News media coverage of disasters: Help and hindrance

Abstract

Journalists play a key role in providing information to various publics affected by disasters or crises. They have important social and ethical responsibilities in relation to disseminating information during the various disaster phases. News media are important in shaping public responses to disasters and in connecting people and communities. This article explores how journalists can contribute towards communication about the management of disasters. It does so by drawing on a series of interviews with high-level emergency managers in eight countries. This article finds that there are key areas where simple changes to reporting approaches might facilitate significant change in approaches to reporting disasters.