Four months after Yolanda: Post-disaster news coverage
By Melinda Quintos de Jesus and Pauline Mie R. Rapanut
YOLANDA’S (HAIYAN) destruction has retained global attention as efforts continue to address the problems of the affected communities in Central Visayas. The public has not let go of its interest in the plight of the displaced nor of their concern about how they are coping and the how well they are being assisted.
| CMFR assists journalists/media workers affected by ‘Yolanda’THE CENTER for Media Freedom & Responsibility (CMFR) has provided financial assistance to 30 journalists/media workers and their families who were devastated by Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) since December 2013. Donations from the Thai Journalists Association (TJA), Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), and The Club of the Press Marseille-Provence Alps of the South in France made the assistance possible.CMFR initially provided financial assistance to the families of four journalists/media workers who died during the storm surge. It assisted 26 more journalists/media workers who were injured and/or whose homes were destroyed.Those 26 journalists/media workers were from Tacloban City and Ormoc City in the Leyte province; and from Roxas City in the Capiz province. CMFR was able to contact some of them through the help of the Peace and Conflict Journalism Network (PECOJON), which also provides assistance to media workers.
Over 200 affected As of March 2014, CMFR has listed 240 journalists and media workers affected by the typhoon. All had their homes destroyed and most have no source of livelihood to go back to after the devastation. The affected journalists worked for 17 TV and radio stations that the super typhoon destroyed: 14 in Leyte, two in Eastern Samar and one in Capiz. Most of the stations are not yet operational three months after the tragedy. |
The story in the aftermath is not easy to construct, given the many kinds of needs among communities affected by the typhoon. The press rendered an overview of the situation as found in different places – the story was the same everywhere: shock then grief, as people recounted the loss of loved ones, the destruction of homes, the loss of livelihood, the weight of the future with no prospects.
In broad strokes, the press focused on the amazing response orchestrated by local groups and international organizations joining governments from around the world to be of help. Generous amounts were released and pledged. The impression created was of sufficiency of resources to get the communities standing on their own.
The press was also quick to pick up the failures which generated political static from the very beginning. Perhaps, the political angle may have distracted reports from developing a comprehensive plan for long-term coverage of disaster rehabilitation.
Information providers
As the narrative moved from relief to rehabilitation, media needed to break out of the usual conventions, the passive reactive mode which waits for things to happen, for sources to hold press conferences, for statements to be released.
The reported donor pledges stirred curiosity and raised a high level of concern about how government would put the money to good use, making sure donations would not be wasted. Given the impact of the Napoles scandal, people were rightfully pessimistic about the prospects, wary about incompetence and the potential corruption in the use of Yolanda funds.
When media come to the scene of disaster, it takes a most critical role as information provider. Information becomes the basis for response, enabling responders to determine and assess the scope of crisis. Media in all its formats must connect the disaster-stricken communities to those outside who can do something to assist. On the issue of information needs, media reports did not sufficiently note the gaps in communication which led to delays in disaster relief from the very beginning. Weak Internet infrastructure in the Philippines raises all kinds of problems even during normal times. In the places hit by the storm, these collapsed entirely, disabling official communication. The lack of satellite phones and other issues did not receive the scrutiny it deserved; and the most obvious lesson for the flow of information so critical to disaster relief was left unreported.
At this level, however, the story is simple enough. The larger disasters always pose greater challenge on the media to get the numbers of casualties and injured right. But the information categories are clear. Reports must quickly establish how many sites and communities were in the path of the storm, how many households, estimates of lost property, especially critical sites like hospitals and energy stations. Media must become familiar as well with the categories of need: the loss of power and energy, the destruction of roads, ports and other key infrastructure; the hunger and the homelessness.
Experts have calculated amounts of food and drink necessary to sustain life. Most volunteer or relief operation groups use these to guide their distribution of food packages. Knowledge of these can help the media to monitor food relief efforts. Sometimes, media enjoy greater mobility than distributors as they can travel more lightly. Media can then provide advance information so groups can be advised about road blocks or other barriers that can get in the way of speedy distribution.
The reports on the scene of Yolanda’s destruction tended to be episodic, as reporters chose stories with more color and human interest. Coverage showed that news organizations have not developed a schema for disaster coverage, relying simply on set news conventions. In this unprecedented period of radical climate change, the role of first informers becomes even more critical in determining the quality of disaster relief and response.
The media need to work with experts and agencies so they can on their own work out reasonable estimates of need. It is recommended that news organizations update their demographic information nationwide. Collaborating with experts, they can report with knowledge of population figures as well as the classification of cities and municipalities.
Media should also learn to use hazard maps. With prospects for radical change and extreme weather, media can inform the public about potential peril even before disaster strikes. This way, the media can avoid the spreading information coming from politicians and their offices.