FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     
 
 
 

mtvU AND THE JED FOUNDATION LAUNCH NATIONAL CAMPAIGN TO PREVENT STUDENT SUICIDES, FIGHT MENTAL HEALTH STIGMA ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES  
 

New mtvU Study Shows Seniors are Nearly Three Times More

Likely than Freshmen to Have Considered Suicide 
 

On-Air, Online and On Campus “Half of Us” Campaign Addresses Reality

that Suicide is the #2 Killer of College Students, Half Have Felt so

Depressed they Could not Function     
 

New York, NY – November 8, 2006 – mtvU, MTV’s 24-hour college network, in partnership with The Jed Foundation, the leading non-profit college suicide-prevention charity, today announced the launch of “Half of Us,” a campaign to reduce the student suicide rate, fight the stigma of mental health on college campuses and connect students and their friends to the resources and help they need.  The campaign takes its name from research* showing that nearly half of all college students have felt so depressed they could not function.    
 

The launch of “Half of Us” is being marked by a powerful disruption of mtvU’s programming, as the network’s channel and website are both symbolically eclipsed by a gray haze – reflecting that a large percentage of the college audience is overwhelmed and not sure where to turn.  In fact, new mtvU research on the subject shows that nearly half (49%) of college students feel their peers wouldn’t seek help for emotional issues because they aren’t aware of resources for help or treatment.   
 

In an effort to address this stark reality, today mtvU is also debuting several new PSAs on the topic, broadcasting commercial free, and launching HalfofUs.com, a comprehensive online resource center that informs and engages college students on mental health and is shaped by its users.  The site will serve as a safe space for college students confronting emotional disorders or seeking help for a friend, offering school-specific and national resources, an anonymous screening tool for a range of emotional disorders as well as a wide range of interactive features.  
 

mtvU recently conducted extensive research on how stress and Depression are affecting college students nationwide, and today announced the findings of the 2006 "mtvU College Mental Health Study: Stress, Depression, Stigma & Students."  Top findings include: 
 

• 1 in 5 college seniors say they have considered suicide, nearly triple the number of college freshmen
• Sophomores are almost three times more likely to have a friend who has considered suicide than their freshmen peers
• 77% of those surveyed wouldn’t want their friends to know they were seeking help for emotional issues and 54% think someone wouldn’t seek help for fear their friends or roommates would find out
• Nearly twice as many female students surveyed indicate they would seek counseling for emotional issues than males
• Almost half (49%) of respondents said they would encourage a friend to seek counseling for emotional issues, yet only 22% are likely to seek the same help if it’s needed

**Additional findings below** 
 

“Stigma kills,” said Stephen Friedman, GM, mtvU.  “The alarming statistics speak for themselves, showing that college students are masking the toll stress and Depression are having on their lives.  We’re offering up ‘Half of Us’ as a means to help our audience come to terms with the magnitude of this problem and confront it.  We’re proud to join with the Jed Foundation in this effort – working to de-stigmatize mental health and reach those college students who need help most.” 
 

“A college student’s suicide sends shockwaves through American families every day, and if we don’t take aim at the root causes, this problem could continue to worsen,” said Phil and Donna Satow, whose family founded The Jed Foundation.  “We are deeply heartened that mtvU has undertaken this campaign, and we look forward to working with them to reduce the suicide rate among college and university students nationwide.” 
 

“It’s long been understood there are insufficient resources to remedy the current college student mental health crisis, and we applaud mtvU for teaming with the Jed Foundation and stepping into the fold,” said Dr. Richard Kadison, Chief of Mental Health Services, Harvard University.  “Any efforts to help de-stigmatize mental health on campus or offer new tools are greatly welcome, and I’m pleased to see mtvU using its reach and influence to this end.”   
 

“Half of Us” will reach college students everywhere they are, through on-air, online and on campus elements, including: 
 

On-Air

The campaign will launch with a series of PSAs that profile students who are dealing with emotional disorders. The spots will demonstrate that mental illness has a biological root and can reveal itself in many ways.  The PSAs will air multiple times every day as part of mtvU’s regular programming rotation.  Additionally, mtvU will be integrating mental health messages and themes into its original programming on an ongoing basis, encouraging students to take time to check in with themselves and their friends, and speak up if they notice behavior that’s out of character.   
 

Online

HalfofUs.com is the hub of the campaign, connecting students to appropriate campus-specific and national resources and support, while encouraging them to realize they are not alone in needing help. In addition, the site will also host interactive tools that engage students and make the topic compelling, regardless of any personal connection to the issue.  Components include:

• Self-evaluator screening tool, an anonymous, online screener – developed by the Duke University Medical Center – for multiple emotional disorders that customizes feedback based on the user’s school and available resources.
• Action center, enabling students to get involved in mental health awareness on their campus or in their community, learn where their representatives stand on mental health legislation, start an Active Minds student advocacy chapter and more.
• Faces, a collection of user-generated student photos, each making a different face on camera to represent their mood.
• Music video gifting, enabling students to send videos to one another through mtvU.com, to cheer someone up or forge a connection.
• Real time polls of college student perceptions about their feelings, behaviors and moods, and of mental health in general.

On Campus

Throughout the coming year, mtvU and student partner groups will reach out and provide information directly to students, at a wide range of mtvU campus events across the country. 
 

What follows are abridged findings from the 2006 “mtvU College Mental Health Study: Stress, Depression, Stigma & Students.”  A full executive summary of the report’s findings are available here: www.halfofus.com/about.aspx.