Media Reporting of Suicide in India (2020) Werther effect and Papageno effect analysis скачать в хорошем качестве

Media Reporting of Suicide in India (2020) Werther effect and Papageno effect analysis

Irresponsible reporting of suicide by Media has repeatedly been shown to trigger suicidal behaviour. A study done by AIIMS, New Delhi on Indian Media reporting of suicide and adherence to WHO guidelines. The title of the study was "the quality of online media reporting of celebrity suicide in India and its association with subsequent online suicide-related search behaviour among the general population: An infodemiology study" by Prof Rajesh Sagar and his colleagues was published in Asian Journal of Psychiatry. Quality of media reporting of a celebrity suicide on online media in India is poor when compared to adherence with the WHO guidelines. In terms of potentially harmful media reportage, 85.5% of them violated at least one WHO media reporting guideline, with use of sensational language and mention of suicide site being the most common ones. In terms of potentially helpful media reportage, 13% provided information about where to seek help for suicidal thoughts or ideation, and only 2% included a mental health expert opinion while reporting suicide. The study concluded that there is an urgent need for taking steps to improve the quality of media reporting of suicide in India. Media reporting of suicide is a double-edged sword, with inappropriate and sensational reporting of suicide news leading to a copycat phenomenon or Werther effect or contagious suicide. Whereas, sensible media reporting of suicide along with media involvement in spreading preventive information shown to minimize copycat effects, and has been shown to be effective in reducing suicide deaths (Cheng et al., 2018).