The Mental Health in Journalism Summit coincides with the celebration of World Mental Health Day on Oct 10th
The nonprofit The Self-Investigation, together with 30 international partners, organizes the first ever global event dedicated to mental health in the media sector
Mentally healthy journalists sustain quality journalism and guarantee stronger democracies
October 3rd – Mental health has become one of the most important challenges for media professionals all over the world. Burnout, anxiety, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and vicarious trauma are on the rise. More than 60% of the media workers in countries as diverse as Canadá, España y Ecuador reported high levels of anxiety in 2022. At least one in five reported depression, and levels of post-traumatic stress disorder and burnout are increasing. Despite this, mental health struggles in journalism remain stigmatized and are seldom openly discussed.
To overcome this major challenge and catalyse a mentally healthy work culture in the media, The Self-Investigation, a nonprofit foundation led by Pulitzer Prize winner Mar Cabra, presents the first ever global event dedicated to mental health in the media, the Cumbre de salud mental en el periodismo.
The Summit, taking place online on Oct 8-10th, coincides with the celebration of World Mental Health Day and this year’s official theme “It’s time to prioritize mental health in the workplace”. It will be an inspiring arena for journalists to reflect on their profession, share good practices for mental health, and nurture a global movement that prioritizes a healthy work culture in the media sector.
The three-day Summit will take place online and host 70 sessions, workshops, case studies, lightning talks and well-being activities in English and Spanish to an audience of more than 2,000 media professionals from all over the world. In addition, a community of more than 170 speakers from the five continents and representing small independent media companies to big media names such as BBC, CBC or AFP, will cover mental health topics of the utmost importance such as:
- Journalists working in hostile environments
- Challenges and strategies of female journalism around the world
- Strategies to prevent online harassment, burnout and vicarious trauma
- Duty of care: the role of leaders in the newsrooms
- Being a journalist and belong to an underrepresented group
The Summit is co-funded by the Fred Foundation and supported by more than 30 international partners leading the sector worldwide, such as Free Press Unlimited, the American Press Institute, the International Women’s Media Foundation, the European Federation of Journalists or Fundación Gabo.
The Self-Investigation was founded in 2020 by a group of journalists and certified coaches driven by the belief that mentally healthy journalists are needed to sustain good quality journalism that guarantees stronger democracies. Its goal is to empower communication and media professionals, and support media organisations to adopt a healthy work culture so they can take their impact on society to the fullest extent. Since 2020, The Self-Investigation activities have already reached more than 10.700 journalists worldwide.
Quote:
“ The situation is urgent and this summit shows that many journalists are already taking action. It’s time for a substantial shift in journalism’s culture; the media industry can no longer afford to bypass the mental health revolution.”
Mar Cabra, Executive Director and Co-founder of The Self-Investigation
Press contact:
Pilar Balet
communication@theselfinvestigation.com
Follow the Summit online: #MHJS24
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/theselfinvestigation/
Twitter: https://x.com/selfinvestigate
