On Monday, CBS This Morning co-host Gayle King gushed over a smoking ban in Communist China that would forbid the use of tobacco in all indoor public spaces, calling the move “a good way to start.”
Norah O’Donnell explained that “Square dancers, young and old, helped usher in the ban which begins today. They performed outside the Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing yesterday under no smoking signs. The World Health Organization says 300 million people in China smoke. One-third of global lung cancer deaths occur in China.”
While King was quick to hail the Draconian smoking ban in China, CBS has taken a far different approach to the recent legalization of marijuana in the United States, with CBS This Morning running multiple segments promoting the emerging business over the past year.
Below is a sample of some of CBS This Morning’s most over-the-top promotion of the legalization of pot:
• On January 24, 2014 CBS hyped “cannabis capitalism” and “pot tours” throughout Colorado
• On April 24, 2014 CBS touted the best marijuana in Colorado called “ghost train haze”
• On June 17, 2014 Petersen promoted pot as an empowerment tool for women
• On October 27, 2014 CBS This Morning pushed the Marijuana ‘miracle’ in Colorado
• On November 26 2014 CBS wished its views a “Merry Marijuana” and a “Happy Cannabis!”
• On May 30, 2015 the pot-obsessed CBS This Morning highlighted “Facebook for stoners”
Given the potentially deadly effects marijuana has to public health, one would expect CBS to treat it the same as tobacco rather than serving as unofficial spokesmen for the marijuana industry.
