coverage of suicides
The Northwest Florida Daily News published a story in Friday's edition about an elderly couple who apparently commited suicide together in Crestview. They left a note in their mailbox, along with a key to the house, a list of next of kin, and $20 to cover the phone calls. Authorities found them inside the home with a generator running.
We covered this story due to the unusual and public nature of it.
But the truth is that suicide is one of the taboo issues that newspapers and other media rarely cover. We don't cover suicide because it makes everyone feel squeamish. Also, there is a strong belief that coverage of suicides embarrasses family members.
But suicide is a serious mental health issue, and I'm not at all sure that we're doing the right thing by keeping it in the closet.
Here's what I find to be startling statistics. In 2005 -- the latest year for which state statistics are available -- 14 people were homicide victims in Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties. During the same period, 67 people committed suicide in the three counties. Only slightly more people died in automobile accidents -- 74.
I think the number of suicides probably surprises many people, and their surprise is a result of society's general willingness to ignore the issue.
I'm interested in what others think about this. But I won't be surprised if the responses are minimal, given the nature of the subject and how it makes people feel.
posted by Patrick Rice @ 7:19 AM
9 Comments
9 Comments:
Well, aren't most people who commit suicide either depressed or severely isolated from society?
I hate to put things on different tiers, but it would seem that homicides and deaths by auto accident seem to be more of a priority (I know that's the wrong word choice) for the public. I’m not at all implying that the people who commit suicide are not any less important than homicide or auto accident victims, etc.
If someone is murdered or if they’re killed from a car accident, the public wants to know about it because they could be at risk.
The only reason I think suicides aren't covered greatly in the media is because homicides and auto accident deaths seem to be of immediate concern because they tend to affect more people.
My high school friend killed herself in her backyard by hanging herself on a swing set. No could think of a reason for why she did it. She was loved by many people. Sometimes, suicides can be the most mysterious, because the only person who knows is the victim themselves, it all goes on inside their heads as a mental issue.
Plus, it’s depressing as hell.
Perhaps the newspaper should have a mental health section - maybe within a health section. Health sections generally cover fitness and hospital news, such as hospital expansions; however, a section devoted to Local Health Related Issues might cover the number and types of suicides (no names) and how they could have been prevented; the number of homeless in our area and how many of them are related to mental conditions; how the classrooms have changed with the high number of children on ADD and ADHD medication (sort of a before and after medication was popular story); mental health in the workplace - how many people you work with are probably suffering from life threating mental disorders and how to spot the signs; road rage, the potential killer; and the list could go on and on.
Also, local health professionals can have Q&A sections.
I think most of this information is proactive in nature and most of news is reactive in the sense that it is reported after the fact. So, this type of information would be a bit of a change in "news" philosophy, but it would be very educaitonal and provide a great public service.
Thank you so much for being aware of social issues that affect us all ... whether they are hidden away in a homeless park or careening down the street cursing us.
Suicide should be covered just as any other news story... the idea thatthere are five times as many suicides as there are murders on our home turf is a shock... is this 'normal' or do people come here to die (like jumping from the golden gate)? granted, it's not as cheery as yet another sunset picture...
One reason that newspapers shouldn't cover suicides is the theory that by giving attention to the act, we're somehow glamorizing it. This is especially true after a teenager commits suicide. Many school administrators are opposed to publicizing the incident because they don't want any kids who might be considering suicide to think that this would be their chance to "go out in a blaze of glory." Believe it or not, I heard some people in Crestview refering to this couple's act as "romantic." NOTHING could be further from the truth. Suicide is NEVER romantic, NEVER glamorous, ALWAYS tragic.
I agree with anonymous. It is proven fact that, when people find out that it is ok to commit suicide, they tend to follow. And for the paper to publish suicides it is a "Go ahead" for the depressed. I used to work for the Juvenile Justice Department, and when one youth would attempt the other depressed would also. You want to keep the stories separted from the depressed.
I wonder if they'd just seen their property tax bill...
I disagree with this statement "But suicide is a serious mental health issue, and I'm not at all sure that we're doing the right thing by keeping it in the closet."
In some cases, maybe many cases, suicide is a mental health issue. In many, many others such as the subjects in the article, I feel that it is a reasoned end of life. When life no longer has any apeal or is too physically painful, what is wrong with suicide as the selected end? A person should have the option to end his/her life with dignity at the time that the person feels is appropriate. Relatives may not agree with the decision, but that is an emotional response that does not take into account the desires of the person wanting to end it all. In my opinion I feel that the relatives are being selfish.
I think that Dr. Kervorkian has a place in this world and should be honored instead of jailed.
A final question. Who else except the person most involved has the right to detemine when it is the appropriate time to leave this earthly existance?
I could never commit suicide, I love me too much...Hey, the worse the Social Security/Medicare financial situation gets, the more I advocate suicide (for other people of course)...But seriously folks, if I was terminally ill, I would probably move to Oregon...
Yes, suicide is a serious mental health issue. The time to keep this problem in the dark has long passed. By showing it, in all it's ugliness, in the harsh light of day, perhaps then we can begin taking steps to reduce it's occurrence in our county. My own opinion, is that regardless of why it may happen, the very act is the most selfish one possible.
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