title: [Psychiatry in local newspapers].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The media influences public opinion. Although it can provide objective information, it can also create prejudices. For the first time German local newspapers were examined with respect to HOW and HOW OFTEN they use psychiatric terminology.
  
  
  METHODS
  All newspapers of the East German Altmark were analyzed with respect to their usage of selected psychiatric terms for a period of one year. None of these newspapers could be described as tabloids or as predominantly sensation-seeking. For comparative purposes, our chosen methodology was similar to that of an earlier study of respected, German, internationally-read print media.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 14 % of the newspapers studied, at least one term of the predefined psychiatric vocabulary appeared. A negative context was common (45 %), but for the most part this was in crime-related articles supplied by press agencies. In contrast with reputable, German language newspapers with a nationwide or international audience, in purely local reports, a negative context was rare, and no alienating usage of preselected psychiatric terms was found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Local editorial teams seem to be closer to - and perhaps better informed about - regional psychiatric institutions. Hence, they can provide the public with more factual information. For this reason, anti-stigma mental health campaigns will likely be more effective when carried out using local media, as opposed to nationwide or even international media.
authors.affiliation: Zentrum für Soziale Psychiatrie Salzwedel, Salzwedel, Germany. studien@dr-nowack-kliniken.de
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nowack
authors.forename: Bianka
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tonn
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Unter Mitarbeit von Volker
authors.forename: Ralf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Oberste-Ufer
authors.forename: Christin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Müller
mesh_terms: D003415:Crime / Q000523:psychology; D003617:Dangerous Behavior; D005858:Germany; D006266:Health Education; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006801:Humans; D020452:Journalism; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D019365:Metaphor; D009524:Newspapers as Topic; D011570:Psychiatry; D012929:Psychological Distance; D011639:Public Opinion; D057545:Social Stigma; D009626:Terminology as Topic