Media influence on suicide

doi:10.1136/bmj.326.7387.498

BMJ 2003;326:498 ( 1 March )

Letters

Media influence on suicide

Television programme makers have an ethical responsibility

Media influence behaviour

Media's role is double edged

Television programme makers have an ethical responsibility

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR $---$ We agree with Hawton and Williams that training courses for careers in the media offer the potential for improved portrayalof suicide in the media.¹ The media, however, clearly can affectmany facets of health relatedbehaviour.

We recently reported the effect of the death from cervical cancer of a character (Alma) in the television soap opera CoronationStreet on the NHS cervical screening programme in the north westof England. ² ³ Our studies showed an excess of 14 000 cervicalsmear tests performed as a result of the storyline (a 21% increaseon the previous year), although only 2000 of them were in womenwhose test was overdue or who had had no previous smear test.The remaining 12 000 smear tests were performed on women attendingfor an early, unscheduled test or who were due a smear test anywayand brought their appointmentforward.

The large increase in the number . . . [Full text of this article]

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Influences of the media on suicide: Keith Hawton and Kathryn Williams
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