The suicide of Jamey Rodemeyer, a 14-year-old high school freshman in Buffalo, New York, who had spoken out in the past against anti-gay bullying generated significant press coverage, including a total of 4:40 on two network news broadcasts. Much of the coverage presents this news within the context of the push to control bullying in schools. Noting ED's anti-bullying summit taking place this week, the CBS Evening News (9/21, story 9, 2:30, Pelley) reported that Rodemeyer "had been bullied relentlessly since fifth grade. His parents, Tim and Tracy, found his body on Sunday." The piece relates his parents' descriptions of the bullying that Jamey faced over perceptions among his classmates that he was gay, and notes that earlier this year, he "posted [a] message as part of an online support group for gay teens. ... But just weeks ago, he posted [an] online plea for help."
NBC Nightly News (9/21, story 6, 2:10, Williams) also reported on Jamey's bullying and subsequent suicide, adding, "Dan Savage created the 'It Gets Better Project,' messages to gay teens submitted by celebrities and ordinary people like Jamie." Columnist Dan Savage is shown saying, "Even in his pain, and he must have been in terrible pain, he was reaching out and trying to help others."
The Buffalo News (9/22, Tan) reports that local officials are investigating whether any bullying-related crimes may have been committed against Jamey prior to his death. Potentially, the News reports, "school bullies could be charged with harassment or hate crimes."
The Washington Post (9/22, Hughes) also covers Jamey's suicide, noting, "after years of being called gay slurs at school and being told by anonymous people online that he should die, he killed himself Monday." His mother said that despite his seeing a therapist and a social worker, "that didn't stop the bullying, and it didn't ease Jamey's pain, which spilled onto his Tumblr account. 'No one in my school cares about preventing suicide, while you're the ones calling me [gay slur] and tearing me down,' he wrote on Sept. 8. He said the next day: 'I always say how bullied I am, but no one listens. ... What do I have to do so people will listen to me?'"
ED Holds National Anti-Bullying Summit.WUSA-TV Washington, DC (9/22, Fox) reports, "The second national summit on bullying brought together families of kids who committed suicide after being bullied. Since last year's first national summit, there are now laws in several states requiring school districts have anti-bullying policies." The piece relates the stories of attendees, noting that ED held the summit in part because "with the explosion of social networking sites like Facebook, more than 40 percent of young people report cyberbullying....sometimes leading to depression and even suicide."
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