Abstract
Background:Irresponsible media reporting of suicide is a potential risk for copycat suicide. There is a paucity of studies from sub-Saharan Africa on the quality of media reporting of suicide.Objectives:We assessed the compliance of Ghanaian online media outlets with the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for media reporting of suicide.Methods:We searched 10 local media outlets with strong online presence in Ghana, to identify suicide-related news reports from 2000 through 2019. We applied summative content analysis and chi-square test to the data.Results:We included 288 news reports, of which 261 (90.6%) were completed suicides, 7 (2.4%) were attempted suicides and 20 (6.9%) were homicide suicides. Most of the news reports failed to comply with the WHO guidelines: 92.7% mentioned the specific method of the suicide act, 82.6% included ‘suicide’ in the headline and 55.6% included photos of the victims. The tests indicated that privately owned media outlets were more likely than publicly owned to post a photo of the victim, = 17.37, p < .001, and report the incident location in the headline, = 15.00, p < .001. However, generally, there were no statistically significant relationships between the quality of reporting and media outlet ownership. Each of the 288 reports failed to mention any of the potentially helpful features recommended by the WHO guidelines.Conclusion:Regardless of the ownership of the media outlet (whether private or publicly owned), mostly, the online reportage of suicidal behaviour in Ghana deviates sharply from the international recommended best practice by the WHO.
Highlights
Suicide is newsworthy (Machlin et al, 2013; Sullivan, 2007); irresponsible media reporting of the phenomenon has been implicated as a risk factor for death by suicide, in vulnerable groups within the population (Niederkrotenthaler et al, 2009, 2010; Sinyor, Schaffer, Nishikawa, et al, 2018; Sisask & Värnik, 2012; World Health Organization [WHO], 2014)
We reviewed the contents of news reports on suicide and suicidal behaviours in Ghana from 2000 through 2019
A total of 288 news reports drawn from public (n = 62 (21.5%)) and privately owned (n = 226 (78.5%)) online media outlets met the inclusion criteria for this study
Summary
Suicide is newsworthy (Machlin et al, 2013; Sullivan, 2007); irresponsible media reporting of the phenomenon has been implicated as a risk factor for death by suicide, in vulnerable groups within the population (Niederkrotenthaler et al, 2009, 2010; Sinyor, Schaffer, Nishikawa, et al, 2018; Sisask & Värnik, 2012; World Health Organization [WHO], 2014). Studies have consistently identified that persons experiencing suicidal crisis could become aware of suicide methods, which they might have not thought about previously, through exposure to irresponsible media reporting of suicide, thereby increasing the chances of copying the suicidal behaviour (Cheng et al, 2017, 2018; Niederkrotenthaler et al, 2012; Nutt et al, 2015; Pirkis, Burgess, et al, 2006; Tsai, 2010; WHO & International Association for Suicide Prevention [IASP], 2017). Conclusion: Regardless of the ownership of the media outlet (whether private or publicly owned), mostly, the online reportage of suicidal behaviour in Ghana deviates sharply from the international recommended best practice by the WHO
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