6 November 2006
Dear Sir,
My colleagues and I were slightly offended by the title Mental health NGOs seek sympathy (3 November 2006). We’re not seeking sympathy; we’re simply trying to make sure that mental health is reported on with balance and accuracy.
It is outrageous that the media is still allowed to label a person with a mental illness a nutter. As long as the media continues to sensationalise and denigrate mental illness, society will think it acceptable.
While some journalists do report intelligently on mental health the sad truth is that they are in the minority. The media often portrays mental illness in a way that evokes fear and anxiety. One national newspaper recently said that 1 in 5 young people in the UK self-harm. In actual fact, it is 1 in 12. We briefed the journalist yet he purposefully chose to ignore the truth.
Andrew McCulloch
Chief Executive
The Mental Health Foundation
Return to Letters 2006
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
