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Media coverage as a risk factor in suicide.

¹Department of Criminal Justice, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48202, USA. aa1051@wayne.edu

Injury Prevention : Journal of the International Society for Child and Adolescent Injury Prevention

|December 4, 2002

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Media coverage of celebrity suicides significantly increases suicide rates, particularly when stories are real or feature entertainment figures. Newspaper reports are more likely to show this copycat effect than television. Suicide prevention groups can influence media to reduce harmful coverage.

Area of Science:

Public health
Media studies
Psychology

Background:

Media reporting on suicide can influence real-world suicide incidence.
The 'copycat effect' describes the phenomenon of increased suicides following media coverage.

Purpose of the Study:

To analyze the impact of publicized suicide stories on suicide rates.
To identify factors influencing the copycat effect in media reporting.

Main Methods:

Logistic regression analysis of 293 findings from 42 studies.
Comparison of study characteristics: celebrity vs. non-celebrity, real vs. fictional, and media type (newspaper vs. television).

Main Results:

Studies on celebrity suicides were 14.3 times more likely to report a copycat effect.

Related Experiment Videos

Real-life suicide stories were 4.03 times more likely to show a copycat effect than fictional ones.

Televised stories were associated with an 82% lower likelihood of reporting a copycat effect compared to newspapers.

Conclusions:

Media portrayal of suicides, especially celebrity and real-life cases, significantly correlates with increased suicide incidence.
Newspaper reporting poses a higher risk for copycat suicides than television.
Collaborative efforts between suicide prevention organizations and media can mitigate negative impacts through responsible coverage.