Media speculating Andreas Lubitz's mental health is a disservice
CBC Radio | Posted: April 1, 2015 11:52 AM | Last Updated: April 1, 2015
It's been just over a week since Germanwings Flight 9525 crashed into the French Alps, killing all on board. An incomprehensible tragedy when it was first reported... there's now a story taking shape.
And for the news media reporting that story, one fact has stood out above all others, the mental health of the man at the plane's controls.
Today, as part of our occasional Eye on the Media series, we're asking about how the news media should report and relate this kind of story when mental health issues such as depression are intertwined with disaster.
Andre Picard is a health reporter at The Globe and Mail. He also contributed to the creation of a guide for journalists called Mindset: Reporting on Mental Health. He was in Montreal.
Kelly McBride is a media ethics expert at The Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Paul Garfinkel is a professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, and founding CEO of CAMH. He was in our Toronto studio.
This segment was produced by The Currnent's Pacinthe Mattar, Ines Colabrese and Marc Apollonio.
RELATED LINKS
Don't Blame It on Depression - Slate
Germanwings crash: Co-pilot told flight school of serious depression, airline says - Associated Press
Media Guide: Reporting on Mental Health - Mindset, a project created by Canadian journalists for journalists