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Newspaper coverage of psychiatry and general medicine: comparing tabloids with broadsheets

University Center St Jozef Kortenberg, Leuvansesteenweg 517, B3070 Kortenberg, Belgium Guido.Pieters{at}med.kuleven.ac.be

Véronique De Gucht, Researcher, Assistant Professor

Department of Clinical Psychology, University Center St Jozef Kortenberg
Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, Leiden University, The Netherlands

Hendrick Kajosch, Psychiatric Trainee

University Center St Jozef Kortenberg

AIMS AND METHOD

To study whether psychiatry received differing treatment in newspapers than the other medical specialities, and whether tabloids were more negative in their coverage of general medicine and psychiatry than broadsheets. We conducted a survey of all headlines in all daily newspapers in the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium over a one-month period and judged whether the content was essentially positive, neutral or negative.

RESULTS

There was no significant difference between articles on general medicine and psychiatry with respect to the tone of the article. Whereas negative articles about medicine focused on both doctor and patient to the same extent, negative articles on psychiatry tended more often to describe the patient. Broadsheets published more negative than positive articles, while tabloids published an equal proportion of negative and positive articles.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

There appears to be no difference in tone with respect to articles on general medicine and psychiatry, respectively. Nevertheless, the fact that negative articles on psychiatry tend to focus more exclusively on the patient points towards continuing stigmatisation of the psychiatric patient. Finally, broadsheets tend to be more negative in covering both general medicine and psychiatry, which contrasts with earlier findings.

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