AAS Media Guidelines & Safe Messaging 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Social media platforms are advised to apply which practice following a high-profile suicide?
- Trending hashtags to raise awareness immediately
- Crisis information overlays or safe messaging labels on related content (Correct answer)
- Removing all mentions of the individual from the platform
- Disabling comment sections on all mental health pages
Correct answer: Crisis information overlays or safe messaging labels on related content
Platforms are encouraged to add crisis resource overlays to relevant content rather than suppressing discussion entirely.
Question 2: Which image should media outlets AVOID publishing alongside suicide stories?
- A photo of a crisis counselor at a help line
- An image of the location where a suicide occurred (Correct answer)
- A graphic showing national mental health statistics
- A portrait of the deceased in a positive life moment
Correct answer: An image of the location where a suicide occurred
Images of the location can glamorize or memorialize the site, potentially drawing vulnerable individuals to it.
Question 3: According to safe messaging principles, survivor stories in media should emphasize:
- The specific method the person used and survived
- The hopelessness they felt leading up to the attempt
- The turning point, recovery process, and sources of help (Correct answer)
- The failures of the mental health system they encountered
Correct answer: The turning point, recovery process, and sources of help
Survivor stories should highlight recovery, resilience, and pathways to help to inspire hope in vulnerable readers.
Question 4: Which of the following is TRUE about suicide clusters and media reporting?
- Clusters are only triggered by in-person social networks, not media
- Detailed reporting on one cluster event cannot influence other communities
- Media coverage can contribute to point clusters by increasing identification with the deceased (Correct answer)
- Cluster suicides occur exclusively among adolescents in rural areas
Correct answer: Media coverage can contribute to point clusters by increasing identification with the deceased
Media coverage that promotes identification with a deceased individual can contribute to point clusters in geographically distinct areas.
Question 5: A school district is drafting a press release after a student died by suicide. Which element is MOST important to include?
- The student's academic and social struggles that may have contributed
- A detailed timeline of events leading up to the death
- Mental health support resources available to students and families (Correct answer)
- Names of teachers who interacted with the student that day
Correct answer: Mental health support resources available to students and families
Press releases should prioritize connecting the community to available mental health resources to support those who may be grieving or at risk.
Question 6: Safe messaging guidelines caution against describing suicide as a result of:
- Untreated mental illness
- A single, identifiable cause such as a breakup or job loss (Correct answer)
- Complex interacting risk factors
- Lack of access to mental health care
Correct answer: A single, identifiable cause such as a breakup or job loss
Presenting suicide as the result of a single cause oversimplifies and can reinforce the idea that one life event justifies suicide.
Question 7: Entertainment media (TV, film) should ideally include which element when depicting suicide?
- Realistic and detailed portrayal of the method to reduce stigma
- A scene showing how the suicide affects the community positively
- End-credits resources and mental health hotline numbers (Correct answer)
- A character who expresses relief after a loved one's suicide
Correct answer: End-credits resources and mental health hotline numbers
Including crisis resources in end credits or on-screen messaging helps connect at-risk viewers to support after exposure to difficult content.
AAS Media Guidelines & Safe Messaging 3
Social media platforms are advised to apply which practice following a high-profile suicide?