Calls to crisis hotlines surge after Williams’ suicide
August 22, 2014
In the days after the highly publicized suicide of actor Robin Williams, calls to crisis lines increased dramatically. John Draper, director of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, attributed the surge to the fact that many news outlets prominently featured information about crisis resources for those with suicidal thoughts. Prevention specialists hope that widespread adherence to standards of responsible coverage, such as publicizing crisis line numbers alongside stories about suicide deaths, may reduce the risk of so-called ‘copycat’ suicides. In this light, many saw the explosion in help-seeking as positive. “It means that people aren’t suffering in silence,” said Jeffrey Borenstein, president of New York’s Brain and Behavior Research Foundation. “They are looking to get treatment, so they reduce the risk of a tragic outcome like suicide.
Spark Extra! The National Action Alliance Framework for Successful Messaging, featured in this month’s Director’s Corner, can help your organization frame its response to widely publicized suicide deaths.