clinicians and journalists responding to disasters
TRANSCRIPT
Clinicians and Journalists Responding to Disasters
Elana Newman, PhD,1 and Bruce Shapiro2
Abstract
Objective: Mass casualty events pose dilemmas for community clinicians, often challenging their existing clinical toolkits.
However, few clinicians were trained to be experts in explaining the unfolding events to the community, creating resources,
and interacting with journalists. The objective of this article is to explain knowledge, skills, and attitudes that mental health
professionals need to consider when working with journalists, especially those covering children affected by disaster.
Methods: In service of these objectives, this article reviews controversies, evidence, and best practices to facilitate effective
collaborations and consultations with journalists. Advice includes information on how to be a good source to journalists.
Results and conclusions: Clinicians can ethically and effectively help journalists tell accurate and compelling stories about
the psychological effects of disasters when they understand and respect the aims, culture, and ethics of journalism.
Introduction
In the aftermath of disaster, no professional first responders
play as controversial a role as journalists. Local news profes-
sionals may arrive on a disaster scene with the speed of emergency
services and begin relating information before the situation is
clear; in a large-scale event, national and international media may
blanket a town or region, adding to the overwhelming sense of
chaos and burden for local leaders and survivors. Child clinicians
in particular may find much to question in media practice: Inter-
views with children that seem insensitive or unethical; a physical
presence that may be overwhelming and an ongoing source of
anxiety or anger for community members and families; and
coverage that seems to oversimplify psychological recovery, or
that anoints charismatic victims or survivors at the expense of a
nuanced portrayal.
However, news professionals also serve a crucial function in
mass disasters that can promote community recovery and foster
mental health interventions. Journalists may play a vital role in
defining the extent of the damage by leveraging resources by
making stakeholder agencies and the broader society aware of
survivors’ perspectives and needs, connecting survivors with one
another and their families, and educating survivors and the broader
society about mental health and related psychosocial aftermath
issues.
We believe that clinicians are well positioned to help journalists
and the public understand the psychological dimensions of recov-
ery from such events. This is particularly the case with mass ca-
sualty events heavily impacting children and families, in which
journalists, policy makers, and the public alike may have little
insight into the special needs of young people, the developmental
implications of childhood trauma, and the value of evidence-based
interventions.
However, few clinicians are trained or prepared to interact with
journalists, to explain the unfolding events to the community, or to
create resources through media. This article will focus on the
knowledge, skills, and attitudes that child clinicians and other
mental health professionals need to consider when working with
news professionals. We will also consider the questions of ethics
and practice that can arise when clinicians and media interact in
times of crisis, with particular attention to children. Although this
article is primarily framed in a North American context (both of
media culture and disaster response) we will also draw on lessons
from international disasters and news organizations in other regions.
Journalists’ Roles in Disaster and Recovery
During mass disasters and their aftermath, journalists and media
institutions play multiple roles. The first is simply to bear witness.
Because of this professional obligation, news professionals rush
toward disaster zones, often at considerable personal risk. In 2005,
reporters from the New Orleans Times Picayune drove newspaper
trucks back into the city at the height of the storm even while their
own newsroom was under water (Horne 2006). In December 2012,
Connecticut journalists sped to Sandy Hook Elementary School
amid reports of an active shooting – including a reporter for the
Hartford Courant who learned only after arriving on the scene that
his stepdaughter was among the educators killed (Shapiro and
Leukhardt 2013). A few months later, Boston Globe photographer
John Tlumacki, assigned to the Boston Marathon finish line, in-
stinctively moved in on the scene of the first bomb blast even as
spectators fled (Irby 2013), capturing what became iconic images of
a terrifying day.
Journalists identify themselves as first-on-the-scene responders,
with a job on crisis scenes as distinct as firefighters, paramedics, or
law enforcement. In this phase of a disaster, the roles of journalists
1Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma Research Office, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma.2Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, Columbia University School of Journalism, New York, New York.
JOURNAL OF CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGYVolume 24, Number 1, 2014ª Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.Pp. 32–38DOI: 10.1089/cap.2013.0068
32
and other responders may sometimes conflict, and journalists may
face ethical dilemmas in gathering information under pressure. But
news reports also communicate basic information to communities
under threat, to government and agencies, and to the wider public,
facilitating the necessary mobilization of resources in response to
catastrophe.
In the aftermath of disaster, journalists as individual profes-
sionals and news organizations as trusted community institutions
play a more complex role. These may include communicating basic
information from official sources about shelter, safety, and other
issues to survivors and affected areas; connecting survivors to one
another through stories, news feeds, and message boards when
other less resilient communications systems fail; mobilizing the
broader society to make essential resources available to a crisis
zone; and educating news consumers – including survivors – about
mid-range and long-term needs for recovery.
Local or community news agencies, whose staffs are themselves
at risk from disaster, may play a different role from national or
international media who parachute in and communicate primarily
to outsiders. At their best, news reports also serve as crucial vehi-
cles for survivors’ voices, providing powerful representations of
both loss and coping.
Many news organizations are understaffed, with little institu-
tional memory; in such cases, these roles are poorly planned ahead
of time, and are improvised throughout a crisis. But some news
organizations – particularly those with deep roots in disaster-prone
regions, or those with a well-articulated public service mission –
define their roles carefully. For example, the Australian Broadcasting
Corporation (ABC), Australia’s government-funded public-service
broadcaster, provides a wide range of resources during bush fires,
floods, and other natural disasters; mobilizing local radio, special
emergency web sites, national news, and social media; combining
official information, the ABC’s independent reporting and personal
stories generated by the public into a rich web-based environment
(see http://www.abc.net.au/centralvic/emergencies/).
In the longer run after a mass-casualty event, the role of news
media becomes even more complex and subtle. Which survivors’
stories get told? What longer-term needs of individuals, families
and communities get highlighted in coverage? What expert per-
spectives define a disaster’s impact? What images will motivate
continued public engagement with a disaster zone without aggra-
vating survivors’ distress? What benchmarks for recovery deserve
scrunity? What issues should investigative or watchdog journalists
consider in evaluating preparedness and response?
With any of these issues, roles, or phases in disaster coverage,
clinicians or their clients may find themselves engaging with news
media. An interaction may be as straightforward as communicating
basic information about available counseling resources, or as subtle
as guiding a family through a difficult decision about whether or not
a child or adult should be interviewed on national television. News
professionals, also, may be among the affected population, and
clinicians may find themselves called upon to advise individual
journalists about themselves or their families, news managers
concerned about their teams, or entire news companies.
Understanding Journalistic Culture and the Functionof Journalists
As clinicians know, cultural competency is a cornerstone in
adapting one’s skills to different groups. Cultural competency
implies not only understanding different ethnicities, minorities, and
races, but also organizational and professional cultures. This is
particularly the case with journalism, which – again like other first
responders – has a strong professional identity rooted in part in
broad principles and in part in grinding workplace reality. For that
reason, understanding the values, cultural norms, and guiding
principles of journalism can help mental health professionals fa-
cilitate appropriate relationships with news professionals. What are
those cultural markers? Broadly speaking, journalists are dedicated
to seeking and reporting truth, maintaining independence, and
serving as a forum for engagement and public analyses of important
ongoing issues (Kovach and Rosensteil 2001).
Like mental health professionals, journalists have professional
ethics codes (although like clinicians, not all abide by them). These
codes typically relate to truthfully seeking and reporting truth,
minimizing harm, independence and autonomy from sources, and
accountability (Society of Professional Journalists 1996; Reuters
2008). Although academics and practitioners argue about the value
or reality of purely objective journalism and the emergence of this
theory in the 1920s (Schudson and Tift 2005), journalists have
historically held different methods and values for pursuing objec-
tivity than have clinicians or mental health researchers. Journalists
seek external corroboration and accuracy through multiple sources
and records. Clinicians, in most but not all therapeutic contexts,
tend to rely less on external corroboration in clinical contexts and
more on internal consistencies, and how presentations match or
do not match clinical evidence about particular psychological
phenomena.
Journalists also approach privacy differently than clinicians.
Mental health professionals are trained that nearly every interac-
tion, unless it involves a life threat or those in a group unable to
make safety choices for themselves, is subject to the utmost con-
fidentiality. Clinicians must always err on the side of the need for
privacy, explicitly telling potential clients about any threats.
Journalists also place a high value on privacy, but must balance the
principle of individual privacy with the public’s right to know and
democracy’s need for representative stories to be told. Journalistic
ethics codes suggest that ‘‘private people have a greater right to
control information about themselves than do public officials and
others who seek power, influence or attention. Only an overriding
public need can justify intrusion into anyone’s privacy’’ (e.g., So-
ciety of Professional Journalists 1996). Most journalists will re-
spect areas that are media-free zones if that is made explicit.
Another salient difference between clinicians and journalists has
been their respective approaches to examining emotions. Whereas
clinicians are trained to process emotions and engage in self-care to
stay objective and put the client’s needs first, most journalists are
trained to maintain professional objectivity by ignoring personal
emotions. As a profession focused on documenting others, jour-
nalism has historically fostered a culture in which the journalists’
exploration or reflection about people’s feelings about the story is
not valued or is actively discouraged. Journalists’ emotional reac-
tions to an assignment or interview are typically viewed as, at best,
irrelevant distractions. To insert oneself into the narrative is often
seen as self-indulgent, a sign of poor judgment, and, possibly,
fraudulent, unless it is a particular form of journalism (i.e., a col-
umn or a narrative piece). Understanding this cultural reality is very
important as we begin to evaluate how clinicians and journalists can
address highly charged events such as disaster and terrorism.
Further, journalists operate under numerous and sometimes ex-
treme pressures. Even in small local news organizations, these
typically include job stressors such as the necessity of producing
accurate news quickly under deadline pressures, working long
hours in an unbroken 24 hour news cycle accelerated by social
CLINICIANS AND JOURNALISTS IN DISASTER RESPONSE 33
media, lack of a predictable schedule and potential shift work,
managing technology and equipment failures, and working with
teams. Even in disasters, competition may be a factor. As financial
pressures in the industry increase, journalists’ work demands have
risen while resources have decreased. Freelancers in particular may
struggle with financial issues, lack of a safety net, and lack of access
to affordable healthcare. And in active conflict zones the risks es-
calate: journalists are no longer perceived as neutral parties
who document situations, but are targeted for kidnapping or direct
violence.
Finally, most journalists are not trained in a mental health
framework for understanding disaster and terrorism. This is
changing, but remains a baseline challenge. Despite their consti-
tutionally defined role in the United States and other nations, and
their first responder status, journalists are seldom given education
about interviewing victims, self-care in emergency situations,
children’s developmental needs, and mental health. Further, many
of the traditional news-gathering practices and interviewing tech-
niques designed to report on people in power – political leaders,
business executives, celebrities and other traditional subjects of
coverage – are not effective in winning the trust of survivors of
violence or depicting their experiences rooted in helplessness and
horror. Slowly, journalism has been reformulating and recalibrating
itself to consider practice in these situations.
Helping Journalists Tell Stories:What is the Clinician’s Role?
In most disaster news coverage, journalists seek direct access to
an affected child or parent for a variety of reasons. First, most
journalists believe that telling the stories of trauma-exposed chil-
dren and family members using their direct voices and eyewitness
accounts makes for a compelling story – not just to ‘‘sell newspa-
pers’’ but to ensure public attention for an urgent and challenging
story. News gatherers believe that real faces and voices of those
affected can help audiences understand how real people are af-
fected in ways beyond numbers and statistics or official statements.
As a general practice, also, journalists always prefer to indepen-
dently interview and document those most central to the story,
whether eyewitnesses, survivors, or responders. This approach is
central to journalism practice. It is also consistent with clinicians’
beliefs that survivors and witnesses are authorities about their own
experiences.
At the same time, journalists do want to talk with mental health
experts. Journalists consider clinicians and researchers to be expert
authoritative sources who in ideal circumstances can provide
background and context; explain how much one particular survi-
vors’ experience is like those of others; and educate news con-
sumers about the likely trajectory of psychological injury and
recovery When survivors are not accessible, journalists may ask
clinicians to directly describe how individuals are affected, but this
is considered a once-removed source that is less ideal than a direct
source closer to the story. It is similar to the ways in which clini-
cians at times may want information from both clients and close
family members to have multiple perspectives; however, in most
cases, clinicians tend to prioritize the perspectives of the identified
client.
Choosing whether to be a source to journalists
Similarly to choosing to work on a forensic or legal matter,
clinicians vary in the degree to which working with journalists
might interest them. A clinician must be willing to operate within
the framework of another profession, yet adhere to relevant mental
health professional, legal, and ethical codes. For example, when
offering information to journalists, clinicians must always protect
clients’ confidentiality and be vigilant that nothing that is said
might be interpreted as sharing information about a specific client
without that client’s explicit consent. A clinician may need to re-
mind journalists that mental health providers cannot share any
specifics of a case without a client’s explicit consent, nor may they
comment on someone that they have not personally assessed.
Further, clinicians’ might consider what area they have expertise in
and what areas would be best not to pursue. The allure of being
considered an expert should not override a clinician’s actual ex-
pertise, no matter how tempting (Gorelick 2000). This honest
appraisal can save time as well as prevent any potential embar-
rassment. Availability is also a key factor to consider. A clinician
must understand the deadline for the reporter and quickly determine
availability to meet that deadline, and communicate that avail-
ability or lack thereof promptly. A colleague who is the designated
media contact in her mental health organization, has a message on
her answering machine indicating that only journalists under tight
deadlines may contact her directly through her personal mobile
phone number, which she provides. Surprisingly, in many years of
doing so, she reports that only once has a non-journalist violated
that request. Therefore, considering availability to respond to the
news cycle is a key determinant for a clinician willing to act as a
source to journalists. Finally, if part of an organization, a clinician
must be aware of any organizational policies about talking with
journalists prior to agreeing to do so.
The basics
When talking with journalists, it is usually beneficial to quickly
determine who is calling, the organization that that person repre-
sents, relevant contact information, and the specific deadline.
Further, establishing a quick overview about the story that the
journalist is trying to tell and the aim of interviewing an expert can
be helpful in deciding whether to comment, and what information is
needed. Keeping a log of journalists whom one has spoken with and
their contact information can facilitate opportunities to make a
correction and/or develop a long-term relationship with a particular
reporter. Often, asking which other experts they have contacted or
plan to contact can also help a clinician understand the approach
and the scope of this particular journalists’ story, as well as giving a
sense of the resources allocated to a particular story.
An expert should always ascertain the basics before agreeing. If
possible, agree to re-contact the reporter (whether in a few minutes
or a few hours) and do some research and preparation prior to the
interaction. If the topic is controversial, reviewing the journalist’s
previous work might provide a sense of whether this professional
appears competent and trustworthy. In terms of content, often a
quick search of the scientific literature can help a mental health
professional determine one or two main points to emphasize. Re-
sponses should be concise, authoritative, and easily quotable. Al-
though most clinicians are trained to avoid talking in absolutes,
journalists need clear information. It is best to consider one or two
key messages. It is also helpful to know information about trajec-
tories of recovery and service delivery, especially for children (e.g.,
Norris et al. 2002a). Often a major theme is to remind reporters that
most survivors of a stricken community are not permanently im-
paired, but instead, that survivors’ recovery is the most common
response (Norris et al. 2002b). It is advisable to know what the risk
factors for trauma-related mental health problems are (e.g., Norris
34 NEWMAN AND SHAPIRO
et al. 2002a), and the important role that family and caretakers can
play for children. For example, often after the immediate impact, it
is helpful to remind caregivers to provide as safe, calming, and
reassuring an environment for children as is possible, answering
children’s questions with honest direct information appropriate to
their developmental level.
Answering and asking questions from journalists
One useful technique suggested by Scott North, a journalist from
the Herald, is to ask a journalist, ‘‘tell me a little about what you
know about the topic and I’ll see if I can help fill in the blanks’’
(Newman and Franks 2006). This allows you as a clinician to assess
and not assume that the reporter knows certain basics until you are
sure. Newman once spoke to a journalist all about posttraumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) without doing this careful assessment, only to
discover the journalist had written ‘‘post dramatic stress disorder’’
throughout the article. The basics can be reviewed quickly, but it is
important to assure that you and the journalist are operating from the
same set of assumptions. There are some key issues specific to di-
sasters to address early on. It is important not to pathologize distress
and grief, both for direct survivors and for onlookers, but to convey
that sadness and distress is a pro-social expected transient response to
horrendous experiences. Inaccurate cliches such as ‘‘closure’’ and
scary words such as ‘‘chaos’’ and ‘‘mayhem’’ should be avoided
(Newman and Franks 2006). Further, not all survivors or first re-
sponders feel heroic; therefore, we would caution clinicians not to
frame survival in this context (Libow 1992).
Clinicians should feel free to counter biases, stereotypes, and
misconceptions about disaster as well as any wrong assumptions
that a reporter may be making. Often the largest inaccurate as-
sumption is that people will be psychologically scarred for life; it
can be helpful to remind journalists that the loss will never go away,
but the majority of survivors do well although many may show
some stress reactions for a few a weeks that typically subside. It is
helpful to provide messages about positive coping and what fam-
ilies can do to promote positive adaptation during stressful times. In
addition, news stories often focus on unique and extreme cases;
therefore, it is often helpful to place these situations in the context
of how it is similar to and different from other events.
Protecting or facilitating families’ interactionswith the media: What is the clinician’s role?
A clinician may from time to time be asked to help a family
decide whether to respond to journalist. There is not systematic
research available about the impact for children of talking with
journalists or being filmed or photographed; therefore, most advice
comes from both journalistic and clinical practice. There are reports
that some survivors find it exceptionally affirming and helpful to
discuss their experience. Some disaster survivors report that images
of their experiences in print after the fact made the experience real,
or gave them a voice when they felt powerless. There are other
cases, however, in which families reported that it was not a positive
interaction, or that it led to social stigma. Many are indifferent to
the experience, finding it neither helpful nor problematic. Given the
range of potential responses, families’ decisions whether to talk to
news professionals or not likely needs to be decided on a case-by-
case basis. Factors to consider include timing, the particular jour-
nalistic team, the family’s needs, and the circumstances of the
events. A clinician can help the family make informed decisions
that are best for them. Children, when possible, should also be part
of the decision-making process.
If a family decides to talk with journalists, the children and
family should feel as in control of the process as possible, deter-
mining the setting and context that is comfortable for them. A
clinician can help the family determine what, if anything, would
make them feel more at ease. If there are particular topics or details
that are especially difficult for a child, the family can let the jour-
nalists know this and/or indicate that those are topics to be avoided
or monitored. Children should know that they do not have to answer
any questions. If appropriate, a time limit for the interview may be
initiated by the family. Guardians might let the reporter know that
they may stop or that the child may choose to stop if the child
becomes distressed. The family can decide if a therapist or trusted
friend should be available to the family or child. Perhaps for a
young child, it would make sense to bring a soothing toy. The
family can make choices to make it as comfortable an experience as
possible, and a respectful reporting team should be responsive. If a
news professional cannot meet all your requests, they should be
able to politely and professionally explain why that is not possible.
A clear and simple explanation can usually be accepted at face
value, and often involves varying newsroom policies. For example,
some news organizations will permit victims to view video re-
porting or read an article before it is disseminated, to prepare for
any social response, whereas other news organizations forbid it.
In certain situations especially during the immediate aftermath
of a disaster, there may be appropriate media-free zones set up so
that families can get assistance, or mourn privately. Most ethical
journalists respect those areas. Equally important, are opportunities
for families who want access to journalists. Amid the rubble of
tornado damage in Moore, Oklahoma, Newman observed many
families seeking out journalists who wanted to communicate to
others the importance of taking cover when a tornado siren is on and
the value of family over possessions, as well as to urge citizens to
get renters’ insurance. As social connectivity is such a strong pre-
dictor of mental health for trauma-exposed children, families, and
communities (e.g. Arnberg et al. 2012; Kaniasty 2012), the op-
portunities to participate in news in ways that enhance social
connectedness should also be a freely chosen option available to
interested parties.
If a particular family experienced a unique loss, many jour-
nalists may want access to that particular family over time, which
can be a burden to the family. In those cases, it may be helpful to
advise the family to designate a family member or friend to co-
ordinate journalistic inquiries. Additionally, a family may choose
to communicate through a written statement when they wish
privacy.
Advising or commenting on journalistic practice/Advising journalists about interviewing children
What can mental health specialists convey to journalists cover-
ing victims, especially child victims? Mental health providers
might be surprised to learn that ethical codes exist in which jour-
nalists are expected to treat sources and subjects with respect and
sensitivity, highlighting this need among those affected by crime or
tragedy (e.g., RTNDA 2000; Reuters 2008). Further, many ethical
codes emphasize the importance to ‘‘use special sensitivity when
dealing with children and inexperienced sources or subjects’’ (SPJ
2008). Also ethical handbooks such as that of National Public
Radio (NPR) (2010) suggest showing sensitivity: ‘‘when seeking or
using interviews of those affected by tragedy or grief. That’s es-
pecially true when we’re dealing with children, anyone who is
nervous about being interviewed, individuals who have difficulty
CLINICIANS AND JOURNALISTS IN DISASTER RESPONSE 35
understanding us because of language differences, and those who
might be putting themselves in danger by speaking to you.’’
Like the ethical codes of clinicians, the ethical purpose of these
handbooks is to give journalists substantive guidance without being
unnecessarily prescriptive. Journalists struggle with these com-
plexities. Just as with soldiers, preliminary evidence suggests that
such trauma-related ethical dilemmas are a predictor for PTSD
among journalists working with large-scale violence (Backholm
and Idas 2013).
Knowing that, mental health professionals can discuss ways that
harm can be minimized and appropriate permissions can be sought
with survivors of disasters and mass tragedies. Conversations about
what trauma specialists know about trauma survivors can be very
useful opportunities for journalists to expand their toolkits and
approaches in defining what it means to treat survivors with respect
and sensitivity. For example, journalists welcome learning that
after experiencing situations in which one is powerless, offering
survivors opportunities for small choices in all interactions is a sign
of respect (as well as a practice that has the potential to enhance
accuracy). Similarly, it is important to explain that journalists
should not rush disaster survivors to explain their experience, or put
words in the survivors’ mouths, but should display extra patience.
With respect to children, mental health specialists can remind
journalists that young children can be unreliable eyewitnesses, and
urge them to consider the journalistic aim at hand when inter-
viewing after a disaster. We argued that after the Sandy Hook
shooting, the interviews with children had little to no news value
(Calderone 2012; Weinger 2012). Children directly affected may
still be in shock, and parents may not be able to give true informed
consent. NPR (2010) advises staff that in incidents such as school
shootings, ‘‘Witnesses such as teachers or students over 18 are
preferable interviewees. If continued interviewing substantially
increases the distress of a minor who is a witness, carefully balance
the importance and quality of the information being obtained with
the interviewee’s emotional state and decide whether respect for the
witness requires the interview to be ended. Also, discuss with your
editor whether that interview should be aired.’’
As a general rule, Simpson and Cote (2006) recommend that
children £10 years of age not be interviewed or photographed at
scenes of devastation. There is no particular standard for deciding
exactly what age is old enough to be interviewed, but there is a
growing consensus that trauma-exposed children, if approached,
need to be approached carefully, with a clear rationale as to why
their perspective is essential to the story.
If a journalist does decide to interview children, advice can be
given about some of the best ways to do this. Mental health prac-
titioners can inform journalists about techniques of interviewing
children, such as standing at their eye level, taking as much time as
possible in the situation, and speaking in ways that children can
understand. Clinicians can remind journalists that children should
not be asked leading or closed-ended questions. Instead, journalists
should be advised to ask children open-ended questions about what
they heard and saw, for example, and take their time understanding
that children talk in long sentences and not necessarily in short
sound bytes. Similarly, clinicians can offer suggestions about the
best methods of getting consent, and explaining the rules of en-
gagement to children.
Journalists might benefit from some basic knowledge about how
children cope with mass disasters and tragedy. Although there is
great variability based on developmental level and degree of loss,
children’s functioning is most often influenced by how caregivers
around them are coping. Children do best when adults appear to
remain calm, answer children’s questions honestly, and respond as
best they can to requests.
Finally, it can be helpful for clinicians to self-disclose how they
manage the emotional duress involved in working with survivors of
violence and tragedy. Although this may not be a part of the story
per se, sharing these strategies may be a gentle and indirect way to
assist the journalist who is interviewing you and immersed in
covering a potentially emotional story. Further, by modeling an
organizational culture in which processing human reactions in the
service of clients is seen as ordinary and expected, the possibility of
reform in the world of journalism is suggested.
Raising Public Awareness
Clearly, children are affected by disasters, and clinicians can
consider the role they may want to take in promoting community
preparedness and resiliency. Often, once a mass causality event is
over, it is difficult to keep these issues in the public eye. It may be
possible to work collaboratively with journalists to raise awareness
about trauma responses and community preparedness, but this
needs to be done with respect for journalists’ aims, culture, code,
and ethics. Clinicians should never expect that journalists are
public relations agents for their organization, causes, or perspec-
tives. The goal is to give journalists information so that they can
make informed news decisions. They are professionals who want to
pursue interesting stories. You can also learn about how news
works in your community. Building ongoing collaborations with
journalists can be a productive beneficial venture.
We strongly recommend that disaster experts take a journalist
out to lunch and suggest story ideas. Discuss what makes a good
prevention or intervention program, gaps in services, or issues that
are not well known by others. Also do not assume that because no
story immediately appeared, that this is a waste of time. Informa-
tion provided may shape future stories or provide opportunities to
respond to future events.
Invite journalists to come to disaster drills and educational
events. Consider asking journalists to serve on community agency
boards or participate in a community event. They may not agree
to, because of conflict of interest, but it is worth asking them. Reach
out to them by sending information about disaster response or
recovery.
Another strategy to assure that good news stories about children
and disasters are being told is to compliment journalists who handle
trauma stories well. Contact the journalists and their editors or
directors, and compliment the coverage. This type of audience re-
sponse will help shape future news stories, especially at the local
level. Similarly, if you note a perspective missing from news
coverage, politely express your concern, and encourage the reporter
to consider pursuing another perspective.
Clinicians can also directly affect the news. Consider writing
op-ed pieces or letters to the editor about children, disasters, or
disaster preparedness.
Addressing Access to Media Coverage in Therapy
Our knowledge base about news consumption is primarily based
on research correlating respondents’ self-reports of news con-
sumption with self-reports of symptoms after a major mass disaster
(e.g., Nader et al. 1993; Pfefferbaum et al. 1999; Terr et al. 1999;
Pfefferbaum et al. 2000, 2002; Fairbrother et al. 2003; Pfefferbaum
et al. 2003; Saylor et al. 2003; Aber et al. 2004; Phillips et al. 2004;
Cardena et al. 2005; Otto et al. 2007; Braun-Lewensohn et al. 2009;
Haravuori et al. 2011). In general, the amount of self-reported
36 NEWMAN AND SHAPIRO
trauma-related news exposure is correlated to the severity of a
child’s self-reported or parental reports of their child’s trauma
symptoms. Therefore, it may be well advised to evaluate the extent
of news access in clinical assessment of disaster survivors. Further,
it may be useful to advise that parents limit news consumption or
consider parent mediation of news. In the one experimental study of
the effectiveness of parental mediation of news, parents who
modeled calm responses, and discussed children’s fears and mis-
interpretations, appeared to have children who demonstrated less
fearful thoughts than those who did not exhibit such behaviors
(Comer et al. 2008).
Clinical Significance
Children and families affected by today’s mass casualty events
live in a media-rich environment. Clinicians might prefer a re-
covery environment uncomplicated by the cameras, microphones,
Twitter, and 24 hour news, but that environment does not exist, and
clinicians concerned about disaster response should anticipate
complex issues involving news media as part of their postdisaster
responsibilities. Although the privacy of disaster victims must be
nurtured and protected, their recovery as individuals and in com-
munity also stand to benefit if clinicians can develop effective re-
lationships of trust with news professionals. In the aftermath of
disaster and mass casualty events, child and trauma clinicians can
play an effective and affirming role both by helping news media
focus on essential issues involving injury, recovery, and resilience,
and by helping clients make responsible choices about participating
in media coverage.
Disclosures
No competing financial interests exist.
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Address correspondence to:
Elana Newman, PhD
Department of Psychology
The University of Tulsa
800 South Tucker Drive
Tulsa OK 74104
E-mail: [email protected]
38 NEWMAN AND SHAPIRO