2. WHAT IS IT?
Suicide has always been a taboo, especially with young
teenagers. Teens with issues in school, at home, or just with
themselves tend to use suicide as a way out.
People aren‟t aware with what teenagers are actually going
through, I want to make awareness for these people that are
suffering in silence.
I have had people in my life that has thought about suicide, so
this is both topical and personal.
Bullying on social media is the main cause for teenagers that
think about suicide, I want awareness that social media is
breaking down peoples confidence.
3. HANNAH SMITH
My main article will be about a 14 year old girl that committed
suicide because of the disturbing things people were anonymously
posting on a social networking site called, Ask.fm.
This story has recency and is an extremely good example of just
how little someone needs to push them over the edge, Hannah
Smith was just a normal girl, but cyber-bullying forced her to do
something terrible.
4. ASHLEY DUNCAN
Ashley Duncan was a troubled girl that
lived in Texas, her friends thought she was
joking about her suicidal posts on Twitter
and Tumblr, but this could have been her
focus for doing what she did.
I finally got a gun, Duncan tweeted on
Monday after posting a picture of a
revolver on her Twitter page.
“Life ain't worth the pain. If you know or
have known what it feels like to want to die
every minute second hour day week
month year then you feel me.... I might not
struggle financially but I struggle
emotionally and mentally and I think that's
the worst struggle.”
5. AMANDA TODD
This is the eldest of the stories. Todd posted a 9 minute video on
YouTube about her struggle, she had been blackmailed over the
internet to bare her breasts, and if she didn‟t give a „show‟, the
topless photos would be sent around, this blackmailer used
Facebook to create an account of her topless photos, after
this, Todd used self-harm as a way out, but this didn‟t help, she fell
deeper into a stage of depression and anxiety, until she felt like
suicide was the only way out.
6. HYPODERMIC NEEDLE
This is one theory that I intend to loom at to see how the news
“inject” information into peoples mind. The Hypodermic Needle
theory can be used for the good or the bad, but the media are using
this theory for the better, the news where using this theory with the
Hannah Smith story, they are injecting how bad Ask.fm is and
influencing people into thinking different things.
7. BANDWAGON
I intend to see if the news and media are using the bandwagon
effect. I think this theory would apply, because if one person stops
using social media, then another person would and so on and so
forth. The bandwagon effect is powerful because the media can
really use it to influence people.
9. HYPOTHESIS
My theory is that social networking is used as a way out, an
escape, but its actually a place where someone can get
ridiculed, bullied and abused, forcing them too come up to a
permanent solution to a temporary problem.
10. PRODUCTION
I intend to create an awareness video that targets social networking. I
will have three characters that each represent three different social
networking sites, Tumblr, Ask.fm and Twitter. There will be no dialogue.
The start of the video will show each different person walking
home, with their problems circulating, voices in there heads. The
camera shots will range from close up, mid-angle, and long shots.
As the video progresses, I am going to show each person, in one
shot, looking at their twitter, tumblr and ask.fm accounts, getting deeper
into a state of depression, loneliness and worry.
I will show the different ways in which a person can commit suicide, by
hanging, pills and cutting of the wrists.
I want this video to shock people into believing that things like this are
actually happening in the world, I want people to take off their rose
tinted glasses and come to terms with the fact that not all teenagers are
what the stereotype tells peoples they are.
Music will be written and underscored throughout the video, I‟d like to
say thank you to Alex Benham who will be writing the music.
