Reporting on Death and Grief Reporting on Death and Grief

Reporting on death and grief is important. It’s also not easy.

Reporting on events and asking tough questions is mission critical for the media in order to:

Ensure reporting on death is treated as a part of life

When appropriate, make sure the public is aware of circumstances that could lead to more deaths or injuries

Provide understanding of why the death has occured

Debunk any rumors or suspicions around a death

Provide information and psycho-education that supports the public's ability to process a death

Reporting on Death and Grief.

Experts in the death, dying, and grief space have come together to provide the following guide for how journalists can succeed at their job while being respectful and not causing any unnecessary harm in pursuit of the facts, the truth, or the story.

Journalists, filmmakers, producers all have many choices to make when handling a death. Those choices, in turn, often have unintended emotional consequences. When dealing with death, what might feel like "normal" reporting may leave subjects, family members, or friends in a state of increased trauma, as reactions to death can trigger heightened emotions, sometimes causing lasting harm.

Scroll

Don'ts

Do's

Self-care while reporting

Death and Grief.

Reporting on

Don't assume you know what they’re going through.

Don't break the news to the family.

Don't begin an interview without getting consent.

Avoid saying you “know how they feel” or that you've “been in a similar situation.” Don’t name their emotions, ie: “you must be so angry.” Each person’s grief is their own and should be treated as an individual experience. Instead, try something like: “I recognize this is likely a very difficult time” or “I’m sorry to meet you under these circumstances.” You could say “I won’t presume to know what this is like for you.”

Avoid being the first the family hears of the death. Before contacting the family, try to find out what the family already knows about the death.

Being interviewed is a surreal and often distressing experience. Get consent from the person you’d like to interview: it’s important to be clear that this interview is not mandatory. In the shock and rush of things, many people don’t realize they can decline an interview. A clear request such as: “I’d like to ask you some questions about your experience and grief, is that okay?” is a gentle, respectful way of approaching the interview. Remember that consenting to the interview is not consent to answer every question. Invite people to decline to answer questions.

Don'ts

Don't mis-name the cause(s) of death.

Don't publish unnecessary details of the death.

Don't use social media without permission.

Don't suggest “closure” will occur.

Don't unintentionally shame the grief process or timeline.

Don't begin an interview without getting consent.

Back

Don't break the news to the family.

Avoid being the first time the family hears of the death. Before contacting the family, try to find out what the family already knows about the death.

Don't assume you know what they’re going through.

Avoid saying you “know how they feel” or that you've “been in a similar situation.” Don’t name their emotions, ie: “you must be so angry.” Each person’s grief is their own and should be treated as an individual experience. Instead, try something like: “I recognize this is likely a very difficult time” or “I’m sorry to meet you under these circumstances.” You could also say “I won’t presume to know what this is like for you.”

Don't use social media without permission.

Most individuals do not realize their social media posts can be used publicly. Get consent before publishing content from the individual or family’s social media.

Don't publish unnecessary details of the death.

This is especially critical when a person has died by suicide. Avoid publishing details that may cause unnecessary harm. Revealing gory details whether in words or imagery does not serve the story. A good way to determine is by reviewing the details you plan to share with those closest to the situation (friends, family members) before publishing.

Don't mis-name the cause(s) of death.

In any manner of death, consider how you phrase the manner or cause of death. Death from long term illness is often reported as “succumbing to” or “losing a battle with.” Those words make it sound like the person who has died from that illness could or should have fought harder. “Died of (or from) cancer" is the more sensitive phrasing. Along the same line, avoid using the terms “committed suicide” or “suicided.” To avoid stigmatizing suicide, use the terms “died of suicide” or “died by suicide.” When reporting on deaths due to violent crime or hate crimes, be mindful of clear phrasing. “Died in police custody” is a very different statement than “killed in police custody.” Details matter: we are always shaping understanding. Be sure to utilize language on death that is factual rather than euphemistic (died, not passed away)

Don't suggest “closure” will occur.

Outlets often say things like “now that the funeral is done, the family can find closure.” This is inaccurate. First, our traditions and rituals after death are not the end to grief, they’re the beginning. Grief is part of love and will last as long as surviving friends and family love the person who died. Funerals do not provide closure; they provide a ritual by which we can honor and remember the life of the person who died. They provide a public acknowledgment that the person who died mattered and existed, which can bring comfort to surviving friends and family. For example, instead of using the term “closure”, you could say: "With the funeral done, the family can now turn to navigating and processing grief in other ways, reflecting on memories, and finding other avenues to honor the life of xyz."

Don't misgender individuals involved in your story.

Ask the person how they wish to be identified. If you’re unable to obtain this information, utilize “they” instead. This goes for those you’re interviewing and the deceased. Always use a transgender person’s chosen name. Unless the story is about a public figure who recently came out as transgender, there is no reason to clarify a previous name or gender.

Don't misgender individuals involved in your story.

Don't Unintentionally shame the grief process or timeline.

“Still grieving” is often used in stories reported a month or two after a loss, ie: “Kobe Bryant’s wife is still grieving the loss of her husband and daughter who died in a plane crash over two months ago.” The word still tells people that grief should be over quickly with no signs of distress or feelings after a certain point. In this example, the word “still” implies that two months is already too long. This spreads misinformation about grief. Better phrasing: “Kobe Bryant’s wife is grieving the loss of her husband and daughter who died in a plane crash just two months ago.” If the loss was months or years prior, don’t add any qualifiers, i.e.: ... her husband and daughter who died in a plane crash earlier this year.

Consider how you structure your headline.

Consider the social and historical context behind a death.

Ask open ended questions.

Treat the family or friends of the deceased with respect.

Reflect the language used by the person you’re interviewing.

Take your time.

Only ask once.

Clarify your intentions.

Acknowledge the loss.

Do's

Acknowledge the loss.

Acknowledge the speaker’s loss, and the strangeness of being interviewed about such an intimate thing. That acknowledgment can be powerful, and it shows respect to the person you’re speaking with. Be human. Acknowledge how unreal this loss may feel and how odd and personal an interview is at this time. Acknowledgment and consent: just these two seemingly little things make a huge difference.

Include resources and expert voices.

Respect romantic relationship labels.

Be sensitive about how and when you do interviews.

Grief is a deeply personal and intimate thing and no one is required to reveal their personal experience in that moment. Forcing someone to talk about their grief can cause compounded trauma for the subject. With the source’s permission, ask what their grief has been like for them so far, how others have supported them, or what they wish others would do. You can ask “what do you wish people knew about your grief, especially in these early days for you?” This is a fantastic way to normalize grief, educate the public, and give the person you’re interviewing an actual voice rather than assuming how they feel. Watch your sources for signs of distress. Remind them that they do not have to continue if they wish not to. Lastly, be aware of the cultural and situational impact you carry as a reporter --- depending on the situation, you might or might not be the right person to be entering someone's home. This can range from cultural awareness of customs that govern how a guest enters a home, to situational awareness, ie: a male reporter wishing to interview a family member of a woman killed by their male domestic partner might cause distress. Educate yourself about customs before you enter/interview following a death, and ask yourself how your presence might affect the interaction as a whole.

Clarify your intentions.

When reaching out, be open straight away about who you are and why you're there. Give the person a chance to say they don't want to speak to you. If they don’t wish to speak, inform the news desk to prevent others from reaching out.

Only ask once.

If you’re going to reach out to a family or friend associated with the person who has died--- ask one time only (this includes outreach on social media). If they decline to comment, do not reach out again.

Take your time.

Schedule plenty of time for the interview. Don’t expect your source to answer your questions in a logical, efficient manner. Slow down. Don’t go straight for the details. Let them tell their own story. Once they’re comfortable with you, you can clarify facts and ask for details (within reason).

Reflect the language used by the person you’re interviewing (but use “dead” in print).

Listen for cues on how the family or friends refer to the individual. For example, do they call the deceased their partner or their spouse? Use the terms they use. When speaking with a family, if they use phrases like “passed” or “went home,” use those words. In your finished story, use “dead” or “died” rather than rely on euphemisms.

Treat the family or friends of the deceased with respect (and show empathy).

Your story is associated with a traumatic and life changing experience for your subject. You may sense how the person is feeling, but you cannot understand what it is like to be them. For more on reporting on trauma, see this article.

Ask open ended questions.

Lead with curiosity about grief, rather than assumptions about grief. For example, you might ask “What’s important for people to know about grief as you understand it today?” That phrasing is markedly different from this leading question: “You must be feeling relieved that an arrest has been made. How has this helped you find closure?” In an in-depth interview, you might ask, “How does your faith (or ethnic or cultural background) help you honor people who have died?” You might ask about the person who died: “(Name) sounds like someone who loved animals...would you be willing to share more about what he/she/they was like?” Asking about who the person was is a better line of questioning than the presumptive “what do you think they would say about the way you’re handling this?”

Consider the social and historical context behind a death.

When reporting on deaths that stem from racism, gun violence, domestic violence, civil unrest, or hate crimes, treat the social or historical context behind the death as a valued news feature: this is an opportunity to educate readers on systemic racism, prejudice, misogyny, ableism, etc. Acknowledge that this loss of an individual sits within a larger socio-historical context of violence and oppression of (AAPI, BIPOC, women, LGBTIQA+, disabled etc). Personal grief intersects with social grief intersects with culture and politics. Part of reporting on grief with skill and compassion includes naming the systems that create or foster those losses. While developing the story, explore how your own unconscious bias may impact your ability to report. Here is a good place to start.

Consider how you structure your headline.

This is true when reporting on any death, but is especially important if the death is a person of color, or part of an otherwise marginalized or maligned community. Inadvertently contributing to institutional/systemic racism or other-ism is easy to do if you don’t intentionally seek to avoid it. For an excellent primer on the hidden structure of headlines, watch this TED talk by Baratunde Thurston. If you’re not able to write your own headline, share the video with the department or editor responsible for generating headlines. When choosing photographs to pair with an article on deaths fueled by racism or other hate crimes, consider exploring the racial bias built into imagery. Violent images operate as both visual rhetoric against structural violence while also serving as souvenirs of white supremacy so it is important that photographers follow best practices and ask permission of grieving communities to utilize the visual image, while taking the lead from communities of color if the image is an image of racialized violence.

Include resources and expert voices.

Consider linking to relevant services for readers who may be experiencing a similar situation or feel compelled to take action. We can direct you to top experts and resources. Contact us here.

Respect romantic relationship labels.

Be respectful and aware of the language used to identify partners. Use the subject’s own language when they refer to the person they’ve lost.

Want to learn the basics of grief?

Learn how to support someone who is grieving.

Start here

Learn more

Do's

Self care while reporting

How to Take Care of Yourself While Reporting on Death

Create a self care plan.

Be aware of changes in your mental health.

Take care of your body.

Lean on one another.

Find ways to disconnect from your work.

Know the resources available to you.

Find a therapist.

Reconnect with purpose.

Acknowledge your own humanity.

Create a self care plan.

Identify people, activities, breathing exercises, etc. that help during your hardest moments. This plan can help during difficult experiences but becomes easier to reach for when it’s used on a routine basis - it’s hard to start a new practice when you’re already exhausted.

Be aware of changes in your mental health.

Take note of any sudden changes to sleep, appetite, motivation, and outlook on the future. These are signs that you might need more support, or a break from the action.

Take care of your body.

For many, exercise and movement directly impact mental health. Try allocating time each day or every few days to physical activity (in whatever ways your body is able to move) the same way you’d block time for a meeting.

Lean on one another.

Other journalists have a unique understanding of your experience that your friends and family might not have. Identify people you can be open and honest with.

Find ways to disconnect from your work.

Reporting is beyond a full time job. Find time for activities that clear your head such as cooking, guided meditation, reading, or simply walking outdoors without checking emails.

Know the resources available to you.

If you’re employed by a larger corporation, you likely have mental and physical health benefits available to you. Ask someone in HR or access your employee benefits portal.

Find a therapist.

Even if you don’t think you need one now, identifying who you’d like to work with now will allow you to act quickly should your needs change. An interview with someone in raw grief may spark issues in your own life, and/or you may become overwhelmed by the collective grief of others.

Reconnect with purpose.

Remind yourself of why you are a journalist; that your writing helps educate people, humanize people, and deepen our understanding of one another. What you have witnessed is painful because real life is painful. Your willingness to immerse yourself in this narrative is a service to society.

Avoid being the first the family hears of the death. Before contacting the family, try to find out what the family already knows about the death.

Increase your death literacy.

Create an End of Life Plan for yourself.

Look out for one another.

Writers / Contributors

Are you looking to contact an expert or service provider for interview?

Reach out to us here

Are you an expert or service provider that should be added to our database?

Increase your death literacy.

In order to connect meaningfully with those that are grieving it is important to face your own fears, triggers, and hopes for your own final chapter. There are many exceptional books and resources that can deepen your own personal death literacy.

Create an End of Life Plan for yourself.

You will be much better prepared and comfortable reporting on death and end of life if you have created a personal end of life plan. Completing this plan can reduce your own anxieties around death.

Look out for one another.

Make yourself available to other journalists and notice if they’re exhibiting changes in their mental health. Be prepared to offer a listening ear or direct them to crisis resources.

Source: Poynter

Writers

Contributors

Writers / Contributers

Elizabeth Eddy

Co-founder & CEO of Lantern

Writers

Megan Devine

Founder of Here After

Liz Eddy is the co-founder and CEO of Lantern. Lantern provides step-by-step guidance for navigating life before and after a death. Liz is also a board member and volunteer for Experience Camps, an organization for grieving children.

Psychotherapist and best-selling author Megan Devine believes that making the world a better place starts with acknowledging grief, rather than seeking to overcome it. Through Here After, Refuge in Grief, and her book It's Ok that You're Not Ok, Megan advocates for a revolution in how we discuss loss - personally, professionally, and as a wider community.

Contributors

Alica Forneret, Founder of Forneret Co. Alesia Alexander, LCSW, CT. Founder of Tapestries Grief Dan Reidenberg, Psy.D., FAPA. Executive director of SAVE and creator of reportingonsuicide.org Dr. Dan Wolfson, Psy.D. specializing in grief, loss and trauma Brad Wolfe, Founder of ReImagine Michael Hebb, Founder of End of Life Collective and Death Over Dinner Dr. Donna Schuurman, Executive Director of The Dougy Center Amy Liebman Rapp, M.S ED, CT. Founder of National Alliance for Grieving Children and The Sanctuary National Grief Support Network, CEO of Alex Cares Dr. Ira Byock, M.D., palliative care physician and public advocate for improving end of life care Cara Allen, LCSW, psychotherapist specializing in grief and transitions Dr. Candi K. Cann, Author, death studies scholar, and professor at Baylor University

Associated Resources

Acknowledge your own humanity.

Just because you chose this line of work doesn’t mean the work doesn’t affect you. Being up close and personal to loss and suffering will likely create an emotional ripple effect in your life, if even for a short time. For more information on how trauma affects journalists, see this article from the APA or the Dart Center’s extensive resources. If you are a BIPOC journalist reporting on deaths related to race or hate crimes, check out Journalists of Color for additional support.

If you'd like to learn more about Reporting on Death and Grief or any of the information you've seen here please feel free to reach out to us, we'd love to hear from you.

Reach out to us here

|03

Reporting on Death and Grief.

RDG

Associated Resources

Reporting on Suicide Reporting on Mass Shootings Diverse Sources The Diversity Style Guide Social Justice Media Guide Poynter

Don'ts

Back

Respect romantic relationship labels.

Be sensitive about how and when you do interviews.

Consider how you structure your headline.

Ask open ended questions.

Treat the family or friends of the deceased with respect.

Reflect the language used by the person you’re interviewing.

Only ask once.

Clarify your intentions.

Acknowledge the loss.

|03

Do's

Self care while reporting

Consider how you structure your headline.

Back

Consider the social and historical context behind a death.

Back

Ask open ended questions.

Back

Treat the family or friends of the deceased with respect (and show empathy).

Back

Reflect the language used by the person you’re interviewing (but use “dead” in print).

Back

Take your time.

Back

Only ask once.

Back

Clarify your intentions.

Back

Acknowledge the loss.

Back

Take your time.

Consider the social and historical context behind a death.

Include resources and expert voices.

Be sensitive about how and when you do interviews.

Back

Respect romantic relationship labels.

Be respectful and aware of the language used to identify partners. Use the subject’s own language when they refer to the person they’ve lost.

Back

Include resources and expert voices.

Consider linking to relevant services for readers who may be experiencing a similar situation or feel compelled to take action. We can direct you to top experts and resources. Contact us here.

Back

Increase your death literacy.

Create an End of Life Plan for yourself.

Look out for one another.

Create a self care plan.

Be aware of changes in your mental health.

Take care of your body.

Lean on one another.

Find ways to disconnect from your work.

Know the resources available to you.

Find a therapist.

Reconnect with purpose.

Acknowledge your own humanity.

|03

Are you looking to contact an expert or service provider for interview?

Reach out to us here

Are you an expert or service provider that should be added to our database?

How to Take Care of Yourself While Reporting on Death

Writers / Contributors

Increase your death literacy.

Create an End of Life Plan for yourself.

You will be much better prepared and comfortable reporting on death and end of life if you have created a personal end of life plan. Completing this plan can reduce your own anxieties around death.

Look out for one another.

Make yourself available to other journalists and notice if they’re exhibiting changes in their mental health. Be prepared to offer a listening ear or direct them to crisis resources.

Create a self care plan.

Be aware of changes in your mental health.

Take note of any sudden changes to sleep, appetite, motivation, and outlook on the future. These are signs that you might need more support, or a break from the action.

Take care of your body.

Lean on one another.

Other journalists have a unique understanding of your experience that your friends and family might not have. Identify people you can be open and honest with.

Find ways to disconnect from your work.

Reporting is beyond a full time job. Find time for activities that clear your head such as cooking, guided meditation, reading, or simply walking outdoors without checking emails.

Know the resources available to you.

If you’re employed by a larger corporation, you likely have mental and physical health benefits available to you. Ask someone in HR or access your employee benefits portal.

Find a therapist.

Reconnect with purpose.

Acknowledge the loss.

RDG

Source:

Poynter

If you'd like to learn more about Reporting on Death and Grief or any of the information you've seen here please feel free to reach out to us, we'd love to hear from you.

Reach out to us here

Back