‘About a year before the breakdown I was having symptoms’: sadness, pathology and the Australian newspaper media

Abstract

Portrayals of mental illness in the media reportedly highlight violence and crime by the 'mentally ill'. Using a discourse analytic approach we investigated representations of 'depression' in the print media in Australia during the year 2000. Unlike other 'mental illnesses', in the case of depression the media stress the need for the protection of the sufferer, rather than others. Three key discourses are identified -the biomedical, the psycho-social and the administrative/managerial -which work to normalise depression by presenting it as beyond the control of the afflicted individual: a consequence of faulty brain chemistry or the product of social conditions. These discourses work together to produce unhappiness as individualised pathology in need of management through biological, psychological or social structural controls.

‘To follow or not to follow?’: How Belgian health journalists use Twitter to monitor potential sources

“…Especially experts such as health scientists but also health professionals such as medical doctors are shown to be the chosen sources. Journalists also routinely search medical and scientific journals for story ideas and information (Len-Rios et al, 2009;Rowe et al, 2003;Van Trigt et al, 1994). Several authors find an explanation for this finding in the often complex and technical matter of health news.…”

“…Several authors find an explanation for this finding in the often complex and technical matter of health news. Combined with the fact that specialized journalists are increasingly replaced with generalists who have no or limited expertise in the matter, it is not a very big surprise that journalists often turn to experts on the matter for clarification and contextualization (Berkowitz, 1990;Gans, 1979;Holton, 2013;Rowe et al, 2003). "Journalists use expert sources in health stories to provide perspective, contribute balance to the story, discuss research implications, and legitimize other research" (Len-Rios et al, 2009, p.318).…”

“…Moreover, some authors focus on the mediatization of science, as scientists and scientific organizations have successfully intensified their media efforts in response to the increasing pressure to legitimize research and maximize the acquisition of research funds (Sumner et al, 2014;Williams & Gajevic, 2013). Other important sources are politicians and government officials who are involved in health policy (Rowe et al, 2003) and, like in all news coverage and as symptom of the competitive media environment, other media are routinely monitored for story ideas (Len-Rios et al, 2009). Despite the availability of easy-to-use information subsidies, studies point out that health journalists are not keen to use corporate information subsidies, and if they do, they confront the corporate information with other sources (Len-Rios et al, 2009;Van Trigt et al, 1994).…”

Repertoires of ADHD in UK newspaper media

“…What is perhaps more significant about the use of the two repertoires is the way that both of them represent families as in need of interventions, either medical or in the form of advice on parenting and the organisation of family life. Following a Foucauldian rationale, Rowe et al (2003) has suggested that biological and psychosocial repertoires do not actually compete in a broader sense as they can both be drawn on to indicate what parents and families should be like and to give advice on how they should regulate themselves along those lines. Rafalovich (2001: 373) has also argued that parenting guides on ADHD are 'manuals' that are designed to work as 'disciplinary mechanisms' in the domestic environment (c.f.…”

Webjornalismo em saúde: práticas e criação de espaço online para a promoção da saúde

“…É inegável a contribuição que conglomerados de comunicação podem dar para a saúde publica e coletiva, ao, por exemplo, colocarem em pauta temas sobre saúde e informar a população sobre os cuidados preventivos. [16][17][18][19][20][21] Rádio, TV e jornal impresso conseguem, através de estratégias de texto e abordagens e abrangências, traduzir as informações e preocupações dos setores públicos, de epidemiologistas e outros profissionais para a população no geral e conseguem assim, responder também as principais dúvidas da população em geral.…”