John Scardena
Reference:
Trahan III, J. V. (1993). Media Relations in the Eye of the Storm. Public Relations Quarterly, 38(2), 31-32.
Theme: If we want to effectively prepare for disaster events than we must work with and build relationships with media personnel.
Summary:
- Hurricane Andrew slammed Florida on August 24, 1992
- Over the course of one day a thousand plus hits were to the media
- Joint Task Force Andrew, a military unit was assigned to help the media's questions.
- JICs Mission:
1. Meet with media and answer questions regarding the hurricane
2. Coordinate media responses of all federal agencies.
3. Prepare a daily media briefing
4. Radio blasts/ announcements 24 hours a day
5. Help inform victims where and how to get help
6. Inform people what measures were being taken
7. Inform members of the task force what was going on
8. Maintain high morale in the task force.
Application to Lesson:
Wow learning how the JIC for Hurricane Andrew handled the situation was kind of an eye opener. With our focus on developing a relationship between media and emergency services we can learn a lot from what they dealt with.
Application to Career:
If I am ever in a hurricane, I will be trying to get out probably with everyone else. If I am there for my job, I think it would be the most stressful, awesome experience of a lifetime. Some act like the media is this terrible beast, but we need the media and they need us. Application: Learn to have a personality and like the media.
During natural disasters, PIOs have to get creative in order to inform the locals. Most of them have lost power, internet access, and sometimes even phone service. The use of publicly displayed bulletins can help.
ReplyDeleteThe other group of people who need to be informed are the rest of the country. Social media is a great way to inform national media and the country. When a local PIO is busy getting information to those affected or in danger, a quick tweet is a simple way to inform the information seekers