Philip Polkinghorne's murder trial hinged on whether his wife, Pauline Hanna, died by murder or suicide. That meant that details of death that are not usually reported were published in the media almost as soon as they were aired in court. Mediawatch asks the host of the Nutters Club show about the effect of that - and what he's learned from 15 years of airing mental health every week.
Scenes outside the court, after the verdict in the Philip Polkinghorne trial. Photo: RNZ/ Finn Blackwell
"I was in New Plymouth last week having dinner. The woman beside me said: 'I've been busy for the last few weeks with the Polkinghorne trial,'" Jesse Mulligan told RNZ colleague Wallace Chapman on RNZ National last Monday - the day the trial of Philip Polkinghorne had finally come to an end.
"I said: 'Oh. Are you working on it?' She said: 'No, just listening to it.' She put her life on pause and couldn't get enough of it," Mulligan said.
"Obviously there's a real tragedy at the heart of it, but it has a lot of those ingredients that have kept people glued to their radios and TVs."
She wasn't the only one, according to Chapman, host of RNZ's The Panel.
"A couple of Panel members took time off work to go down to the court and actually sit in," he told listeners.
RNZ even described it as "theatre staged in court" in a piece noting that the trial "filled the public gallery and press benches for the entire eight weeks, justifying live blogs by seasoned court reporters, multiple podcasts and even a New Zealand on Air grant for a documentary".
It's usually the newsworthiness that justifies the coverage, not the volume of journalists present.
Justice or entertainment?
But judging by the uptake of all the media output, many people were hooked by the details as they dribbled out in court.
Parts of the media made the most of all the elements - death, drugs, wealth, status and sex.
"Three words to sum up today's evidence. That's money, money, money," ZB's reporter said on the day a forensic accountant gave evidence about the couple's various bank accounts.
Court reporting usually sticks rigorously to what was said in court - and no more.
But the daily and live online coverage of this trial spawned stacks of vivid description, opinion and analysis.
It's not the first murder trial to capture media attention, partly because it involved prosperous people not normally seen in court. Similar boundaries were also pushed in coverage in the trial of Ewen McDonald for the murder of Scott Guy back in 2011.
But there was one almost unique element to the Polkinghorne trial - the defence case that Pauline Hanna died by suicide.
The suicide dilemma
Once the trial was underway, the Mental Health Foundation's media adviser Mark Wilson warned "repetitive information and detail from the scene of the death has the potential to elevate the risk to those people who are living with suicidal thoughts".
The foundation's main concern at that point was detail appearing in the New Zealand Herald's live coverage from the court online.
The principal adviser to the Suicide Prevention Office, Tania Papalii, wrote to the judge in the case with similar worries.
New Zealand news media don't usually have leeway to report details of suspected suicides.
Reporting is governed by the Coroner's Act - and by guidelines set with input from the news media themselves - which oblige media not to report details of self-inflicted deaths. These reporting restrictions have long been a sore point with many in the media, who reckon they are responsible in their reporting.
There are also some mental health advocates who reckon that getting the issue out in the open in our media is really important.
Coincidentally, the trial ended on the first full day of Mental Health Awareness Week - and a weekly show dedicated to discussing mental health was on air at midnight last Sunday when the week kicked off.
The Nutters Club show - every Sunday at 11pm - has been broadcasting weekly for 15 years.
"Our understanding of the rules around reporting around suicide are is that we don't talk about the 'means' of death. The Polkinghorne trial blurred that line because that was what they were trying to establish in a court of law," host Hamish Williams told Mediawatch.
"However, I don't think that it was particularly helpful in a country with the high suicide rate that we have, for that to have been reported and shown in the detail that it was.
"When we find ourselves affected by news reports in the media, and that lingers with you for a day or two after you've heard it ... that's an indication to you that you need to do something about it - like calling or texting 1737, the free national mental health line.
"Every broadcaster will hate me saying this - but you can just turn it off. Don't consume that content. But sometimes that's easier said than done."
Getting it out on the open on the air
Hamish Williams and Kyle MacDonald hosting The Nutters Club radio show on Newstalk ZB. Photo: supplied
Comedian-turned-mental health advocate Mike King founded the Nutters Club show for the now-defunct network Radio Live in 2009.
Tiptoeing around sensitivities is not his style - hence the show's blunt title, which these days kicks off to the strains of 'Crazy' by Seal.
When a Nutters Club book came out a few years back, King was on the cover in a straitjacket.
After a few years on air, the show moved to Newstalk ZB and is now publicly funded by NZ on Air.
King himself has moved on to other things with the I Am Hope trust. Psychotherapist Kyle McDonald and Williams now host the show.
"By calling it the Nutters Club we were challenging people to think about how they talk about mental health. If we called the show what it really is - 'The People Helping People Club' - it might not quite have the same ring.," Williams told Mediawatch.
"People want others to be aware of the real experience of it. It's not until we actually hear those first hand experiences that people can empathise and find ways they might be able to help and support."
"It's a two-hour show and usually in the first hour we have a guest with their own first-hand experience with some degree of mental health challenge or diagnosis.
"We've had young fathers from Invercargill, people who live rurally in Northland and a local bus driver in Auckland who we met first as a caller."
Listening, broadcasting and following up
"We go through their story and then invite callers to contribute to the show. If it sounds like something that you're experiencing, then call in because you're never going to have anybody with more expertise to talk about it than the clinician we have in the studio and someone who's experienced it first-hand," Williams told Mediawatch.
"We have a qualified clinician in the studio with us regularly - psychotherapist Kyle McDonald. When we come to anything that perhaps warrants more than a six-minute call, we're able to assess what that level of need might be. We take their contact details and follow up with them later on.
"We have had times when people call up who have told us that they are either contemplating suicide or have had thoughts. We immediately take that call off air, so Kyle will leave the studio and speak with the person off-air.
"We have a duty of care to people that have shared their personal experiences. I've personally met with callers from Dunedin, Te Awamutu, Geraldine, Christchurch, Wellington.
"They sometimes struggle with the fact that they mean as much as they do to us. We can validate that by acknowledging that their honesty and their contribution to sharing their experiences with mental health is of immense help to so many."
Many people are regular callers. One is Neil, who has Alzheimer's disease. On the show last weekend he asked Williams to remind what his name was. It could have been awkward, but even Neil found that funny.
"The optimism and acceptance of our callers becomes a real comfort to (listeners). It makes them feel as though they are quite literally part of our club."
Bad news, bad mood?
Does the mood of listeners and callers reflect shocks in the news like the Covid lockdowns, 15 March 2019, or even the Polkinghorne trial?
"We do see it come in waves. I can remember back in the early 2010s one issue of great concern to a lot of our callers was the GCSB. We had a lot of callers worried about being listened to by the government, or spied on. Obviously this is connected to some mental health issues," Williams told Mediawatch.
"Our show really changed during Covid. We started to really understand the vulnerabilities of our audience. We were all going through a situation where we had a lack of control. All of us were actually having to exhibit the behaviours of depression where you usually isolate yourself from others.
"Our show really turned into a club where we quite literally just had check-in sessions where a lot of people would just call in to say: 'I'm still here' and 'I'm still good - and at least I know you guys are going to be there on Sunday night."
Where to get help:
Need to Talk? Free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor, for any reason.
Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357
Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 / 0508 TAUTOKO (24/7). This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends.
Depression Helpline: 0800 111 757 (24/7) or text 4202
Samaritans: 0800 726 666 (24/7)
Youthline: 0800 376 633 (24/7) or free text 234 or email talk@youthline.co.nz
What's Up: free counselling for 5 to 19 years old, online chat 11am-10.30pm 7days/week or free phone 0800 WHATSUP / 0800 9428 787 11am-11pm Asian Family Services: 0800 862 342 Monday to Friday 9am to 8pm or text 832 Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm. Languages spoken: Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi and English.
Rural Support Trust Helpline: 0800 787 254
Healthline: 0800 611 116
Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155
OUTLine: 0800 688 5463 (6pm-9pm)
If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
