Is This The Definition Of Cognitive Dissonance?

By AR - Assuming it can be applied to a newspaper as an entity, I think the SMH could be diagnosed as suffering/exhibiting (???) cognitive dissonance. Consider these two headlines, both appearing a couple of centimetres apart on the online edition's front page:

PM Attacks Drug Users - "A re-elected coalition government would take control of the welfare payments of people convicted of offences involving hard drugs, Prime Minister John Howard announced today."
and
Four In Five Ice Users Agitated Or Violent - "Ice addicts are so violent and aggressive that emergency hospital staff need skilled security guards and personal alarms to keep themselves safe, a report warns."

Other news media ran the first story under AAP's headline "Howard Promises Renewed Attack On Drugs," but SMH obviously sees a better angle: Don't say the PM is fighting drugs, fer chrissakes. Make the focus the poor old drug user who Howard wants to make life even harder for. Never mind the next report telling of the serious safety concerns drug users are causing emergency services.

Maybe they think the Greens drug policy is the right one? "It's not a criminal issue - it's a health issue."
Anyway, taking away junkies dole money is yet another reason to vote for Howard.

MK - Good catch AR, I managed to get a screen-shot of this, click on the thumbnail to see the full image.

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