Media & Mental Health: Using Mass Media to Reduce the Stigma of Mental Illness

The mass media are an important source of information about mental health, yet television shows, news stories, social media posts, and other media fare often perpetuate stereotypes and misunderstandings about mental illness. For 70 years, scholars in media studies, psychology, sociology, and other fields have investigated media representations of mental illness and how exposure to media content informs people's beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors related to mental health. Despite the attention, little progress has been made in changing these messages and mitigating negative outcomes.

Enter Media & Mental Health. This book flips the issue on its head, examining the question: Can the problem be a solution? Informed by budding lines of research from media studies, psychology, and other fields, this book discusses ways in which television, music, movies, news, social media, and other mass media fare may challenge the stigmatization of mental illness. It contains insight that is valuable for both academic and lay audiences, including "best practices" for mental health professionals, activists, and organizations to help reduce stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination and to improve public understanding of this oft-misunderstood part of the human experience.

Scott Parrott is an associate professor in the Department of Journalism and Creative Media at the University of Alabama. His research examines media stereotypes, focusing on the stigmatization of mental illness.