that apply)
□ I was curious x
□ Peer pressure
□ It looked cool
□ It looked fun
□ I was bored
□ Everyone else was taking them
□ I saw it on TV/in a film
□ Song lyrics inspired me
□ Other (please specify)
- "it fell into my mouth whilst taking a well earned nap"
Have you noticed the use of or reference to drugs in any of the following programmes? (Please tick all that apply)
TV Programme
Yes, seen them used xx xx xxxxxx xxxx x x
Yes, they were mentioned x x x x x
No, they weren’t mentioned
No, they weren’t used
I didn’t notice x xx x

Drugs in Waterloo Road

Series 1 episode 5
Broadcast 06/04/06 on BBC1 at 8pm

Zak is seen with a pharmacy bag emptying pills into it before throwing away the jar/pot. Because he's late and has no homework his teacher, Grantly Budgen, mocked him with animal noises and said he must've been "too busy smoking crack" .

There were prominently displayed 'Talk To Frank' posters in the young offenders phone area.

Budgen says later "if you ask me, he's [Zak] a little junkie"

Zak shows symptoms of drug abuse - he's sniffing and wiping his nose - which leads staff to suggest he's abusing solvents.

When Zak runs off from the 'cooler' the staff assume he's "gone for a fix" and they'd have to "crawl all the neighbouring crack dens" to find him. It is interesting how only the staff mention drugs explicitly and see them as a problem yet don't appear to want to provide help for Zak.

Skins Themes By Episodes

Below, split by episode, are all the drug related events which were evident in series one of 'Skins':

Episode 1 - Tony
Tony implies using drugs on girls at a party will get Sid sex
Smoking on green
- social use of drugs
- Chris:"if you guys wanna waste your life watching television...can you not think of anything better to entertain yourselves with?" Jal "like...?" Chris "pills"
Sex is linked to drugs, Sid has to use "your balls are your collateral" with the drug dealer (Mad Twatter)
Sid's amount of drugs impresses Cassie
There's a class divide with drugs at Abbie's party
- Can't smoke in the house
- No one seems interested in them compared to a "Skins Party"
Cassie turns down drugs because they make her hungry
Cassie's "pilled up" by the end (she took a "shitload of pills" but doesn't say which, find out later it's sleeping pills)
- Shows lack of self control teenagers are supposed to have when around drugs

Episode 2 - Cassie
Mad Twatter turns up as a supply teacher & demands repayment from Sid for the drugs

Episode 3 - Jal
Clarinet's smashed up as price for not paying for drugs

Episode 4 - Chris
Feeds drugs to his fish
He's used viagra - 15 hour erection
He has a wall full of drug packets he's kept as trophies
Chris explains to a small child how to roll a spliff:
- Chris "so you look for the gummy bits yeah through the paper, lick it and then..."
- Boy "bruv, what papers you using, coz i heard TCI Whites..."
- Chris "nah man, they're um satisfying yeah, but the density's off and there's too much cellulose in the fibre"
- Boy (few minutes later) "I could shift a few ounces of this stuff...if you got a decent supplier"
Anwar remarks Chris' party "feels like speed dating for druggies. I don't know anyone here"
Tony says "I swear Chris gave these bastards [fish] speed. They move faster than normal fish do"
- He's more concerned with the fish than sex
Chris sells his hi-fi for pills which he feeds to the fish (with random objects such as clocks) whilst the footage has been edited to portray the effect drugs had on Chris
- Uses his last pill with fish when it's dead in the toilet
First thing Chris does after being rejected by his dad is light a spliff
- He leave it on his brother's gravestone after removing his mum's flowers - symbolic of his love
Chris takes pills he found in a draw without questioning them and sticks packet to wall like in his old room

Episode 5 - Sid
Maxxie's alternative to going to drama is "get stoned instead"
- Implies pills & drugs makes a good time
Cassie takes an overdose of pills with vodka after rejection by Sid

Episode 6 - Maxxie & Anwar
Sid swallows drugs to smuggle them into Russia
- Joke about Anwar wearing a turban links religion to drugs
Tony implies there's nothing to do without drugs when Sid can't get them out of his system

Episode 7 - Michelle
Tony & Maxxie share a spliff
- It's a sign of Tony's infidelity in Russia
Chris says "it's like an episode of the fucking OC in here"
- Reference to the slapping, arguing, cheating
Michelle turns to smoking when she's upset (as does her mother)

Episode 8 - Effy
Effy's smoking drugs
Tony smokes on his own
- It's not only social smoking
Effy smokes [insert drug here] and injects what is assumed to be heroin but turns out to be "clean pharmaceuticals"
Tony says "what's this, some kind of retro LSD thing?" about Chris' gathering
Effy & friend show effects of drugs/alcohol

BFI Trip

At the trip to the BFI I found some articles and quotes about Skins and The OC which might be quite useful for me with regards to the intentions of the creators, why certain things happen etc. There were, however, no particularly useful books instead I found an essay on one of the books which had a couple of useful quotes.

Useful Books I Might Find At The BFI

There's an article I found online (http://www.scope.nottingham.ac.uk/bookreview.php?id=132&issue=5) which is a review of the book 'Teen TV: Genre, Consuption & Identity' which might be useful for me to read if it's at the BFI. Another Review (http://www.participations.org/volume%201/issue%203/1_03_amychinn_review.htm)

Here's a description of the book:
'Teen TV is the first anthology dedicated to a broad range of television programs produced for and watched by teenagers. With extensive coverage of shows such as "Dawson's Creek, Roswell, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "and Australia's "Heartbreak High, "the book examines how these dramas construct and reaffirm distinct visions of youth. Addressing a number of provocative questions, the contributors ask: Is teen television a genre in its own right? What other narrative forms do these programs draw upon and why? How does teen TV interact with other entertainment industries, such as those of music and cinema? What position does teen TV hold within wider practices of consumption and identity inscription? The book offers a fascinating survey of the different forms teen TV takes and the many ways in which it is produced and consumed.'

Another book is 'Teen Dreams: Reading Teen Film and Television from 'Heathers' to 'Veronica Mars' ' which can be read at Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Teen-Dreams-Television-Heathers-Veronica/dp/1845111842/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b/277-5172471-0076904)