One group that is often misrepresented is those that suffer from mental illness. In generally, those with menta illness are under portrayed or unrealistic. Studies show that media portray those with mental illness as overly dramatic, with distorted images emphasizing behavior that is dangerous, criminal, and unpredictable. They also model negative reactions to those individuals that include fear, rejection, derision and ridicule (Stuart, 2006). Several television shows and movies also depict treatment and psychiatric institutes in horrifying ways, with depicting that view individuals can recover or be productive members of society (Stuart, 2006). Such portrayal can have a negative impact as it cultivates misinformation, influences how the general public evaluates mental illness. The view of an individual with mental illness being a danger can be used to justify forced legal action, coercive treatment, bullying and other forms of victimization (Stuart, 2006). The portrayal of treatment can deter some from seeking help, denial of symptoms, and promotes distrust of medical health providers and treatments. 

Media can also be beneficial for promoting stigma and discrimination toward people with a mental illness, working as an ally in challenging public prejudices, initiating public debate, and projecting positive stories about people who live with mental illness (Stuart, 2006). The prosocial hypothesis states that if portrayal is sympathetic and positive, viewers may look more favorably towards that group (Stever, 2022). Public figures sharing about their own mental health can also help the stigma. 

One of the more controversial depictions is the show 13 Reasons Why. The show has been accused of glorifying suicide among youth. The series tells the story of Hannah Baker, whose suicide is depicted through a series of tapes that blame people for her suicide. The show has been said to romanticize suicide, focus is more on revenge, is loaded with harmful imagery and actions that could be harmful for youth dealing with mental illness and thoughts of suicide and could even prevent student from seeking help from school counselors (Rosenblatt, 2017). The benefit of the series is that it opened conversations about teen suicide.  

References: 

Rosenblatt, K. (2017, April 22). Netflix’s ’13 Reasons Why’ Carries Danger of Glorifying Suicide, Experts Say. NBC news. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/tv/netflix-series-13-reasons-why-glorifies-suicide-mental-health-experts-n749551 

Stever, G., Giles, D., Cohen, J. D., & Myers, M. E. (2022). Understanding Media Psychology. Routledge. 

Stuart H. (2006). Media portrayal of mental illness and its treatments: what effect does it have on people with mental illness?. CNS drugs, 20(2), 99–106. https://doi.org/10.2165/00023210-200620020-00002 

2)The homeless are one of the groups that have been stigmatized due to portrayals in the media. Often times in movies and television, the homeless are depicted as being in their situations due to choices that they made or portrayed in a way where they are viewed as having negative character traits such as being violent, lazy, or mentally ill; in addition to being treated poorly by others (Griffith, 2019). Banduras social learning theory demonstrates why the media representation matters because being constantly bombarded with these negative depictions could lead to learned behaviors that reinforce stigmatization. Nobody wins by these distortions and every member of society loses because homelessness is an issue that impacts the quality of life and safety of every individual. The inaccurate representation affects the understanding of the problem, which in turn hinders the implementation of solutions and policies to address the root of the problems ailing the homeless.

Stever et al. (2022) discusses social identity theory which states that people tend to view member of their own groups as diverse and members of other groups as alike. For this reason, an accurate representation of the homeless is needed in the media. If an individual is bombarded with negative depictions of the homeless (a group which they don’t belong to), they will be unable to understand/overlook the unique and often times heartbreaking reasons why a person ends up in that situation.

References

Griffith, C. (2019, September 24). Study proves media grossly misrepresents homelessness. Invisible People. Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://invisiblepeople.tv/study-proves-mediagrosslymisrepresentshomelessness/#:~:text=76%25%20of%20homeless%20characters%20are,traits%20to%20their%20homeless%20characters.

Stever, G., Giles, D., Cohen, J. D., & Myers, M. E. (2022). Understanding Media Psychology. Routledge.