Roskomnadzor allowed the media to “indirectly” describe methods of suicide

Roskomnadzor considers “neutral” references to suicide methods in media publications to be acceptable. This was reported by Interfax with reference to Maria Kuznetsova, a representative of the agency's department for the Central Federal District.

According to the agency, the media can use language that "indirectly" indicates the method of committing suicide, for example, "hung himself" or "threw himself from the roof." The regulator considers a detailed description of these actions to be an offense.

On July 5, Rospotrebnadzor published recommendations for the media on covering suicides, which include, in particular, the need to avoid detailed descriptions of the circumstances of the suicide, including the manner in which it was committed.

“I repeat once again that Rospotrebnadzor makes decisions regarding this kind of information - and it makes sense, of course, to be guided by its recommendations. But we are considering, we are looking, so that there are no details, ”Maria Kuznetsova, head of the department for supervision in the field of mass communications of the Roskomnadzor department for the Central Federal District, told reporters on Wednesday.

Interfax

• In Russia, since 2012, it has been forbidden to disseminate information calling for suicide and describe methods of suicide.
• Roskomnadzor has repeatedly demanded that website and media owners remove information about methods of committing suicide. Due to such requirements, the Mediazona website began to change the corresponding words in the publications to the word [Roskomnadzor]. In September 2015, Roskomnadzor added a page with a 5th-century commentary to a Buddhist sacred text to the register of banned sites because of a description of a suicide method.
• In March 2015, Roskomnadzor accused the Pravoslavie i Mir website of posting prohibited information because of news of a suicide committed by a cancer patient. The department said that it is forbidden to indicate the reasons for the suicide.
• In the spring of 2016, Rospotrebnadzor published draft recommendations for the media on covering suicides. In the final version of the document, submitted on July 5, there are a number of differences, including no recommendation not to use the word “suicide” in headlines at all (it is proposed to write “death by suicide” instead).