The Drug Issue

November 2024

A member-exclusive digital magazine unpacking the big ideas changing our present and shaping our future.

JooHee Yoon for Vox

Drugs are a perennial American preoccupation, from the war on illicit ones to our massive pharmaceutical industry. For the November issue of The Highlight, Vox reporters looked into the pressing drug questions of the moment: What happens when weed replaces alcohol? Given high costs and various medication shortages, how much do expiration dates matter? What is pink cocaine? We even have an interview with a biohacking anarchist about DIY medicine for The Highlight podcast.

These are some of the questions our writers tackle in our member-exclusive November issue of The Highlight, our exploration of the strange world of drugs and their impact on American culture.

We hope you enjoy the issue. Happy reading!

—Julia Rubin, senior editorial director of culture and features

Inside the issue

EDITOR SPOTLIGHT

How weed won over America

by Marin Cogan

Land of the free, home of the blazed.

CULTURE

What in the world is pink cocaine?

by Celia Ford

It’s not cocaine, but it can be just about anything else — except a good idea.

HEALTH

Are drug expiration dates meaningless?

by Keren Landman, MD

That Tylenol’s shelf life is longer than you think.

FUTURE PERFECT

The world’s most mysterious psychedelic is already inside your brain

by Oshan Jarow

DMT, “the nuclear bomb of the psychedelic family,” explained.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE

How marijuana legalization played itself

by Lavanya Ramanathan

Pricey, legal weed is great news — for the black market.

Read the full issue

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