The #metoonz campaign is not beyond criticism, but it deserves better than this

First came the bizarre witch hunt cartoon, and then the indignant tutting. Jess McAllen considers the responses to the #metooNZ investigation launched a fortnight ago by Alison Mau. Mike Hosking called it “tacky and tabloid”. David Cohen asked about a “sense of professional justice – or ideological fantasy”. Tim Beveridge decried a “trial by media”. On Newstalk ZB … Read more

The problem with ‘we need to talk about suicide’

For too long mental health has had awareness campaigns sprinkled out while government action remained pretty much non-existent. Will the mental health and addictions inquiry be another plaster? We need to talk about suicide: this is the phrase you’ll routinely hear in discussions about New Zealand’s mental health crisis. Often it comes alongside well-meaning campaigns … Read more

What the first person to lead the Mental Health Commission says about fixing the system

Dr Barbara Disley tells Jess McAllen we need a call for action, not another review. This story first appeared on The Wireless. Read the rest of the series here. Newspaper headlines from 20 years ago look surprisingly familiar (“Mental Health’s Revolving Door”, “The Depressing State of Mental Health”, “Conveyer Belt to Psychiatric Ruin”). In 1996, after a damning … Read more

Does any political party have a good mental health policy?

While mental health is an easy issue to campaign on, it’s hard to get right, writes Jess McAllen. This story first appeared on The Wireless. Read the rest of the series here. Ten years ago, when Labour was in charge, I was 14 and losing grip with reality fast. My parents took me to a counsellor and … Read more

Under pressure: Mental health workers give their view of the crisis

Mental health workers and suicide prevention strategists tell Jess McAllen that while the public system has its flaws, the unrelenting attention on a ‘broken’ system is dangerous too. This story first appeared on The Wireless. Read the rest of the series here. Six hundred and six pairs of shoes are currently making their way around New Zealand. They … Read more

How the discussion around suicide ignores crucial voices

Momentum around mental health is gathering. But where are the voices of the people who will be impacted first-hand by any policy change? Jess McAllen investigates. This story first appeared on The Wireless. Read the rest of the series here. On a Friday evening in May, police released a photo of Vincent Clayton. He had escaped from … Read more

Wellington’s Evolve clinic does a brilliant job helping disadvantaged youth – and now it’s unable to cope with demand

This week it was reported that a Wellington youth clinic that offers free doctors’ appointments, mental and sexual health services, and support for homeless teens has closed its books to new patients. The loss will be felt throughout the city, writes Jess McAllen. There’s a scene in the 80s movie Heathers where, following a spate … Read more

After the equal pay decision, joy – and anxiety – from care workers who missed out

Amidst the celebration of last week’s landmark care worker pay settlement came concerns about how future wage discrepancies will affect the mental healthcare sector. Jess McAllen reports. Last Tuesday it was announced that workers in aged and disability residential care and home and community support services will receive pay rises between 15 and 50 per … Read more

Mothers take on the Family Court with new watchdog report

A report published today highlights what it says are systematic failures in the Family Court. Jess McAllen speaks to Deborah Mackenzie of The Backbone Collective, the organisation which commissioned the report. Women dealing with the Family Court have helped create an independent watchdog report highlighting the system’s failure to keep them and their children safe. … Read more

A tour through the worst landlords and letting agents of the Tenancy Tribunal

Jess McAllen takes a tour through the Tenancy Tribunal’s decisions to find bleak scenes of landlords and letting agents running amok. It’s a tale as old as time: treating yourself to a succulent chicken rotisserie from New World on Sunday night and putting the other half in the fridge for Monday sandwiches. But what happens … Read more

Hacks, devotees and cheese: the scene from the floor at the Hager book launch

Jess McAllen paints the picture from a Unity Books packed with media, activists and more, eager to discover the subject of the new book and the quality of the catering. Hit & Run has dominated NZ headlines since its publication less than 24 hours ago. It contains a very serious allegations of SAS involvement in … Read more

Trauma layered upon trauma: the fight to turn the tide in Māori youth suicide

Māori youth suicide rates are among the highest in the world. Some of the most affected rangatahi and their families talk to Jessica McAllen, while those at the grassroots striving to tackle the problem explain what they’re up to, and the obstacles they confront. It’s summer in Raumanga and the pool is empty. Drained, awaiting … Read more

Exclusive: leaked draft report calls 2016’s landmark mental health journalism ‘biased and inaccurate’

2016 has been a breakthrough year for mental health reporting around the country. Yet a draft report leaked to Jess McAllen – herself a mental health reporter – shows that Mental Health Services are anything but welcoming of the scrutiny. An editor once told me mental health stories were “unsexy”. Silky, lacy numbers like car … Read more

Help! Pokémon invaded my house and now I’m under siege

Imagine strange cars and weird people hanging around your house. This is the shocking reality for some in this post-Pokémon world.  In part two of the Pokémon GO Orgy Week, Jess McAllen interviews a number of unassuming Americans who’ve had uninvited Pokémon hunters turning up on their doorstep. Catch up on Pokémon GO Orgy Week … Read more

Here are all the terrible things New Zealanders did on International Women’s Day

From an all-male radio station panel to a bad Paul Henry poll, Jessica McAllen digs through the shittiest New Zealand contributions to International Women’s Day. In case you missed the Beyoncé memes and “go girl” quotes clogging up social media, yesterday was International Women’s Day. In accordance with age-old tradition, many men and corporations marked the day with ill-advised … Read more

If it’s public is it fair game? Why we as media need to change the way we report on social media

News site reports about social media backlash – social media backlash ensues. Ex-churnalist Jess McAllen says this cycle needs breaking.  UPDATE: comment from RNZ’s Megan Whelan appended at close. Yesterday Stuff.co.nz published a story largely based on a Facebook post by Old Mout Cider on the 6th of February regarding its decision to pull an … Read more

The Perils of Reporting on Mental Health

Jess McAllen writes about a recent story on mental health issues in the teaching profession – troubling, but not for the reasons its author thought. When I applied for a job at Fairfax in 2014 I was faced with the question that all people with mental health conditions dread. “Journalism can be a stressful environment,” … Read more

Why #Stepforward Might Be a Step Backward For Mental Health

Jess McAllen says that the #stepforward campaign to end mental health discrimination, while well-intentioned, doesn’t seem likely to actually achieve anything. It’s hard to knock an attempt to open up conversation around destigmatising mental illness. But, as a long-term user of mental health services, #stepforwardnz has been bothering me since it launched in June. I have a lot of … Read more