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Abstract：
BACKGROUND: An association between sensationalized media reporting and subsequent increase in suicidal behavior has been documented, and adolescents are especially vulnerable to imitative influences. The aims of this study were to examine the characteristics of the articles reporting adult and adolescent (under age 18) suicides in the Italian press and to assess adherence to the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for responsible reporting. Methods: The print versions of the three newspapers with the widest national distribution in Italy were searched for all the articles on incident suicides printed over a 7-month period (July 2022 to February 2023). Articles were examined for adherence to the WHO guidelines. Results: Overall, 213 articles were identified, reporting on 122 individual suicide cases (88.5% adults and 11.5% adolescents). Of the articles, 78.9% were on adults and 21.1% on adolescents, with a ratio articles/suicide cases of 1.6 for adults and 3.2 for adolescents (p < 0.0001). Adolescent suicide articles had more words (mean 612.5 ± SD 275.6) than adult ones (462.1 ± 267.7, p = 0.001). Potentially harmful reporting features were present in both the adult and adolescent articles (12-82%). Few articles (0-15%) included protective features. Articles on adolescents were more adherent to the WHO guidelines for omitting specific information of suicide method and location. Conclusions: Significant differences were found in the press reporting of adolescent versus adult suicides, with adolescent suicides receiving more attention in terms of the number of articles and article length. Suicide press reporting can be improved. A close collaboration between journalists and suicide prevention experts may be beneficial.
摘要：
背景：已记录了耸人听闻的媒体报道与随后的自杀行为增加之间的关联，青少年特别容易受到模仿的影响。这项研究的目的是研究意大利媒体报道成人和青少年（18岁以下）自杀的文章的特征，并评估对世界卫生组织（WHO）负责任报告准则的遵守情况。方法：搜索了意大利全国分布最广泛的三份报纸的印刷版，以查找7个月（2022年7月至2023年2月）内印刷的有关自杀事件的所有文章。审查了文章是否遵守世卫组织准则。结果：总体而言，确认了213篇文章，报告了122例自杀病例（88.5%的成年人和11.5%的青少年）。在文章中，78.9%是成年人，21.1%是青少年，成人的文章/自杀病例比为1.6，青少年为3.2（p<0.0001）。青少年自杀文章的单词（平均612.5±SD275.6）比成年人（462.1±267.7，p=0.001）多。成人和青少年文章中都存在潜在有害的报告特征（12-82％）。很少有文章（0-15％）包括保护功能。有关青少年的文章更遵守WHO指南，以省略自杀方法和地点的特定信息。结论：青少年自杀与成人自杀的新闻报道存在显着差异，青少年自杀在文章数量和文章长度方面受到更多关注。自杀新闻报道可以改进。记者和自杀预防专家之间的密切合作可能是有益的。
