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The term "Mass Media" as an umbrella terms used to describe methods of media that reach a vast majority of the population. Traditionally the most common forms of mass media included Newspapers, television news and radio. However, today this has expanded to more online sources such as Social Media outlets (X, Facebook, Instagram etc) and Podcasts.

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The Portrayal and Impact of Newspaper Headlines on Mental Health and Wellbeing

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The Portrayal and Impact of Newspaper Headlines on Mental Health and Wellbeing

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Newspapers, particularly British tabloids, are well known for their sensationalised headlines and unethical practices (phone hacking etc).

How they have covered stories of mental illness is no different. Studies have found that UK newspapers to be the most stigmatising and often portray those with mental illness as violent criminals or "hopeless victims." (Hildersley et al., 2020)

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Tabloid Sensationalism on Drug and Alcohol Use - Amy Winehouse Coverage

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Tabloid Sensationalism on Drug and Alcohol Use - Amy Winehouse Coverage

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Amy was a talented woman who struggled with drug and alcohol addiction. At a young age she was victime to outrageous headlines such as "Amy on Crack; Nosedive to Oblivion" (The Sun, 2009) while at the pinnacle of her career.

British tabloids such as The Sun, The Daily Star and News of the World took used Amy's struggles to make headlines and treated her addiction as a joke. We were shown a girl who "partied" too much, as opposed to a girl who needed help. Even following her death in 2011, the Daily Star reported on Amy's "24 Hour Suicidal Binge" on the days preceding her death.

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Sadly Amy's story is one in a long line of people whose struggles with addiction have been used for public entertainment or to create hysteria.

In 2010, the UK Drug Commission Policy carried out a review on how drug addiction and use is covered in the media. It was found that less than 10% of national newspapers were covering these stories with empathy and 15% were more likely condemning the individuals. Although celebrities tend to gain more headlines, they are not the only victims of this.

The same study found the largest groups to be condemned were young offenders and parents, particularly those who committed violent offences, Which again continues the narrative that those with drug and alcohol "problems" are criminals when in reality there are many who are living "normal" lives. This stigma may create a shame mentality for those individuals, and they may feel they cannot seek help or be honest about their struggles due to fear of judgement or being outcast.

On the other hand, their could be those who do not see their drug or alcohol use as a "problem" because they aren't "as bad as those you see in the news". Again this attitude could lead to further mental and physical health struggles later down the line.

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While the British tabloids are using scaremongering and shock tactics to get the attention of the public, there are some papers advocating for change.

The Guardian have shared articles and stories of the causes of addiction and hopeful stories of recovery.

On top of this, they are using their influence to encourage change in government policy on drug and alcohol consumption on the UK. They reported in January 2024 reported positively on a study encouraging the establishment on legal consumption rooms in the UK. It reported that "thousands of lives could be saved" and reduce the pressure on the NHS and ambulance services. It reported that UK drugs users were 13 times more likely to have a fatal overdose compared to their European counterparts. who have already established consumption rooms. (Booth and correspondent, 2024)

This information has been gathered through effective research, unlike their peers.

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Film - Horror in Hollywood Reinforcing the Stigma

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Film - Horror in Hollywood Reinforcing the Stigma

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Scaremongering

Most of us are familiar with this image. Jack Nicholson in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining (1980). He is portraying a man in a state of, what is meant to be, psychosis. However is this reality of a person who lives with Psychosis? Unlikely.

This is a hyperbolic depiction, used to create terror in the viewer a tactic used in horror movies for decades and is a damaging the public's perception of how we view mental illness.

Creating Misunderstanding

In a discussion with the BBC, Dr Danny Wedding, describes how horror movies create confusion and false expectations. Following the release of Psycho (1960) there is still confusion between schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder and how both are portrayed. (BBC, 2018)

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Portraying the true "horror" of mental health struggles

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Portraying the true "horror" of mental health struggles

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In recent years, horror has taken a shift and began to use storytelling and first person narrative to portray the cause and effect of certain mental health problems without focusing on a diagnosis or condition.

For example, The Babadook from 2014, explores the effects of grief on a woman's relationship with her young son and the physical and mental impact this has on her. Unlike earlier films, their is no "crazy villain" with an exaggerated illness. Her grief is portrayed as a "monster" to represent the weight that grief has on her. While the portrayal itself is dramatized for entertainment purposes, this is definitely a more effective portrayal in comparison. (Mancine, 2020)

A massive part of this being effective was that it was written based on realistic storytelling. Jennifer Kent, stated that she wanted to present the realities of balancing grief and the struggles of motherhood. Kent drew from her own experiences to create her characters which is likely why this portrayal was so effective.

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How can the portrayal of mental health in mass media be improved?

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How can the portrayal of mental health in mass media be improved?

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In order for all outlets of mass media to effectively portray mental health with empathy and understanding, they must research.

Instead of sensationalising real life struggles for shock and awe. More time and funding should be invested in understanding the conditions and people that outlets are portraying.

Simple techniques such as interviewing real people of their experiences and struggles can change perceptions.

In order for this to be implemented, it is important that we hold media outlets accountable for their words and actions. While this may difficult in Hollywood, this is something we can change regarding British tabloids. The British press are regulated and we have seen changes in how they can ethically obtain information following the News of the World scandal in 2011. If the government can regulate how information is obtained, then surely there must be a way they can regulate how it is portrayed.

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Booth, R. and correspondent, R.B.S. affairs (2024). Drug consumption rooms could save thousands of UK lives, study finds. The Guardian. [online] 11 Jan. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/jan/11/drug-consumption-rooms-could-save-thousands-of-uk-lives-study-finds.

Hildersley, R., Potts, L., Anderson, C. and Henderson, C. (2020). Improvement for most, but not all: changes in newspaper coverage of mental illness from 2008 to 2019 in England. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 29. doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/s204579602000089x.

Mancine, R. (2020). Horror Movies and Mental Health Conditions through the Ages. American Journal of Psychiatry Residents’ Journal, [online] 16(1), pp.17–17. doi:https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp-rj.2020.160110.

Office for National Statistics (2022). Drug Misuse in England and Wales: Year Ending June 2022. [online] www.ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/drugmisuseinenglandandwales/yearendingjune2022.

UK Drug Policy Commission (2010). Representations of Drug Use and Drug Users in the British Press: a Content Analysis of Newspaper Coverage. [online] London: UKDPC, pp.13–49. Available at: h [Accessed 31 May 2024].

Haider, A. (2018). How Cinema Stigmatises Mental Illness. [online] www.bbc.com. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20180828-how-cinema-stigmatises-mental-illness.

Pementel, M. (2018). Representations of Mental Health in Horror: From Establishing Stigmas to Tearing Them Down. [online] Bloody Disgusting! Available at: https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3513603/representations-mental-health-horror-establishing-stigmas-tearing/.