by: Fernando Quintero
posted on Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Media coverage of violence and other public health issues tends to focus narrowly on individuals, overlooking the context for their actions. Continuing coverage of the Sandusky child sexual abuse case is proving an exception to that rule, yet it is not without shortcomings.
Tags: child sexual abuse, media, Penn State, sandusky, violence prevention
by: Laura Nixon
posted on Tuesday, July 24, 2012
In the wake of last week’s shooting in Aurora, Colo., the news media have been filled with journalists, elected officials, and others bemoaning the rampage as “senseless” and “evil.” But calling it evil does nothing to open up a discussion of how to keep it from happening again.
Tags: Aurora, Colorado, gun control, mental health, public health, violence prevention
by: Pamela Mejia
posted on Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Child sexual abuse has fallen out of the news cycle since Jerry Sandusky was convicted on 45 counts of child sexual abuse last month. Fortunately, children’s advocates are working to remind readers that child sexual abuse doesn’t end when a high-profile trial does.
Tags: Catholic church, child sexual abuse, sandusky, snap
by: Fernando Quintero
posted on Tuesday, June 26, 2012
It’s our government’s duty to protect us from health hazards. Yet a dominant “government intrusion” frame is making efforts to do so difficult. It’s time for public health leaders to vigorously defend government’s role in improving health.
Tags: Bloomberg, government intrusion, nanny state, public health, soda
by: Rebecca Womack and Laura Nixon
posted on Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Reporting on child sexual abuse typically centers on courtroom play-by-plays, with little attention given to prevention or the role of institutions in fostering abuse. The Sandusky case gives the media an opportunity to change that. Are they taking it?
Tags: child sexual abuse, institutional accountability, Jerry Sandusky, Penn State, violence prevention
by: Heather Gehlert
posted on Monday, June 11, 2012
Critics of public health measures often use the phrase “nanny state” to evoke fears about the U.S. government exerting too much control over people’s lives. But what’s really behind the words? And what do public health advocates lose when they repeat it?
Tags: Bloomberg, framing, gender, language, nanny state, public health, sexism, soda
by: Andrew Cheyne
posted on Monday, June 04, 2012
Public health advocates have crafted a proposal that would tax cigarettes to help prevent young people from smoking and risking premature death from cancer and other diseases. Unfortunately, Big Tobacco is up to its usual tricks, and its smear campaign may derail the measure.
Tags: california, cancer research, Proposition 29, public health, tobacco control, tobacco industry, tobacco tax
by: Fernando Quintero
posted on Thursday, May 24, 2012
Public health advocates and the news media have long pointed to the need for a suicide barrier on the Golden Gate Bridge to prevent unnecessary deaths. Now, as we approach the bridge’s 75th anniversary, it still lacks one. What will it take to change that?
Tags: Golden Gate Bridge, public health, suicide barrier, suicide prevention, violence prevention
by: Ingrid Daffner Krasnow
posted on Tuesday, May 22, 2012
A recent Time Magazine article and the firestorm of commentary that followed asked: How long is too long to nurse a child? But if we’re concerned about children and their health, we need to stop pitting mom against mom and start asking different questions.
Tags: breastfeeding, health equity, privilege
by: Heather Gehlert
posted on Monday, May 14, 2012
Obesity is a symptom of a much bigger problem. Yet many of the groups working to improve health equity have placed responsibility for the country’s growing waistlines and related health issues squarely on the shoulders of individuals. And the food industry is reaping the benefits.
Tags: chronic disease, obesity, public health, weight of the nation
