Pension holders 'should receive better media presentation'

Pension holders and other older members of society need to be shown in a more positive light by the media, the results of a consultation suggest.

Issues like vulnerability among the elderly should not be over-played by media outlets, according to a respondent to the government's Building a Society for All Ages consultation.

Angela Eagle, the country's Pensions and the Ageing Society Minister, suggests it is important that stereotypes of people who are in retirement are not reinforced.

"We need to see a balanced image of later life which will help tackle ageism in our society and our consultation has shown us that there is real demand for this," she commented.

The consultation is also said to have thrown up the suggestion that more media role models of an older age may be required.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has provided a foreword to the government's response to the Building a Society for All Ages consultation.

Posted by David Shuker.