2016 Erikson Institute Prize for Excellence in Mental Health Media Recipients Named

STOCKBRIDGE, Mass., July 6, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Erikson Institute of the Austen Riggs Center is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2016 Erikson Institute Prize for Excellence in Mental Health Media:

• Benedict Carey, a reporter covering brain and behavior topics at The New York Times
• Neal Shusterman, a New York Times bestselling novelist, screenwriter and television writer
• Steve Silberman, an award-winning science writer whose work has appeared in Wired, The New Yorker, Salon and Nature

The Erikson Institute Prize for Excellence in Mental Health Media, curated by essayist and author Joshua Wolf Shenk, recognizes and encourages writers, journalists and media experts who have produced sophisticated and accessible work on mental health issues. This year's prize recipients will be honored at a colloquy at the Austen Riggs Center on Saturday, August 20, beginning at 1:00 in the afternoon. Nell Casey, the author and editor of books on mental health including Unholy Ghost: Writers on Depression, co-curated this year's prize and will be on hand for the ceremonies.

The colloquy, co-hosted by Shenk and Director of the Erikson Institute Jane G. Tillman, PhD, ABPP, will feature a presentation by each of the 2016 prize recipients – who, according to Tillman, "have found important and meaningful ways, through their work, to contribute to crucial conversations about mental health in the world today."

"There's both remarkable similarities—and diversity—among this year's impressive honorees," says Shenk. "Steve and Ben are two of the great working journalists working on science and mental health—and Neal's book represents an astonishing work of personal observation. But we also have here, in Ben, a great beat reporter for a daily newspaper; in Steve, a long-form magazine and book writer driven by the lyrical and narrative literary traditions, as well as that of immersion reporting; and, in Neal, a leading author of fiction who has authored a stunning novel drawing on the experience of his son's mental illness."

Continuing education credits are offered to MDs, PhDs, PsyDs and social workers. This event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited; advance registration is recommended. To register, please call [413] 931.5230 or email: [email protected]. For more information on the colloquy and bios of the recipients, visit: www.austenriggs.org/2016-Erikson-Prize.

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