Responsible suicide reporting in euthanasia and assisted suicide news coverage: a content analysis of ethical gaps and reporting practices

Purpose This study aims to assess whether responsible suicide reporting (RSR) practices are reflected in global online news coverage of euthanasia and assisted suicide (EAS). It focuses on reporting genres, embedded support resource notices, forewarnings and structural reporting features, including headlines, in relation to potential Werther and Papageno effects for vulnerable audiences, including populations who wish to hasten death (WTHD). Design/methodology/approach An exploratory content analysis was conducted with 109 EAS online news stories published between 2020 and 2024 by 41 digital news domains representing four of the six World Health Organization (WHO) regions. Stories were coded for genre, headline and forewarning structure, embedded support resource notices and additional RSR indicators. Findings RSR practices were inconsistently applied across EAS news genres. Twenty-six media reports included embedded support resources (n = 26, 23.9%), while 76.1% did not (n = 83). forewarnings appeared in just one. Five EAS genres were identified: policy/legislative, patient biographical, product-oriented, glamour-romanticized and criminal investigation. Product-oriented stories most often included embedded support resource notices but also heighten RSR concerns because they also foreground death-enabling devices, method details and technological novelty. No EAS met Papageno-effect likelihood criteria and of the glamour-romanticized EAS coverage no embedded support resources were provided, despite the emotional appeal of the news stories. Research limitations/implications The sample was limited to English-language reporting from leading global online news publishers. As a result, the study may underrepresent influential regional, local and non-English-language media outlets. EAS coverage was sparse or absent in some WHO regions which limited regional comparisons. Because the study examined content and reporting features rather than audience effects, future research should explore regional and language differences in EAS coverage to better understand how audiences respond to EAS news exposure. Practical implications Findings highlight the need for stronger voluntary adoption of RSR-informed practices in EAS reporting, including more careful headline framing, consistent use of forewarnings, avoidance of method and device details and routine inclusion of embedded support resource notices. Social implications Inconsistent ethical framing of EAS coverage may shape public perceptions of end-of-life decision making in ways that normalize, oversimplify or sensationalize complex medical, legal and ethical health choices. These findings underscore the media’s influential role in shaping public discourse, informing policy debates and framing societal understandings of medical and nonmedical assisted death. Originality/value This study provides cross-national evidence of ethical and structural gaps in EAS news reporting and extends RSR scholarship by mapping genres and identifying where protective messaging is most and least likely to appear.