How Matt Richtel talked to teenagers and their parents for This series
In mid-April, I spoke with mother of a suicidal teenager whose struggles I followed closely. I asked how her daughter did.
Not good t. mother said: “If we can’t find something decisive to help this baby, this baby won’t be here for long term”. She began to cry. “His out of our hands are out of our control,” she said. “We try everything.”
She is added: “His like waiting for the end.”
Almost 18 months of report, I must know many teenagers and their families and interviewed dozens of doctors, therapists and experts in in science of teenage years. I heard painful stories of pain and uncertainty. From the very beginning, we discussed with the editors how best deal with identities of people in a crisis.
The Times sets the bar high for granting anonymity of sources; our style book calls it ” last resort” for situations where it matters information can’t post others way. Often the sources face a threat to their careers or even their safety, whether from a vengeful boss or hostile government.
In this case need for anonymity had another imperative: protect privacy of young, vulnerable teenagers. They harmed themselves and tried to commit suicide, and some threatened to try again. In telling their stories, we had to remember that our first duty was their safety.
If The Times published the names of these teenagers, they could easily be identified years later. Will it harm their employment opportunities? Will a teenager – legally an adult – later regret revealing his identity at some point? of pain and struggle? I would have seen story published amplify current crises?
As a result, some adolescents are identified by first only initial; some of them parents identified first name or initial. For months I had to know M, J and C, and in Kentucky I’ve arrived know struggling I identified teenagers only by their age, 12, 13 and 15. In some stories, we did not publish exactly where the families lived.
Everyone with whom I spoke gave their consent, and parents usually attended for interview with their teenagers. In several cases parent asked to leave the room, or the teenager asked for privacy and parent agreed.
In these articles, I heard grief, confusion and a desperate search for answers. Vote of teenagers and their parents, hiding behind anonymity, deepen understanding of this mental health crisis.
