From Philly.Com August 10, 2011 By Leah Roman and Jennifer Taylor
Last week’s news that the late Philadelphia firefighter John "Jack" Slivinski would be featured on the cover of the "Nation’s Bravest" calendar reminded us of media coverage of his suicide in June. It was often at odds with recommendations for reporting on suicide released this year by a consortium of public health, suicide prevention, Internet safety, and journalism experts.
Slivinski’s suicide was the subject of intense coverage, but the concerns it raises are not unique. Just in the past two weeks, there was extensive reporting on the suicides of Rudolf Alexandrov, a Chestnut Hill College professor, and Jeret "Speedy" Peterson, an Olympic skier.
After Slivinski’s death in June, NBC10 tweeted the headline "Calendar Firefighter Shoots Self in Head." Philly.com’s banner headline was "Firefighter who posed shirtless committed suicide." The Philadelphia media also ran shirtless photographs of Slivinski from the "Nation’s Bravest" shoot.
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