While the world mourns the lives lost in the devastating Germanwings plane crash, media speculation over what happened has intensified. The French prosecutor earlier concluded that co-pilot Andreas Lubitz had sealed himself in the cockpit in order to “destroy this plane”.
Was this an act of terrorism, the media has wondered. Was Lubitz suicidal? Did he have a previous record of depression? These are all fair questions to ask, but the coverage raises an additional issue: are all the media reports about the mental state of the pilot going to reinforce the already widespread stigma around depression and mental illness?
The Tabloid Perspective
The newspapers have already been awash with headlines such as “Killer pilot suffered from depression” (Daily Mirror), “Madman in cockpit” (The Sun) and “Why on earth was he allowed to fly?” (Daily Mail). All suggested that mental health issues played a part in the pilot’s decision.
