The Chosen Word

On February 21, more than 50 people - journalists and members of several community groups - met at our "Words Count" forum to discuss perceptions created in the minds of the public by the words we all use.

HOW WE SPEAK ABOUT SUICIDE

Mary Kluesner of Suicide Awareness/Voices of Education (SA/VE), said she'd like to see the media help the public separate myth from fact when it comes to suicide.

The greatest public misconception about suicide, she said, is the idea that life events "cause" suicide. "People die of disease; they don't die of divorce." But the latter view may be the one created when articles about a suicide include information about relationship or financial problems, but do not include information about a person's history of mental illness.

Kluesner asked the media to change their focus: consider covering suicide from the perspective of prevention. "It happened with AIDS. First there were opinion and news stories, then prevention. That's how we should cover it."

The greatest contributing factor to suicide is depression, which often goes undiagnosed and untreated. Kathy Kelso of the Mental Health Association of Minnesota applauded the St. Paul Pioneer Press for publishing tips to help identify signs of depression. She'd like to see it as a regular sidebar to all relevant stories.

Mary Kluesner challenged the news media to switch from using the phrase "committed suicide" to "completed suicide," a phrase she says researchers use because it better reflects that suicide is a process, not a single, aberrant event.

Warren Wolfe, a reporter for the Star Tribune, said he opposed such a change because readers would not understand the phrase. "We try to be as precise as we can be while still communicating with a broad audience."

Mollie Hoben, publisher of the Minnesota Women's Press took a different view. She said the mission of the Women's Press is "writing to change the way we think... That is the challenge for those of us reporting about movements trying to change societal perceptions." She said she would use the term "completed," explaining its usage to readers a number of times.

In 1989 public health and media professionals outlined, in a report for the Centers for Disease Control, guidelines for media reporting on suicide. They wanted to minimize the risk of suicide "contagion" - the increase in suicide or suicidal behavior among vulnerable people, particularly young people 15-24 - after a report in the media.

Media coverage, per se, doesn't increase the risk of further suicides; but several characteristics of coverage are believed to increase the risk:

Giving simplistic explanations for suicide
Presenting suicide as a tool for accomplishing certain ends

Most people who attempt or complete a suicide have a long history of problems; the final precipitating event is usually not the "cause," but it is often presented as if it were. Pinpointing the break-up of a relationship or specific problems with peers or parents as the cause of a suicide suggests to other susceptible youth that suicide is a way to deal with the problems of life.

Glorifying the person who commits suicide
Focusing on the suicide completer's positive characteristics

Reports of community grief and solidarity, such as public memorials to the dead person, suggest to people at risk that society is honoring the deceased rather than mourning a death.

Interviews with friends and family that focus on the positive aspects of the suicide completer without mentioning his or her problems make suicide appear attractive - especially to those who rarely receive positive reinforcement, such as troubled youth.

Repetitive, ongoing or excessive reporting
Sensational coverage
Reporting detailed descriptions of suicide method

HOW WE TALK ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH

Prominent or ongoing coverage of suicides promotes a preoccupation with suicide among the public in general and at-risk youth in particular. Dramatic or morbid photos of the victim, the scene of the death, the funeral or personal effects can glamorize the death. By providing details of the suicide, news reports make it easier for others to imitate the suicide.How we talk about mental health

If a criminal has a history of mental illness, that is always mentioned in news stories, said John Whalen, Executive Director of the Alliance for the Mentally Ill in Minnesota. But he wondered why no one asks the next logical question: "Why, if this person is psychotic, is he or she out on the street?"

Whalen works with families who have mentally ill family members in prison. In all but one case, the individual (or his or her family ) sought treatment within the two weeks prior to the offense, but was denied service.

"There's a societal responsibility here that's not being met, and it's not being covered in the news media either," said Whalen. Kathy Kelso wanted to see greater understanding of the connection between mental illness and chemical dependency. She said people with mental illness often try to self-medicate with alcohol or drugs; conversely, long-term abuse of alcohol and drugs leads to depression.

HOW WE TALK ABOUT DISABILITY

Community participants complained that the media portray people with disabilities in one of two stereotypical ways: as helpless victims dependent upon society for financial support, or as inspirational heroes. When reporters asked how to avoid those stereotypes, participants asked them to cover issues rather thing personalities.

Reporters responded that by using compelling personal stories to dramatize issues news outlets are more likely to get people to continue to read or watch the story and to understand it.

But participants said the media simply didn't cover the issues that were important to people with disabilities. For example, the Metro Mobility strike: "It wasn't an issue until the governor called in the National guard. It wasn't important that we couldn't get to our jobs," said Linda Wolford of the Student Diversity Institute at the University of Minnesota.

Not all the barriers experienced by people with disabilities arise from their disability, said one participant. She said many barriers result from public attitudes or the bureaucratic system, and media coverage doesn't reflect that.

Wolford, who uses a wheelchair, cited recent instances in which disability was equated with a fate worse than death. A few months ago, a news anchor introduced Christopher Reeve as someone "who's handled the worst life has to give." Wolford said she could think of a number of things worse than being in a wheelchair.

In the same vein, Brian Altman of the United Cerebral Palsy Association, said he often sees people with cerebral palsy described as "victims" of the disease, or as "confined to a wheelchair." He'd rather have the media do stories that promote empathy, not sympathy.

David Michela, a reporter for KTCA-TV, responded by saying reporters cringe at the suggestion that they should promote anything: It's simply their job to report accurately.

Michela said his station is trying to do more than ask people from a certain community to comment only on the issues of that community. Rather, the station is trying to include a variety of people in every kind of story.

Lolly Lijewski, a blind journalist working for the Metro Center for Independent Living, pointed to an excellent broadcast story about problems heavy snowfalls created for people with disabilities, but she was disappointed by stereotypical comments the anchor made after the segment.

Michelaagreed that the anchor had been insensitive, but said "At least you got through to one person (the reporter). It takes time, but it has an impact."

He encouraged attendees to help reporters broaden their sources, much as the Minneapolis Initiative Against Racism has done by producing a resource directory of news sources in communities of color.

HOW WE TALK ABOUT ADOPTION/BIRTH FAMILIES

Discussion continues about words used to describe the process of placing a child for adoption and the relationship of that child to his or her adoptive family. Forum participants have been exchanging letters to try to better understand conflicting positions.

Mary Mason, an adoptive parent and an adopted person, cautioned the media to avoid describing families as having "children of their own and one adopted child." Genevieve Marault of Concerned United Birthparents (CUB) was surprised to hear that this was offensive.

Joan Peters (CUB) said the phrase "put up for adoption" harks back to the slave trade, when people were "put up" for sale. CUB prefers the term "relinquish," but a representative from Resources for Adoptive Parents suggested the phrase "make an adoption plan." Marault disagreed, saying that phrase doesn't acknowledge that birth mothers often are coerced into placing their children for adoption.

Mason wrote to Marault: "My hope is that more and more participants can, at forums such as the Minnesota News Council, have their voice heard, and not by just the media but by each other."

The Chosen Word: A discussion of appropriateness