Weekly editor in Tennessee follows through on his public promise to report on drug addiction, and does it prominently

Bradley Martin

Rural weekly editor Brad Martin of Centerville, Tenn., is following through on his commitment to report on the crippling impact of drug addiction in his Tennessee county, holding up an uncomfortable mirror to his community on a topic that most rural newspapers pigeonhole as crime news.

Drug overdose deaths in Hickman County nearly doubled from 2019 to 2020, Martin recently reported in an above-the-fold story in the Hickman County Times. In addition to a sensitive, in-depth treatment of the phenomenon, he also showed the increasing danger of fentanyl by running a huge chart with an annual breakdown of what caused all county overdoses from 2017 to 2020.

On the opinion page, Martin's "From the porch" column reported that a local drug detective had heard this chilling scenario, not confirmed locally: "Fentanyl parties, 'where six or seven people get together,' with the lethal drug along with some Narcan and what he described as a 'designated driver.' That’s the person who does not partake but is prepared to apply Narcan 'to bring someone in the group back after an overdose'."

Hickman County (Wikipedia map)

That may be a myth, but the drug epidemic is fact, and Martin's column encourages readers to attend tonight's meeting of a local foundation "where addiction is front and center." He recalls how the county favorably responded to a rash of suicides in 2003. "I don’t think drug addiction is quite the same thing, but when a community comes together (witness: floods), things have been known to improve," he writes. "We have nothing to lose, and I must reiterate here that our absent friend, Superman, still is not expected to show up and save us."

Martin has been writing stories and columns on the topic since at least last December. In late January, he told readers that he intended to report on an aspect of drug addiction once a month this year. to download pages with his latest work on the topic, click here.