June 2003 Workshop

On animal models of addiction. . .
"An excellent presenter. Funny and lively."
"Very easy to understand. Nice to be brief. Good story ideas. Monkeys and addiction is a surprising fact."
"This was extremely tempered and unbiased, which made it all the more useful."

On the history of drugs in the U.S. . .
"The historical perspective was fascinating and absolutely necessary to understand the subject matter. Especially enjoyable were the vintage ads." "Great background."
"Very good - loved the old advertisements."
"Very well presented and informative."
"Very informative."
"Very interesting."
"Really important to have this background to be prepared to understand (and put in context) the rest of the workshop."
"This was very new information to me - it helped to hear the history of these drugs and addiction treatment."

On the neurobiology of addiction. . .
"A great lecturer . . . the presentation was a good big-picture overview."
"Nice use of layman's language to describe complex topics."
"Content and style of presentation were excellent. This was a well-presented introduction to the science of addiction as a brain disorder. I found it essential to understanding pharmacology and genetics sections."
"The diagrams were helpful."
"A lot of information very easily told."
"Extremely informative. Great humor - lots of information."
"Really interesting and well-presented for those of us with nothing beyond high school science. 'Journalist-friendly' in other words."
"Very interesting, easy to understand."

On the pharmacology of addiction. . .
"The animation and adding pathways to the receptor diagrams one-by-one were both helpful teaching tools."
"Great animation. Repetition is good for something this complicated. Maybe time prohibits more repetition, but don't eliminate what you've got."
"Very good explanation - good teacher - complicated concepts told very simply."
"I liked and appreciated the audio/video component - even the repetition - I have a much clearer picture of how fast and slow neurotransmitters work and how they're related to addiction."
"You are a biology professor that makes sense. Keep it up."
"This is a difficult lecture to present to mostly non-bio majors. . . . Still, it was an important lecture to hear. Great!"

On the genetics of addiction. . .
"This workshop is essential. Genetics is one of the most interesting elements of addiction (to me at least) and should be included in all of your workshops."
"Enforcing the idea of addiction as a disease of the brain is useful and this gave me a number of story ideas."

On the personal side of addiction. . .
"Damn good speech! I can see that she's a powerful spokesperson."
"It couldn't be improved. Riveting and tremendously gutsy, brave."
"She was fabulous."
"Outstanding presentation."
"Her candidness was amazing. I would not have her change anything. For a journalist, getting that level of candidness from a 'subject' is rare, and this will help us approach our 'subjects' with more compassion and knowledge."
"Great! Liked the placement after scientific to have the personal side. The only way to improve would be to make it longer - allow more time for questions and answers. Also if she could provide personal insight into story ideas and how journalists could cover addiction it would have been nice."
"Her honestly was helpful and admirable. Her personal experiences do help me piece together the day's lectures."
"Very dynamic and enthusiastic."
"I gained more from this than everything else."
"She is an amazing, inspiring person and an essential component of this program. Especially relevant for journalists, as a former CNN anchor."
"Very moving and passionate."

On the treatment of addiction. . .
"Good break from the first day's topics."
"Quite informative."
"He was outstanding."
"It was really helpful and clearly explained."
"Exceptional! This gave me several story ideas - I could have heard more presentations on this - and more about the types of treatment - detox, rehab, follow-up - and what's available where and why."
"[Would like] more information on whether treatment success varies based on drug type."
"Excellent - no improvement needed!"
"First day led nicely into this session - answered all the questions I think many of us are asking."
"Great - Very informative."
"Excellent, interesting, crucial in this workshop."
"Very lively and understanding - would like to see more resources as part of this presentation (i.e., websites, studies.)"

On welfare, addiction, and policy. . .
" Fascinating and important information."
"Very interesting. Interesting research."
"The information was really relevant and useful."

On treatment medications. . .
"Probably my favorite lecturer. Fascinating, practical stuff. The expert rather than an expert."
"Very informative, he's obviously a national authority."
"Good information - nicely done!"
"Allow more time since there was so much information."
"More time."
"Very interesting."
"Good info for medical reporters."
"This one could have used a bit more time. I would have liked to hear more of his anecdotal information."
"This topic could've filled the whole day."

On reliable sources of drug information. . .
"A good way to conclude the workshop. Keep this part in there each year."
"Extremely practical - very helpful."
"Wide variety of resources - well done."
"I liked the dialogue, and the links. Perhaps this would have been a good session in which to do a 'scenarios' discussion."
"Thank you! I am always looking for information on the web and it's nice to know which sites are recommended."
"Thanks for printing out the homepages of the websites."
"Very useful websites, etc."
"This was great way to end the workshop."

Additional Advice. . .
"Keep up the good work. The idea behind the program is sound. Tweak it but don't dramatically change. I believe, given time, the program will have a positive impact."
"Thank you very much!"
"Keep up the good work."
"This workshop organized and printed information better than any other workshop I've attended. I will recommend it."
"Thanks for including all the speaker's slides in this package - that is so helpful. And thanks for the business cards in back - and all the names and emails of attendees. Great package! Thank you - excellent!"
"Great as it is."
"Very well organized workshop. Great and informative speakers."
"The program is extremely legitimate, which I searched out myself beforehand, but it may be useful to make that even more apparent on your website, and the letter you send out (by focusing on the scientific aspect, the lack of any religious/political bias, etc.) I imagine some journalists suspect that there're "ulterior motives," and perhaps could be pointed to the appropriate websites, etc., to confirm for themselves that that's not the case."
"You guys are pros."
"Keep up the good work."

On the workshop overall. . .
"The workshop was sufficiently broad in scope and varied in topics. I gained pretty much what I expected to gain from coming - namely a new appreciation for how intractable addiction is and how behavior and genetics and environment all play key roles. It was very helpful to hear from scientists."
"It was terrific. Very informative. The knowledge I've gained as well as the contacts will prove invaluable when I write drug-related stories down the road."
"I had a feeling leaning toward addiction as disease. Workshop has helped confirm and validate those feelings."
"Thank you!"
"Story ideas, depth of education."
"It exceeded my expectations. I learned a lot."
"The program more than met my expectations."
"It was not only well-run, but jam-packed with useful information and ways to use the information."
"I now want to do a big 'Sunday Package' on the myths of addiction and treatment and how people in my coverage area can get proper treatment."
"Extremely informative."
"The workshop exceeded my expectations. It was thorough, well-organized, appropriately 'simplified' for journalists and extremely interesting. I am very glad I attended."
"This was wonderful. Thank you for putting it on."
"It was the right size, number of participants; the presenters were largely excellent and the location was superb. Too short - three days."
"It will lead me not to take claims at face value from either side of the debate - the issue of addiction is too complicated for that. It has given me access to authoritative sources and new ideas for enterprise stories."
"Points toward many resources."
"Definitely provided more details/contacts for future reference and story ideas."
"I've gained a much deeper understanding of the biological factors playing a role in addiction. Great information - communicated in an easy, interesting manner. Can really use the knowledge and expand." "I think the best result of this workshop will be to help journalists avoid perpetuating the stereotypes our society has about drug addiction, and drug addicts."
"I got a number of story ideas from this."
"Great sources to rely on in the future."
"The program has helped me recognize nuances and added a layer of empiricism to my reporting. Now when someone says it's all genetic or all behavioral, I'll know that it's somewhere in the middle, depending on the addict."
"It has made me much more knowledgeable. And now I have practically all the best resources at my fingertips."
"Expanded what I know; put me in touch with new sources."
"Gives me a stronger sense of doing more detailed or in-depth articles."
"Learned more specifics on how drugs affect the brain - more specifics."
"I have a better idea of where to turn for facts. I now understand the differences between use, abuse and addiction. I now understand why, chemically, people become addicted."
"With a ton of competition for health stories, it will make addiction on the top again."
"I will still look for human interest stories - but I have the better background to start from."
"I'll be able to include better background in my stories about various studies into addiction."
"I have better overall understanding and will look at addiction more holistically."
"There are so many issues to include. We received concrete studies and analogies to utilize when writing."
"I think the big change will be that I will take addiction/drug problems into consideration more often while doing stories on general social issues."
"The program certainly gave me more resources and insight that will inform my reporting."
"Sources and websites very helpful."
"My addiction and drug use stories are more likely to stem from my criminal justice reporting, but when I have the chance to do some enterprise work, I'll use material from the workshop. And I will give more than lip service to treatment and recovery."
"Want to look at impact of drug abuse on law enforcement. How society deals with problems, especially focused on my areas."
"I will write a column on my attendance here and something I learned and I will look for stories. I have my editor's approval to start work on a series of articles on drug addiction. Immediately will be using materials. Would like to do further research on various topics."
"When writing stories about addiction, I will definitely use these resources and likely call some of these scientists."
"The material reinforced, through scientific findings, the idea of addiction as a disease, but helped me realize it's not as easy as many would say to recover - it takes a tremendous amount of resources."
"It gave me a better sense of the research that is being done in this area."
"I always suspected that there was more to addiction than meets the eye, but this workshop gave me the facts to back up that hunch and argue it to those who say otherwise."
"Comparing drug addiction to other chronic diseases was fascinating. Enjoyed getting perspective of treating addiction as chronic disease, especially since this has not yet gained acceptance in medical community. Good to know where science is headed."
"Even mealtimes have been educational. It's great that the presenters mix with the journalists and share additional info during downtime."
"Very well organized - good location - great speakers and conferees."
"This is an incredible information-packed experience."
"Step it up - this is a necessary service."
"Wonderful - great information - good chance to meet others and learn more."
"Instructors are lively, interesting and articulate, and I'm amazed by how much information was squeezed into two days."

What June workshop participants liked most...
"The overall objective; the scope and variety of presentations and lecturers; the overall intent of the program; the qualifications of the organizers and presenters; and the emphasis on educating journalists in order to improve addiction reporting."
"The variety and in-depth nature of the presentations."
"Dinner speaker’s talk; history; interaction with other reporters; interaction with other professionals."
"The treatment lecture presented scientific data in best way; the dinner speaker’s talk was most moving."
"Discussion, historical and pharmacological overviews, resource presentation."
"The wealth of information, contacts, websites is wonderful. Thank you for not overly dumbing down the science."
"The intense science education."
"Treatment, history lectures; talking with other reporters."
"Its focus on hard, scientific evidence, the variety of speakers, tackling the tougher issues such as
chemical and genetic information."
"The small size of the group was very conducive to discussion, networking, explaining all the issues from a variety of research areas. Presenters were very good at explaining complex research in an understandable way. Good job!"
"The accessibility and openness of all presenters."
"Treatment lecture and dinner speech."
"The research regarding alcohol - genetics, treatment and brain."
"The presenters are lively and interesting, all of the information was relevant and up-to-date and the scholarship was greatly appreciated (and crucial for attendance in my case.)"
"The information was presented in an easy-to-understand format, and it was useful to talk informally after the presentations."
"New treatments - shift in treatment approach (chronic disease.)"
"Everything."
"Mingling with the reporters/scientists; informed interactions and spin-off conversations."

Sue Rusche
Co-Director
Addiction Studies Program for Journalists
Chairman, President, and CEO
National Families in Action
Atlanta, Georgia

Herbert Kleber, M.D.
Professor of Psychiatry
Columbia University
Director, Division on Substance Abuse
College of Physicians and Surgeons and the New York State Psychiatric Institute
New York, New York

Donna M. Kozlowski
Coordinator, Addiction Studies Program for Journalists
Administrative Secretary
Wake Forest University School of Medicine Department of Physiology and Pharmacology
Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Tom McLellan, Ph.D.
Director, Treatment Research Institute
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Susan Rook
Recovery Advocate
Alexandria, Virginia

Rochelle “Shelly” Schwartz-Bloom, Ph.D.
Professor of Pharmacology
Duke University Medical Center
Department of Pharmacology & Cancer Biology
Durham, North Carolina

Mark Wright
Associate Director of News and Media
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Public Relations and Marketing
Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Kent E. Vrana, Ph.D.
Professor
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Department of Physiology and Pharmacology
Winston-Salem, North Carolina