How Matt Richtel Talks To Teens And Their Parents In This Series
In mid-April, I spoke with the mother of a suicidal teenager whom I had been following closely. I asked how her daughter was.
Not well, the mother said: “If we can’t come up with something drastic to help this child, this child won’t be here for long.” She started crying. “It’s out of our hands, it’s out of our control,” she said. “We’re trying everything.”
She added: “It was like waiting until the end.”
During my nearly 18 months of reporting, I got to know many adolescents and their families, and interviewed dozens of doctors, therapists, and experts in adolescent science. I hear stories of pain and uncertainty. From the outset, my editors and I discussed the best way to handle the identities of people in crisis.
The Times sets a high standard for the anonymity of sources; Our style book calls it a “last resort” for situations where important information cannot be published in any other way. Often, sources can face a threat to their career or even their safety, whether from a hostile boss or a hostile government.
In this case, the need for anonymity has another imperative: protecting the privacy of vulnerable adolescents. They have self-harmed and attempted suicide, and some have threatened to try again. In telling their stories, we must keep in mind that our first duty is to ensure their safety.
If The Times released the names of these teenagers, they could easily be identified years later. Does it hurt their job opportunities? Would a teenager – a legal minor – later regret revealing his identity during a period of pain and struggle? Does seeing the story get published amplify ongoing crises?
As a result, some teenagers are identified only by their first letter; Some of their parents are identified by their first name or initials. For months, I knew M, J, and C, and in Kentucky I got to know struggling teenagers that I only identified by their ages, 12, 13, and 15. In some stories, We do not disclose the exact whereabouts of the families.
Everyone I interviewed gave their own consent, and parents were often present in interviews with their minors. In some cases, a parent asked to leave the room, or a minor requested privacy and the parent agreed.
In these articles, I hear grief, confusion, and a desperate search for answers. The voices of adolescents and their parents, while masked by anonymity, help deepen understanding of this mental health crisis.
