Mental Health and the Media in Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract

The media frames social issues, such as mental illness, in a certain way, which then influences how society treats people experiencing mental distress, as well how those people view themselves. For people without experience of mental illness, either in their personal or professional lives, the media is often the only source of knowledge and can have a significant impact on an individual's understanding and response to mental illness. This research sought to gain an understanding of how mental health is being represented in New Zealand media and the impacts of this representation on service-users, professionals and the general public. It also sought to identify specific barriers to accurate representation of mental health, and opportunities for positive change. In order to achieve this aim, discourse analysis was conducted on 258 articles from 6 New Zealand online media sources with a focus on depression and/or suicide. Following this, 8 semi-structured interviews were carried with key informants, representing the perspective of mental health professionals, mental health advocates, consumers or media personnel on the topic of mental health in New Zealand media. Both sets of data collected were coded using NVivo, following the principles of a grounded theory approach. This research found that the media has a significant impact on how the public views mental health, and key informants believe the media's representation has improved in recent years. However, participants described an absence of positive recovery messages in the media and felt that the public are being misinformed on what it means to recover. Participants also felt that the portrayal of depression and anxiety has come a long way, whereas less common mental health conditions, such as schizophrenia, are still misrepresented and stigmatised by the media. Mental health services and mental health professionals were seen as poorly represented by the media, which although can draw attention to systemic issues, was thought to deter help-seeking and hinder trust. Contrary to expectations, discourse analysis revealed a range of perspectives given space in mainstream media, including service-users and advocates, indicating a change in the value ascribed to these perspectives.