BUILDING A SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGYFOR SUICIDE PREVENTION:

Guidelines for Effective and Safe Online Messaging

Nedra Kline Weinreich

@Nedra@MediaTEAMUp@EIC_Online

EIC Core Principles

• Mission Statement: To bring the power and influence of the entertainment industry to bear on communication about health and social issues

• Engage with stakeholders to develop messages• Collaborate with media – not a “watchdog”• Respect for media and right to free speech

Our partners:

Radio Television Digital News Association

Program Partners/Supporters

How can we use social media for suicide prevention?

htt

p://

ww

w.f

lickr

.co

m/p

ho

tos/

ap

hro

dite

/66

23

192

9/

New Resource!

Document Reviewed by Experts at Many Organizations

• National Association of Broadcasters

• Radio Television Digital News Association

• Facebook• National Action Alliance

for Suicide Prevention• Suicide Prevention

Resource Center• American Academy of

Suicidology

• California Mental Health Services Authority

• National Suicide Prevention Council

• SAVE• UK National Health

Service mHealth Program• Reingold • #SPSM Participants• And Others…

Guidelines Cover…

• Social media strategy• Content considerations

– Mental health– Suicide prevention

• Language and images• Building online engagement• Privacy and safety concerns• Addressing suicide-related posts by others

Start with a Strategy

1. Goals/Objectives

2. Priority Audiences

3. Capacity

4. Tools and Tactics

5. Measure and Evaluate

Pho

to: h

ttp://

ww

w.fl

ickr

.com

/pho

tos/

pens

iero

/230

7172

96/

Content Considerations – Mental Health

• Use a reliable source.• Check links before passing them along.• Be transparent.• Reduce stigma by sharing real stories.• Share positive content about hope/recovery.• Avoid sharing stories implying mental illness

causes violence.• Speak up when you see stigmatizing content.• Use [Trigger Warnings] for graphic content.

Content Considerations – Suicide Prevention

• Focus on positive narrative of prevention rather than on the problem.

• Follow safe messaging recommendations:– Don’t overdramatize the event. – Avoid exact details on locations and methods.– Avoid showing grieving family and friends or

memorial services.– Avoid sharing information from suicide notes. – Don’t oversimplify.

• Share links to suicide prevention resources.• Be sensitive to family members’ feelings.

Language and Images

• Write conversationally.• Avoid stigmatizing or derogatory language.• Use people-first language, not labels.• Avoid stereotypical imagery.• Avoid descriptions and images of suicide

acts or methods.

Building Online Engagement

• Offer different ways for people to participate with you online.

• Use appropriate hashtags to make your posts easy to find.– #suicide, #mentalhealth, #spsm, #mhsm,

#ok2talk

• Join in on Twitter chats and conference livetweeting.– #SPSM – Sunday nights 7pm PT– #AAS14

Privacy and Safety Concerns

• Give careful consideration to your own privacy online.

• Never share other people’s information without permission.

• Avoid sharing details like treatment protocols or dosages.

• Develop policies and procedures for safe comments and posts on your sites.

• Take action against harassment or bullying.

Addressing Suicide-Related Posts by Others

• If someone posts potentially suicidal content online, take action.

• Watch for trending topics related to suicide.• Do not repost stories/links about suicide

attempts or deaths.• Avoid perpetuating suicide myths.• Be vigilant for suicide hoaxes that may

spread quickly online.• Work with influencers in fan communities

to counter suicide hoaxes/rumors.

Social Media Resourceshttp://nedra.wikispaces.com/tea

mup

Nedra Weinreich@Nedra

nweinreich@eiconline.org

http://eiconline.org/teamup@MediaTEAMup

Questions?