From Stigma to Understanding: Best Practices for Suicide Reporting

Ahead of National Suicide Prevention Month in September, Arkansas SPJ presented the webinar From Stigma to Understanding: Best Practices for Suicide Reporting, a program highlighting the importance of responsible reporting on mental health and suicide, including safe reporting guidelines and resources for journalists.

Arkansas SPJ vice president and FOX16 evening anchor Kevin Kelly, who launched an anti-bullying campaign called Step-Up, Stop Bullying, moderated the program with Jacqueline Sharp, area director for the Arkansas chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and Aneri Pattani, a senior correspondent at KFF Health News, a national nonprofit outlet covering U.S. health care and health policy.

Additional resources:

Here is a link to the free online course Aneri Pattani helped create with Johns Hopkins University to teach journalists how to report on suicide responsibly.

Find the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s safe reporting guidelines for media here.

“Reporting on suicide? Consider these common problems and their solutions,” a Poynter article by Al Tompkins.

“Best practices for covering suicide responsibly,” a Poynter article by Kelly McBride.

The Carter Center Journalism Resource Guide on Behavioral Health

The Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma: Tip Sheet for Reporting on Suicide

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Suicide Contagion and the Reporting of Suicide: Recommendations from a National Workshop