World Premiere Presentation: Investigative Reports: Teenage Suicide: The Silent Threat “..I want to be afraid of death, and I’m not..”

Posted on October 28, 1999

New York, NY  - Since the 1950s, teenage suicide has tripled. Today, teenage suicide is the third largest killer of young people in this country. In a unique and poignant look at teenage suicide, we meet teens who've actually attempted suicide, and hear their painful stories. We also speak with the parents and loved ones of those teens who have, sadly, succeeded in taking their own lives, in an attempt to answer the question "why", and to see what might be done to fight this epidemic. 

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS traveled from coast to coast, in an effort to bring attention to the early warning signs of teenage suicide, as well as some innovative techniques being used to seek out and treat those teens that may be in danger. Families from New Jersey to Nebraska to California share their stories of the pain they have endured and the terrifying experiences that shattered their worlds.

In INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS: TEENAGE SUICIDE: THE SILENT THREAT, we hear professional insights from: Dr. David Shaffer, Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Columbia University; Dr. John Mann, Chief of the Department of Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute; and Dr. Kay Jamison, Professor of Psychiatry, John Hopkins University School of Medicine and author of a book describing her own experience with manic depression, THE UNQUIET MIND.

"We applaud the A&E Network and Investigative Reports for their compelling report on teenage suicide," said Laurie Flynn, executive director of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI). "This program bears out the needless tragedy that can come from untreated mental illness. Parents across the country should watch this important program together with their teens."

A&E, in cooperation with the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), will provide their 1-800 help/info lines and website addresses at the end of the program.

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS: TEENAGE SUICIDE: THE SILENT THREAT is produced by Yale Roe Films, for A&E Network. Executive Producer for INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS is Bill Kurtis. A&E Executive Producer is Ed Hersh. A&E Supervising Producer is Laura Fleury.