Understanding the Contribution of Conventional Media in Earthquake Risk Communication

Abstract

To mitigate the damage from and prepare for disasters, individuals and communities should be involved in the disaster risk reduction efforts. Communicating the risk effectively is the essential step of this involvement. Risk communication is a multidisciplinary field. Disaster managers have to work closely with the media, among other partners, but there is a gap in their understanding of each other’s roles. This study aims to explore the process of publishing and broadcasting earthquake information through the experiences of media professionals, to understand how journalists and news organizations function before and after disasters, and to provide evidence to help bridge the gap between disaster managers and/or public health authorities and disaster journalists and/or news organizations., especially in earthquake preparedness. Thirteen in-depth interviews were conducted with editors/journalists from national newspapers and TV channels. A good context for investigating these issues is afforded by the megacity Istanbul and the Turkish media. Turkey is a land of earthquakes. A further strong earthquake is expected to hit in the near future. The findings, which gave valuable hints for better collaboration, are presented according to the focus of the question guide: time of and norms for publishing or broadcasting news or information about earthquakes; content of the news or information; disaster journalism and guidelines.