By Tara Haelle
(originally posted July 8, 2016; updated June 8, 2018)
When reporting on suicide, it’s important not only for reporters to have reliable data but also to be conscientious about the language and tone they use. Suicide is one of the unique topics in which the very reporting of it can influence how much more frequently it happens, so simply doing your job as a journalist has the unfortunate potential to influence the news itself in this scenario.
The tips below are a quick-and-dirty list from the World Health Organization’s guide, “Preventing Suicide: A Resource for Media Professionals.”
The resource summarizes the research on the effects of media reporting on suicide while encouraging caution in how it’s reported. More than 50 studies have looked at suicide imitation behavior that can result from media reporting on suicide, though the strength of the effect varies based on how long the suicide is covered, the intensity and repetition of the coverage, the detail about the suicide method provided and the individual who died.
Though the effects of suicide imitative behavior typically levels off after about two weeks, systematic reviews have shown, it can last longer, particularly in the case of a much-loved or otherwise highly regarded celebrity. (The guide provides specific citations to the research as well.) The death of Robin Williams, for example, led to a great deal of criticism, reflection, navel-gazing and course-correcting from the BBC, the Guardian (several times), CNN, Yahoo, International Business Times, Newsweek, Huffington Post, Salon, New Scientist and many other publications.
The WHO resource “recognizes that there are times when a suicide will need to be reported on the grounds of its newsworthiness,” the guide’s introduction states. “It makes suggestions about how best to ensure that such reporting is accurate, responsible and ethical.” The main points are listed below, and the guide goes into more detail about each of these.
• Take the opportunity to educate the public about suicide
• Avoid language which sensationalizes or normalizes suicide, or presents it as a solution to problems
• Avoid prominent placement and undue repetition of stories about suicide
• Avoid explicit description of the method used in a completed or attempted suicide
• Avoid providing detailed information about the site of a completed or attempted suicide
• Word headlines carefully
• Exercise caution in using photographs or video footage
• Take particular care in reporting celebrity suicides
• Show due consideration for people bereaved by suicide
• Provide information about where to seek help
• Recognize that media professionals themselves may be affected by stories about suicide
Aside from the WHO guide, the Reporting on Suicide website and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention both offer guidelines. Also, the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, in a post specifically about the reporting in Robin Williams’ death, noted the following other resources for responsible reporting on suicide:
- The Samaritans’ Media Guidelines
- The World Health Organisation’s Advice
- Suicide Prevention Resource Centre
- Mindframe Australia
- Suicide.org
Update from June 8, 2018:
- The Poynter Institute has published “Best practices for covering suicide responsibly.”
- The Dart Center for Journalism & Trauma has a number of resources for reporting on suicide.
- How the news media impacts suicide trends: Research roundup, from Journalist’s Resource at Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy.
Tara Haelle is AHCJ’s medical studies core topic leader. Haelle is a freelance journalist and multimedia photographer who has particularly focused on medical studies over the past five years. Her work has appeared in Scientific American, The Washington Post, Politico, Slate, NOVA, Wired and Science. If you have suggestions for Haelle, questions you’d like to see answered or examples of medical studies you’d like guidance on, please send them to tara@healthjournalism.org.
