CPP Media Literacy & Public Awareness 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which media framing technique is most likely to increase public stigma around substance use disorders?
- Depicting addiction as a chronic brain disease
- Using 'junkie' or 'addict' labels in news headlines (Correct answer)
- Highlighting recovery success stories
- Showing treatment resources alongside problem coverage
Correct answer: Using 'junkie' or 'addict' labels in news headlines
Pejorative labels like 'junkie' or 'addict' in media reinforce stigma and discourage help-seeking behavior.
Question 2: A prevention specialist wants to counter a viral social media post glamorizing binge drinking. The BEST first step is to:
- File a complaint with the platform's content moderation team
- Assess the post's reach and audience demographics before responding (Correct answer)
- Immediately post counter-messaging on the same platform
- Alert law enforcement about the harmful content
Correct answer: Assess the post's reach and audience demographics before responding
Understanding the post's reach and target audience allows the specialist to craft a proportionate and strategically placed counter-message.
Question 3: The 'third-person effect' in media studies is relevant to prevention because it explains why people:
- Overestimate their own vulnerability to drug use
- Believe media influences others more than themselves, underestimating personal risk (Correct answer)
- Rely on third-party sources rather than official health agencies
- Prefer third-party endorsements in public service announcements
Correct answer: Believe media influences others more than themselves, underestimating personal risk
The third-person effect causes individuals to underestimate media's influence on their own attitudes, a barrier to effective prevention messaging.
Question 4: Which characteristic BEST distinguishes a public service announcement (PSA) from paid advertising in substance use prevention?
- PSAs always feature celebrity endorsers
- PSAs are aired at no cost as a community service by media outlets (Correct answer)
- PSAs are produced exclusively by government agencies
- PSAs must include a toll-free hotline number
Correct answer: PSAs are aired at no cost as a community service by media outlets
PSAs are broadcast by media outlets free of charge as a public service, unlike paid advertisements that require purchased airtime.
Question 5: In evaluating a prevention media campaign, 'reach' is defined as:
- The emotional impact of the campaign message on viewers
- The total number of unique individuals exposed to the campaign (Correct answer)
- The number of times a message is broadcast
- The geographic area covered by the campaign
Correct answer: The total number of unique individuals exposed to the campaign
Reach measures the total number of unique individuals who were exposed to the campaign message at least once.
Question 6: A community coalition notices local news consistently covers drug arrests but rarely covers treatment successes. This pattern BEST illustrates:
- Investigative journalism standards
- Agenda-setting theory — media shapes what the public considers important (Correct answer)
- The watchdog function of a free press
- Confirmation bias among reporters
Correct answer: Agenda-setting theory — media shapes what the public considers important
Agenda-setting theory holds that media coverage influences which issues the public perceives as significant, affecting prevention priorities.
Question 7: When designing prevention messages for adolescents on social media, research suggests messages are MOST effective when they:
- Emphasize long-term health consequences in detailed statistics
- Feature peer voices and are delivered in platform-native formats (Correct answer)
- Are produced exclusively by health professionals for credibility
- Focus solely on legal consequences of substance use
Correct answer: Feature peer voices and are delivered in platform-native formats
Adolescents are most responsive to peer-normed messages delivered in formats native to the platforms they use, improving engagement and believability.
CPP Media Literacy & Public Awareness 2
Which media framing technique is most likely to increase public stigma around substance use disorders?