School of Journalism, Media and Communication

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Browsing School of Journalism, Media and Communication by Author "Lucy Nuwasasira"

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    The Role of Print Media in Addressing Mental Health in Uganda: A Case Study of New Vision Newspaper
    (Uganda Christian University, 2024-09-14) Lucy Nuwasasira
    This study investigated the inadequate coverage of mental health issues in Uganda's print media, focusing specifically on “The New Vision" newspaper. Despite the critical public health challenges posed by high rates of mental health disorders, such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD, the representation of these issues in print media remained limited. The research employed a mixed-methods approach, integrating both quantitative and qualitative methods to provide a comprehensive analysis of media coverage and the barriers faced by journalists. In this study, the purposive sampling method was applied to let readers in the contents of articles of “The New Vision” which were published in April and May 2024 by evaluating how often the mental health story was covered, what language and framing fashions were used etc. Also, semi-structured interviews of about 5-10 important stakeholders including journalist, editors, mental health practitioners, and advocates were undertaken to understand the problems faced in the reporting of mental health more clinically reporting. Quantitative data collected through the use of coding and SPSS for statistical analysis were complemented with qualitative data from interviews which were also analyzed thematically. In these studies, it was established that there were indeed gaps in the understanding of issues from a mental health perspective as the coverage was impacted by cultural stereotypes, inadequately trained journalists from newsrooms, and focusing more on news rather than health stories from the editorial considerations. The research pointed out a lack of sufficient training and resources for the journalists and ways to increase the coverage of mental health issues in print media. The study emphasized that print media is more responsible than any other form of media in changing the attitude of the society and argued on the need to take mental health issues more seriously with regard to implementation of the changes that are being sought. The interview analysis confirmed that print media had opportunities that could be optimally utilized in influencing mental health attitudes in Uganda. Although stigma, pertaining to a lack of access to information or the right type of training still hampered advancement in this area, recognition of the importance of mental health reporting was on the rise. Where such opportunities were exploited through proper training, working with mental health professionals, and carefully reporting on the issues at hand, print media had the potential of changing people’s perceptions towards mental health in Uganda.