Negotiating Responsibility: Media Representations of Prescription Stimulants in Australian Newspapers (2013–2022).

This article analyzes how Australian print media have ideologically framed prescription stimulant (PS) use from 2013 to 2022, focusing on narratives around medical legitimacy, cognitive enhancement, and deviance. Drawing on 122 articles from eight major newspapers with differing political leanings, it finds that right-leaning outlets emphasize overprescription, individual responsibility, and risks associated with PS use, while left-leaning outlets highlight social determinants and barriers to medication access. The study reveals a temporal shift from concerns about overprescription to underdiagnosis and medication scarcity, particularly in ADHD treatment, and shows how drugs like Ritalin and Modafinil symbolize broader societal debates on normalcy, productivity, and self-governance. Media portrayals categorize users by innocence or deviance and function as technologies of governance that reinforce neoliberal ideals of self-regulation and optimization.