Jenna van Draanen

Background and Objectives Legalization of recreational cannabis is occurring across the United States, with some controversy. To understand the range of issues that can arise when such a policy change is enacted, we examined portrayal of legalization at the local level by studying newspaper articles in Calgary, Alberta, shortly before and after cannabis legalization in Canada. Method We searched the largest‐circulation newspaper for cannabis‐related items and analyzed for content and slant toward cannabis legalization. Results Among 165 items, business/economics (70.9% of items) and legalization (69.7%) were most frequent, with health only 29.7%. Across all items, the slant was more approval (44.2%) than disapproval (23.0%). Discussion and Conclusions When cannabis was legalized, the local newspaper focused more on economic aspects of legalization rather than about health issues. Further research can determine the generalizability of the findings to other locales and provide comparison as other similar policy changes roll out. Scientific Significance The study provides new information on what happens when drug policies are enacted. Documenting the media portrayal of substance use policies is a promising tool.