Despite its rare occurrence, severe mental illness is commonly linked to violence and crime in the news media. To reduce harmful effects of reporting, this study aimed to develop best practice guidelines for media reporting on mental illness in the context of violence and crime. Best practice was determined through the Delphi expert consensus method where experts rated statements according to importance for inclusion in the guidelines. In this study, the experts represented three groups: people with lived experience of severe mental illness, media professionals and mental health professionals. The 77 statements that were endorsed as ‘important’ or ‘essential’ by 80 per cent or more of experts were included in the guidelines, while 36 items were rejected from inclusion. There was a high degree of consensus among stakeholder groups. These guidelines expand on existing media guidelines, elaborating on accurate portrayals and appropriate language and extending coverage to areas of mental health literacy, considering impact, reporting relevant risk factors, using social media and implementation in news organizations.
Over five decades of empirical research have demonstrated the power of study abroad programmes to broaden students’ perspectives by exposing them to other peoples and cultures. In a range of fields, universities offer study abroad to help prepare students for a rapidly globalizing world. In recent years, short-term study abroad programmes have become popular in helping students of journalism prepare for the rigours of international reporting. However, travel to another country can be difficult and expensive, putting strain on education budgets and limiting access to a relatively small pool of students. Travel to the most newsworthy sites is also frequently impossible due to lack of security. On the whole, study abroad can reinforce historical imbalances. Students from high-income nations tend to have multiple opportunities to travel and view the world from another perspective, while students from low-income countries have significantly fewer opportunities to do the same. In this research, we developed and studied a Virtual Student Exchange programme in journalism, a new pedagogical strategy that harnessed technology to connect a group of students from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, with a similarly composed group of students from the University of Peshawar in Peshawar, Pakistan. For modest cost, the programme provided all students with an opportunity to meet one another, learn about each other’s societies, and work collaboratively on newsworthy events in each other’s country. Informed by Contact Theory, the programme also provided students with opportunities to serve as fixers for one another, and thus to view the relationship between international correspondent and local fixer from both perspectives. Open-ended surveys and semi-structured interviews conducted after the experience show how students on both sides gained from the experience, suggesting productive avenues for further research.
RMIT postgraduate students studying Broadcast Journalism: Radio were asked to create audio stories for a programme called ‘Global Leadership’ being aired by the Australia Broadcasting Corporation’s international broadcaster Radio Australia. The project was adopted because it fits with a university-wide push to ‘internationalize’ the curriculum in order to give students a ‘global passport to work beyond Australian shores’. The project prompted students to think outside their geographical boundaries and to address an Asia-Pacific-wide audience. This paper outlines the results of that experiment and the constraints, incentives and opportunities educators face in responding to calls to internationalize journalism education. It suggests a model for reporting across international borders which others could build on.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.