Bad Tidings

BAD TIDINGS: COMMUNICATION AND CATASTROPHE
by Lynne Masel Walters, Lee Wilkins, Tim Walters

"In the 1970s, a book collecting research about the mass media and their role in disasters
would have been unimaginable. Five years ago it would have been almost impossible to
compile. With just a few noteworthy exceptions, including work by Henry Quarantelli and
Joseph Scanlon, both of whom are contributors to this volume, the entire field of disaster-
media research has developed in just the past few
years.

"Indeed, this mushrooming research development is one of the reasons for this book.
Although much of the work in "disaster studies" was begun by sociologists and geographers,
psychologists and communications scholars in recent years have assumed a more dominant
role. The result is a variety of research informed by
different disciplines with different theoretical frames. The debates in disaster research now
range not only between those who study "natural" as opposed to "technological" hazards, but
between different epistemological approaches, some of which treat the mass media as
tangentially important, whereas others view the media as a major player in the hazard
mitigation game.

"This book, then, is an attempt to compile a somewhat eclectic view of research on mass
communication and catastrophe. The editors have attempted to provide a sampling of the
most recent empirical work on the mass media and disasters, including everything from
content analysis of media reports to studies of audience response to those events.
Imbedded
in this research, most of it informed by the various social science disciplines, is an attempt at
theory building, at least as theory may be used to link empirical observations with a more
predictive view. In this sense, this volume is of interest to students of mass communication,
sociology, geography, and political science who seek to link the mass media with broader
questions of human behavior.

"However, mass communications scholarship has another side - one that owes an
epistemological debt to the humanities. This branch of mass communications research
focuses on issues of textual interpretation, popular culture, and ethical questions surrounding
the issues of human life that disasters and their aftermath throw into sharp relief. Essays
representing this branch of disaster studies also are incorporated in this reader. They reflect
the editors' beliefs that it is not only social science that is capable of providing insight into
human and institutional behavior. The goal of the book, then, is to allow readers to begin the
work of developing an integrated understanding of communication and catastrophe. The
chapters in this volume were selected, in part, because they speak to each other. And,
although the editors have begun the work of integration in a concluding note, it is their belief
that the central work remains one of integration, a task for readers as well as researchers.

CONTENTS
PREFACE
1 THE SOCIAL SCIENCE STUDY OF DISASTERS AND MASS COMMUNICATION
E. L. Quarantelli
The Development of Research
General Observations and Findings
Specific Studies
Some Significant Research Themes
Future Research Agenda
2 BHOPAL: THE POLITICS OF MEDIATED RISK
Lee Wilkins
Chemical Spills as Political
Accidents
The Mediated Story of Bhopal
The Public Memory of Bhopal
Elites as Adaptation
The Cultural Myth of Bhopal
The Politics of Risk
3 THE SOUND AND THE FURY: MASS MEDIA AND HURRICANES
John A. Ledingham and Lynne Masel Walters
4 COMMUNICATING THREAT INFORMATION FOR VOLCANO HAZARDS
Ronald W. Perry and Michael K. Lindell
Current Volcanic Dangers
Volcano Information Dissemination
Channels for Information Receipt
Assessments of Source Credibility
5 TMI: THE MEDIA STORY T'HAT WILL NOT DIE
Sharon M. Friedman
Pre-Accident Information Efforts
Pre-Accident Media Coverage
The Accident Itself
Lessons Learned From the Accident
Media Coverage From 1983-1987
Commentary on Later TMI
Media Coverage
Conclusions
6 PREVENTIVE JOURNALISM AND AIDS EDITORIALS: DILEMMAS FOR PRIVATE AND
PUBLIC HEALTH
Gene Burd
News Coverage of the Causes of AIDS
Editorials on Preventing AIDS
An Update: Coverage Between February 1985 and February 1987
7 THE HOSTAGE TAKER, THE TERRORIST, THE MEDIA: PARTNERS IN PUBLIC
CRIME
Joseph Scanlon
Incidents Reported Differently
Criminal or Terrorist?
Not Ordinary Crimes
The Hostage Taking
Effects of Reports are Critical
Why the Fascination?
Those Involved Know This and Use It
Copy-Cat Hijackings
Other Problems
The Media Often Cooperate
Extraordinary Measures Needed
8 REPORTING CHERNOBYL: CUTTING THE GOVERNMENT FOG TO COVER THE
NUCLEAR CLOUD
Phil Patterson
Introduction
The Theoretical Frame
The Qualitative Study of Television News
Technological Disasters and the Media
The Influence of Stereotype on Television Content
The Atomic Context
The Sourcing Problem
Conclusion
9 IT'S THE NUCLEAR, NOT THE POWER AND IT'S IN THE CULTURE, NOT JUST THE
NEWS
Russell E. Shain
10 TALES FROM THE DARK SIDE: ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF DISASTER
COVERAGE
Deni Elliott
Functional Obligations
Tensions of Interdependence
The Role of Media in Disaster Preparation
The Media Myth of Helpless Victims
Deaths in Living Color
How Media Ought to Cover Disasters
11 CONCLUSION: ACCIDENTS WILL HAPPEN
Lee Wilkins
Media Performance
The Culture of Disaster
The Role of Further Research
REFERENCES
AUTHOR INDEX
SUBJECT INDEX

1988, 198 pages Order #DR148 $37.50

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