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January 05, 2006
Covering suicide
I winced at our news meeting yesterday afternoon when the local news budget included a story about the suicide of a Belmont man who had made a guillotine and planted explosives in his house.
It was a sensational story - as one editor said at the meeting, the one story that all readers would read. When I came in this morning, another editor told me it was the only story that he had read from beginning to end.
At the news meeting, I decided the story did not belong on page one. I said to the editors that we needed to be careful how we covered suicide and how and where we played it in the paper.
Boiled down, the reasons for this care are three: Suicide is almost always the result of mental illness. Sensational news play further injures the families of suicide victims. And suicide stories can lead to other suicides.
My position reflected a longstanding journalistic practice. We generally do not cover suicides unless they are committed in a public place or as part of a murder-suicide or by a public figure. There are other exceptions, and probably the bizarre nature of the Belmont suicide made it newsworthy.
But for the most part, I think we’re right to under-cover and underplay suicides even though doing so runs counter to our responsibility to portray life and death in our coverage area fully and accurately. Below I’ve attached excerpts from an article in The Oregonian of Portland arguing that newspapers need to revisit the issue of suicide coverage. (For the full story, click here.)
We gave the Belmont suicide story prominent play on page B1. If I had followed through in directing its placement, we would have played it even more modestly.
The Union Leader, by the way, led page one with the story under a large bold headline: “Man dies in grisly suicide.”
I often consider whether what we play above the fold on the front page will help newsstand sales. Any editor must do this in these difficult times for newspapers. But until someone convinces me otherwise, I’m still old-school on the subject of suicide.
(A letter to the editor from the sister of the suicide victim protesting aspects of our coverage will appear in tomorrow's Monitor.)
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Excerpts from the story in The Oregonian:
“Like newspapers across the country, The Oregonian is cautious in reporting suicides, typically writing about only those that occurred in public places, particularly if they drew public attention, or that involved a well-known person.
“The newspaper chose to report extensively on the death of a girl who killed herself in the parking lot of Yamhill-Carlton High School in part because the death was so public and caused so much pain to a small community. But the newspaper did not write about the death of a man who killed himself in the parking lot of Beaverton City Hall, partly because the death in a vehicle did not draw much public attention, despite its location.
“Suicide poses ethical conflicts for journalists.
“The privacy of individuals and families argues against stories about suicides. Also, research indicates certain suicide coverage might spur other deaths.
“But newspapers have the responsibility to reflect accurately what is occurring in the community and the potential to provide a public service in explaining what contributes to suicide. . . .
“A study of suicide rates and media coverage in six cities reaffirmed past research indicating that coverage can potentially influence other suicides, particularly among younger, vulnerable people.
“Dan Romer, director of the Adolescent Risk Communication Institute of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, says the research findings, which are to be published in 2006, also emphasize that the way suicide is covered is critical.
“That’s why he and other experts do not say don’t cover suicide; they argue for covering it with care and in ways that educate people about the causes. He says coverage should avoid glorifying or detailing the act and should not be sensational or prominent. Coverage also should recognize that most suicides involve people who are clinically depressed, and care should be given not to link it to a recent breakup or job loss.
“In reviewing hundreds of suicide stories, Romer says he has seen what readers of The Oregonian see – a skewed portrait that shows suicides occurring in public, as part of murder-suicides or with well-known people.
“A more-detailed portrait might lead to helping the public address suicide. More coverage might lead to more public discussion of the glaring need for mental health services, particularly for adolescents suffering from depression.”
Posted by Mike Pride at January 5, 2006 03:42 PM
Comments
As the reporter who broke the story, I can certainly agree that the subject is among the more difficult for both editors and staff writers.
I found your editorial interesting as it provided insight into a decision-making process that some may believe goes on with little consideration for those whom might be hurt.
Geoff Cunningham Jr.
The Citizen
Posted by: Geoff Cunningham at January 5, 2006 07:04 PM
It's a chame you don't cover more suicide, the more you hide it, the more attractive it is.
Posted by: Billy Bob at January 13, 2006 08:51 AM