What is stigma?
Stigma against people with a mental illness often involves inaccurate and hurtful representations of them as violent, comical, or incompetent. The media play a major role in influencing public attitudes, and this includes attitudes to mental illness. That's why the StigmaWatch program was established, to tackle these attitudes at the source.

SANE reduces stigma in the media by improving community understanding of mental illness and its treatments through publications and resources, ongoing work with the media and through the StigmaWatch program.

SANE StigmaWatch monitors media portrayals of mental illness and suicide, to ensure they are accurate and respectful. It takes the media to task when these topics are covered inaccurately or irresponsibly, and – through the ‘Good News’ area – congratulates them on good coverage.

Reports from the public are verified before the media is contacted with an explanation of the harm stigma causes. Responses are posted in the StigmaWatch Files. Some serious cases of stigma, for example promotion by Locos Burritos restaurant and an article in FHM (For Him Magazine), are taken further and involve a national media campaign or complaint to the Press Council.

Would you like to be alerted to StigmaWatch media campaigns?

SANE produces the annual StigmaWatch report, a summary on how the media has fared in undertaking balanced reporting of mental illness. Read the verdict.

SANE StigmaWatch is a program of the SANE Media Centre, which works in partnership with the National Media and Mental Health Group, which provides expert advice to the Australian Government's Mindframe Media Strategy.

Mindframe is the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing's national strategy for promoting responsible and accurate reporting of suicide and mental illness in the media. It is shaped and guided by the National Media and Mental Health Group.

Achievements include a twelve month study - Media Monitoring Project - of how journalists portray suicide and mental illness in the media and introducing journalism students to the concepts of safe reporting of suicide and non-stigmatising of mental illness through The ResponseAbility Project

SANE StigmaWatch and the SANE Media Centre are supported by the Friends of SANE and receives funding from the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing under the Australian Government's National Mental Health Strategy and National Suicide Prevention Strategy through the Mindframe National Media Strategy.