Document Type : Research paper
Authors
1 Department of Psychiatry, Bangladesh Specialized Hospital Limited, Dhaka-1207, Bangladesh.
2 Department of Sociology, Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur, Rangpur 5404, Bangladesh
3 Department of Graduate Nursing, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Abstract
Background: The quality of media reporting of celebrity suicide affects suicidal behaviour among community populations. However, it has not been assessed in Bangladesh.
Objectives: We aimed to assess the quality of news reporting of celebrity suicide in Bangladesh against the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.
Methods: Online news portals were searched in both Bangla and English languages for news articles that reported the suicide of a Bangladeshi celebrity singer. The quality of the reporting was assessed and compared with the WHO media guidelines.
Results: 163 reports with an average of 30 sentences were analysed. 72.4% of reports were published in Bangla, and about 95% of the reports were published within the week of the death. Almost all the reports mentioned the name and occupation of the celebrity, and about 90% of the reports displayed photos of the person. More than 70% of the reports mentioned the method of the suicide attempt. 7.4% mentioned warning signs while 57.7% of the reports mentioned the possibility of depression. 10 (6.1%) reports mentioned expert opinion, and none of the reports mentioned contact information for suicide prevention.
Conclusions: The quality of news reporting of celebrity suicide is poor when compared to the WHO guidelines, with a high presence of potentially harmful characteristics, and negligible presence of potentially helpful characteristics.
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