World Mental Health Day: How can journalists and news audiences take better care of themselves?

Credit: Photo by Daniel Páscoa on Unsplash

Today (10 October 2019) marks World Mental Health Day, a day to show support and raise awareness around better mental health.

Journalism.co.uk rounds up six articles that look at mental wellbeing in the newsroom, the media industry and amongst our readers and viewers.

Solutions-focused journalism

Reporting on solutions to societal problems can improve audiences' mental health and be a cure for reader disengagement, as it helps to counter the negativity bias in our news cycle and portray the world more accurately.

This comes from Jodie Jackson, author of You Are What You Read, a book which explores the themes of constructive journalism and how it can help audiences to reconnect with the news. Read more

Negative news filters

The dominance of negative reporting also causes news avoidance. To address this problem, BBC News experimented with filters on its homepage which allowed readers to blur out stories that might impact their mental health.

It provides a trigger warning that informs the reader that an article contains keywords that they marked out as sensitive. It will not be appearing on the main homepage any time soon but is an important step to acknowledging the impact reporting can have on readers' anxieties. Read more

Six components of burnout

Trying to keep pace with the 24-hour news cycle can take a serious toll on senior reporters shouldering much of the responsibility.

In a podcast with Journalism.co.uk, Zuzanna Ziomecka, founder of Newsmavens and a teacher of mindfulness explored the six components of burnout. We learned that burnout is more than just exhaustion, how to spot red flags and warning signs, plus what can be done collectively to help. Read more

Role of social media

The demands of social media can be damaging to journalists. It is made worse because unplugging and detoxing is rarely an option in the modern news environment.

We spoke to experts about what journalists can do keep their mental state above water while minimising binge-scrolling. Read more

Email overload

The other common source of stress comes from a journalist's inbox, writes John Crowley, editorial director, First Draft News.

Add to that the pressures of breaking news and it is a recipe for disaster. Crowley speaks to other industry professionals about dealing with information overload and the strain it can place on newsrooms. Read more

What can be done?

Well, you can only drink so many coffees in one day, but BBC Radio 5 Live has some useful strategies to keep moods and morale on a high.

Introducing a 'jukebox' mood boards to allow staff to express feelings and switching off notifications during meetings, these are some small but effective steps from management to keep burnout at bay. Read more

What skills do journalists need in the newsroom of 2020? Find out at Newsrewired on 27 November at Reuters, London. Head to newsrewired.com for the full agenda and tickets

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