Ryerson University: Journalism Course Union led the discussion on mental health and journalism.
This was the second annual panel discussion on mental health in the world of journalism.
Ryerson journalism students gathered at The Venn in Rogers Communications Centre with a panel of journalists to discuss how to report on topics related to mental health on Thursday, Jan.30.2020.
The event started by addressing the panelists about what insights they have individually obtained from writing about mental health issues as journalists.
Ann Rauhala, a Ryerson School of Journalism Professor and the host of the panel comments on how “it’s the dark center for journalism and trauma… it has a phenomenal amount of information including the entirely intriguing.”
Then Rauhala goes on and says, “Journalists traumatic exposure scale disease and you can test yourself with how much traumatic it can be to cover stories related to mental health on a daily bases.”
Tips on reporting on topics related to mental health
Jane Gerster, a features reporter with Global News touched upon the segment about news judgment and how “it’s helpful … to have reservoir check-in with the question of like what my purpose of writing this story, I am not supposed to mix up my personal life with the work-life.”
“I would say don’t be afraid to ask questions… There is a group of reporters, be brave enough to say I’m new here and I feel like I don’t know what I’m doing.. other journalists are nice like they’ll help you most,” said Gerster.
Global News reporter and editor Arti Patel talked about how social media helps a journalist cover an event.
“Social media has really changed how we talk about mental health. There is this movement of people talking about how they feel so openly,” Patel said.
How do journalists use to cover stories related to mental health?
A few of the panelists elaborated on the history of journalism and mental health, how there was a stigma around issues related to mental health, and how newsrooms are hesitant to cover events related to mental illness.
Andre Picard, a health reporter and columnist for The Globe and Mail comments on how “Stigma has changed a lot. 40 years ago, it was almost impossible to do mental health stories. Nobody wanted to talk about it and out themselves. There were rules in the newsroom to not write about suicide.”
Patel elaborated on Picard’s statement by talking about how there have been changes in the industry over the last decade.
This is when Patel said “I think maybe there was a sweet spot like back around 2010 looking at Andre because the globe did like the first big series of stories on mental illness……I think there have been so many recovery stories that editors might be a little bit less interested these days in like the typical kind of recovery story.”
The criminal justice system and mental health coverage:
Toronto Star investigative feature writer Amy Dempsey spoke about how we are not doing well with writing and reporting on people with very serious forms of mental illness who end up in the criminal justice system.
“I think it is writing and reporting on people with very serious forms of mental illness who end up in the criminal justice system and you know, the kinds of people who don't get featured in Bell let's Talk campaigns the kinds of people who have a lot of other issues aside from mental illness who might be experiencing homelessness the kinds of people who live on the margins of society.”