Changing media representations of mental health

Abstract

The Glasgow Media Group has published the first major study in this country on media coverage of mental health (Philo, 1996). This research examines both the content of press, television and films and how these relate to public beliefs about mental illness. It involved an extensive content analysis plus a series of focus group interviews. The results show clearly that ill-informed beliefs on, for example, the association of schizophrenia with violence can be traced directly to media accounts.