# Should the media cover gay teenage suicide **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 18, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067 "2011-10-18T20:23:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Lovely\_Margo\_Lane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/34f0e0/32.png) [@The\_Lovely\_Margo\_Lane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Lovely_Margo_Lane)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/21 "2011-10-19T04:26:56Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I think they need to stop using the word “bullying”. That sounds like something 3rd graders do, largely because it’s something 3rd graders do. When it becomes physical or more than playground taunts it should be called what it would be called if it happened in the grown up world: harassment and assault. May sound minor, and I can’t cite or prove nor do I even posit it would cause fewer suicides, but I think saying someone was the victim of harassment and assault in high school would make them feel less impotent than to say they were the victim of bullying. > > I’ve also said several times on this board- so this makes once more- I wish they’d treat it less like a gay issue. True, many gay kids face “bullying” every day, but so do a lot of straight kids. It’s far from an exclusively gay or “suspected gay” issue. Wow, this is a really good point. Something’s been rubbing me the wrong way for years while hearing about “crackdowns on bullying” and I couldn’t articulate it to myself. I mean obviously this behavior needs to be taken seriously, victims protected and perpetrators punished. But Something seems off about reclassifying “bullying” as a felony etc. What you’re saying makes a lot more sense - if the “bullying” rises to criminal levels, it’s not “bullying” anymore! harassment and assault are fundamentally the same crimes whether they are committed in school settings or not, and they should be named and treated as such. The dignity aspect gets to me too - there seems to be a certain underlying narrative of weakness when talking of someone who committed suicide because he or she “couldn’t handle the bullying” which might be less prevalent if we talked about the harassment differently. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/22 "2011-10-19T04:45:24Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > Ever since the suicide of the college student who was filmed having sex in his dorm room the media has been covering more and more suicides of gay teenagers. Some commentators have even been trying to make political points about gay marriage based on the “epidemic” of gay teen suicides. > This is extremely irresponsible. Psychologists and sociologists have known for years that coverage of suicides can lead to suicide contagion where people read about a suicide and the level of suicide in the regions affected by the media source goes up. Yet the stories I read about this seem designed to cause copycats. In 1994 the CDC put out guidance for media coverage about suicides and listed some characteristics of coverage that is more likely to cause the suicide rate to increase. Some of the characteristics are: > [ul] > [li]Presenting simplistic explanations for suicide. - Most of these stories are about bullying causing the suicide.[/li][li]Engaging in repetitive, ongoing, or excessive reporting of suicide in the news. - The stories are ongoing and repetitive with angles about how Lady Gaga is responding or how some gay actor feels about the suicide.[/li][li]Providing sensational coverage of suicide. - I think the coverage has been sensational althought that is very subjective.[/li][li]Presenting suicide as a tool for accomplishing certain ends.- The stories many times will mention new anti-bullying intiatives that have arisen in response.[/li][li]Glorifying suicide or persons who commit suicide. - The articles always seem to make the suicides seem like tragic victims.[/li][li]Focusing on the suicide completer’s positive characteristics. - The articles always quote parents and friends about how great the suicidal kid was and sometimes even have statements from celebrities about a fan’s suicide.[/li][/ul] > I know that there are first amendment issues about having government try to reign in the coverage, but can’t these media groups be shamed into stopping coverage? These “characteristics of coverage” that you cited don’t all seem to be present in the current suicide media coverage-_as described by you._ For example, you say the media coverage has many times featured stories that mention new anti-bullying initiatives that have arisen in response to suicides. You attempt to generalize these actions as “Presenting suicide as a tool for accomplishing certain ends”; which _is_ one of the characteristics of coverage by media groups likely to cause suicide rates to increase. And you have other false comparisons, not just that one. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/23 "2011-10-19T04:45:39Z")
> [@ladyfoxfyre](#): > > You have failed to show a correlation between media coverage and an actual increase in “copycat suicides”, just stating that it is a possibility. So I would say, no, just the fear of copycat suicides should not drive the media to stop reporting on the suicides of gay teens. Maybe if you put more effort towards removing the actual cause of gay teens committing suicide, such as social ostracization of gay teens and bullying, rather than the coverage of the suicides themselves, you’d be on your way towards preventing more deaths. There is quite a bit of evidence of causality. This [Bad Science](http://www.badscience.net/2009/03/suicide/) column links several research papers. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/24 "2011-10-19T04:51:35Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > ??? How many suicides do you think occur in your community and how many of them make the news? Yeah, but he’s talking about social media. The same social media the peers of said teen suicides use like second nature. Not to mention more “niche” and special interest news and blogger sites who would be interested in publicizing it to make points about how gay people are treated by society. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/25 "2011-10-19T08:55:40Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > So how (other than not covering the story at all) would **you** play it? “What a selfish, inconsiderate asshole, causing his family all that grief!” is a defensible and a suicide-discouraging take, but it hardly seems journalistically appropriate ever. Why, when somebody brings up something like this must it be an “all on” or “all off” issue? You do realize of course that there is a world of shading between - he’s a selfish arsehole that has no concern for others" and “he’s a tragic hero” right? You do realise that journalists are (at least supposed to be) masters of the english language with the ability to find the words and phrases to outline a middle ground? Why is it not appropriate to mention, within a suicide story, the strain that a suicide puts many people under? The questions that are inevitably asked, the trouble the family is put through? ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/26 "2011-10-19T09:01:28Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I think they need to stop using the word “bullying”. That sounds like something 3rd graders do, largely because it’s something 3rd graders do. When it becomes physical or more than playground taunts it should be called what it would be called if it happened in the grown up world: harassment and assault. May sound minor, and I can’t cite or prove nor do I even posit it would cause fewer suicides, but I think saying someone was the victim of harassment and assault in high school would make them feel less impotent than to say they were the victim of bullying. > > I’ve also said several times on this board- so this makes once more- I wish they’d treat it less like a gay issue. True, many gay kids face “bullying” every day, but so do a lot of straight kids. It’s far from an exclusively gay or “suspected gay” issue. Building on this of course - (IMHO) “bullying” and “harrassment & assault” carry different meanings and tones. Many of us will experience “bullying” and it won’t have a major effect - but I would suspect that few people experience bullying that rises to the level of harrassment and assault. So I guess I am trying to say that it is a continuum, with bullying below harrassment. If we characterise the sort of systemic abuse that is going to lead to suicide as bullying then when I am bullied it makes it seem worse than it reallly is. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/27 "2011-10-19T09:08:05Z")
Coverage of just about anything will increase the chances of copycats. I say we stop coverage of murder, drunk driving, rape and a myriad of other heinous crimes. Because, you know, otherwise other people might do them. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/28 "2011-10-19T09:58:56Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > Coverage of just about anything will increase the chances of copycats. I say we stop coverage of murder, drunk driving, rape and a myriad of other heinous crimes. Because, you know, otherwise other people might do them. I’ve seen plenty of anecdotes about “copycat” crime but no actual studies that show its a statistically significant occurrence. A very significant, causal, relationship between media coverage and suicide, on the other hand, has been indicated by many studies. ---
**Author:** ![willthekittensurvive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/91b2a8/32.png) [@willthekittensurvive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/willthekittensurvive)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/29 "2011-10-19T12:26:40Z")
I think that it becomes a problem when the media reports on the method used by people to end their lives, that leads to increased copycat behaviour In the Netherlands one of the most common ways of suicide is jumping in front of a incoming train (harsh gun laws, no personal fireams for the public) the Dutch railways and the media have a agreement not to give to much attention to this ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/30 "2011-10-19T13:16:23Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > I know that there are first amendment issues about having government try to reign in the coverage, but can’t these media groups be shamed into stopping coverage? The only responsibility of media is fiduciary. Protests and boycotts and so on have sometimes worked in cases like this but I don’t think the nuanced argument you’re making would translate well. Morally, I think Little Nemo got it about right: > [@Little Nemo](#): > > Ignoring the problem will not make it go away. It’ll just make it invisible. The disproportionate number of gay teenage suicides should be reported so the public is aware the problem exists and can work on real solutions. But should they be going into detail on specific people and their stories instead of reporting the trend in more general terms? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/31 "2011-10-19T16:25:11Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > But should they be going into detail on specific people and their stories instead of reporting the trend in more general terms? For the most part, people find stories much more interesting if they’re about people rather than statistics. Stories about numbers and trends get dry and boring if there is no human element. That’s not intended to justify mawkish or sensationalist coverage, but a story on a topic like this should combine personal anecdotes and solid data to create a narrative that is interesting on a personal level, shows that this is a trend of some significance and what causes it, and demonstrates what the trend means for individuals and what can be done about it. What kind of story are you more likely to read? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/32 "2011-10-19T17:41:16Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > But should they be going into detail on specific people and their stories instead of reporting the trend in more general terms? The problem is that a dry statistical report doesn’t have the impact of a tragic human interest story about a particular person. If you want to move the public to action you’ve got to reach them emotionally. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/33 "2011-10-19T19:47:39Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > These “characteristics of coverage” that you cited don’t all seem to be present in the current suicide media coverage-_as described by you._ > > For example, you say the media coverage has many times featured stories that mention new anti-bullying initiatives that have arisen in response to suicides. You attempt to generalize these actions as “Presenting suicide as a tool for accomplishing certain ends”; which _is_ one of the characteristics of coverage by media groups likely to cause suicide rates to increase. And you have other false comparisons, not just that one. The stories I have read have generally been on the Huffington Post since they bought AOL. Some examples are [Jamie Hubley, Gay 15-Year-Old Ottawa, Canada Teen Commits Suicide, Cites Depression, School Troubles](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/17/jamie-hubley-commits-suicide_n_1015646.html) ,[Jamey Rodemeyer, 14-Year-Old Boy, Commits Suicide After Gay Bullying, Parents Carry On Message](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/20/jamey-rodemeyer-suicide-gay-bullying_n_972023.html)[Lady Gaga Wants To Make Bullying Illegal Following Jamey Rodemeyer’s Suicide](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/22/lady-gaga-wants-to-make-bully-illegal_n_975653.html) and [Zachary Quinto Comes Out As Gay In New York Magazine, Talks ‘Margin Call,’ ‘Angels In America’](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/16/zachary-quinto-comes-out-gay_n_1013815.html) All of these stories have either explicitly or implictly stated that the suicides of these teenagers have inspired good things to happen. The one about Rodemeyer has his parents say “we’re just convinced that he had a purpose on this planet and it was to touch as many people as he could,” The idea that you can get movie stars and your favorite pop star to talk about you by commiting suicide is just too dangerous a message to send. There was almost no coverage of bullying suicides until that Irish girl in Boston, we can easily go back to that if media outlets agree to act like they did just a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/34 "2011-10-19T20:04:35Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > There was almost no coverage of bullying suicides until that Irish girl in Boston This is not true at all. Remember the coverage of Megan Meier in 2006? The “MySpace Suicide?” ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/35 "2011-10-19T20:43:02Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > The stories I have read have generally been on the Huffington Post since they bought AOL. Some examples are [Jamie Hubley, Gay 15-Year-Old Ottawa, Canada Teen Commits Suicide, Cites Depression, School Troubles](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/17/jamie-hubley-commits-suicide_n_1015646.html) ,[Jamey Rodemeyer, 14-Year-Old Boy, Commits Suicide After Gay Bullying, Parents Carry On Message](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/20/jamey-rodemeyer-suicide-gay-bullying_n_972023.html)[Lady Gaga Wants To Make Bullying Illegal Following Jamey Rodemeyer’s Suicide](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/22/lady-gaga-wants-to-make-bully-illegal_n_975653.html) and [Zachary Quinto Comes Out As Gay In New York Magazine, Talks ‘Margin Call,’ ‘Angels In America’](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/16/zachary-quinto-comes-out-gay_n_1013815.html) > All of these stories have either explicitly or implictly stated that the suicides of these teenagers have inspired good things to happen. The one about Rodemeyer has his parents say “we’re just convinced that he had a purpose on this planet and it was to touch as many people as he could,” The idea that you can get movie stars and your favorite pop star to talk about you by commiting suicide is just too dangerous a message to send. There was almost no coverage of bullying suicides until that Irish girl in Boston, we can easily go back to that if media outlets agree to act like they did just a few years ago. I suppose we could start a publicity campaign on the theme of “only losers commit suicide”. We could picket the funerals of teenagers that killed themselves and mock their memories in order to convince other kids that suicide isn’t cool. But I’ll admit I’m going to have mixed feelings the first time I look over and see Fred Phelps giving me a thumbs up. ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/36 "2011-10-19T20:49:07Z")
Here’s an article in the Denver Post about the local [Make it Better campaign](http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2011/10/19/prominent-coloradans-vow-to-make-it-better-for-gay-students/43405/). > [@](#): > > The video, in the works for months, was unveiled now as part of the national Ally Week, where gay organizations celebrate straight allies who are committeed to making life better for young gay people, said OneColorado spokeswoman Jess Woodrum. This year, Ally Week coincides with Colorado Safe Schools Week. > > “During Ally Week, we celebrate straight allies whose commitment to LGBT youth is critical to making our schools better,” OneColorado’s executive director, Brad Clark, said in a release. “We are extremely fortunate to have statewide leaders who are willing to speak out against the bullying and harassment that LGBT students are so often forced to endure.” I wonder if it makes straight people view the glbt crowd as victims instead of just, well, people who happen to not be attracted to members of the opposite sex. In some areas (like Boulder), being ‘gay’ is part of being in high school. In other areas, it’s The Worst Thing That You Could Have Ever Been Born With, Ever. The last thing I want as a teacher is to have a gay student and automatically feel sorry for them. 😕 I don’t object to the It Gets Better type campaigns, though. I wish people were better advocates about teen suicide and depression in general. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2011, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067/37 "2011-10-19T21:03:34Z")
> [@CitizenPained](#): > > I wonder if it makes straight people view the glbt crowd as victims instead of just, well, people who happen to not be attracted to members of the opposite sex. I don’t think so. But at least they’ve noticed gay kids have a hard time in school. That’s changed a lot. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-media-cover-gay-teenage-suicide/600067.md?page=1)