Sjuka barn: Om hur mediala och personliga erfarenheter vävs samman

I intervjuer med foraldrar som antingen har tvekat att vacccinera, eller har avstatt fran att vaccinera, sina barn fran masslingen, roda hund och passjuka (MMR- eller MPR-vaccinet) vid 18 manaders alder har olika orsaker till detta beslut framkommit. Ett aterkommande tema i intervjuerna – som tycks ha varit viktigt for saval mediedebatt som individuella stallningstaganden – ar moten med sjuka barn. Foraldrarna har mott dessa barn genom massmedier eller i vardagslivet och detta har fatt konsekvenser for foraldrarnas beslut. Artikeln diskuterar varfor dessa barn blir sa viktiga for de personliga stallningstagandena och hur dessa barn blir en del av vad som laggs i vagskalen vid foraldrarnas egna riskkalkyler. Med dessa sjuka barn som utgangspunkt lyfter artikel aven fragan om hur massmediernas budskap vavs in i personliga erfarenheter. Massmedierna skapar ramar for hur man ska tolka sina privata upplevelser, men sjalvklart har manniskors erfarenheter betydelse for hur de tolkar medierapporteringen. Konsumtionen av mediala berattelser om t.ex. vacciner blir samtidigt en produktion av egna berattelser om vaccin. Mediala och personliga erfarenheter smalter samman och skapar forutsattningar for nya berattelser. In interviews with parents who have either hesitated about vaccinating or have not vaccinated, several reasons for their view have been highlighted. One important reason is that they want to keep nature going. The parents think it is more “natural” to get diseases than to be vaccinated against them. And if it is natural it is good. Another theme, which seems to have been important for the public debate as well as for individuals’ decisions is meetings with sick children. These children have met the parents through mass media or in real life, and the meetings had consequences for the parent’s choices. The article discusses why these children have been so important and how medial and real children become integrated in people’s handling of risks – for example the choice between the risk of your child getting measles and the risk of the vaccine’s side-effects. With these sick children as a starting point the article highlights how medial and personal experiences are woven together and jointly shape a foundation for people’s opinions and risk calculations when it comes to medicine and helath care. The mass media create frames for our interpretation of everyday life. But the media stories are woven together with the private life situation and the personal outlook of life. Consumption of media stories about vaccines is at the same time a kind of production of private stories about vaccines. Experiences from media and life merge and create new stories. Key words: Mass media, discourse, vaccine, MMR, metaphors, individual worldview, childrens diseases, autism.