When public health emergencies hit: The special work of agricultural journalists by Jim Evans [First of a special series of professional development features for IFAJ members and others regarding crisis communicating.  Produced through a partnership of IFAJ and the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, University of Illinois.] Working in chaos.  BSE outbreaks.  Prolonged droughts and food crises.  Dioxin in animal feed supplies.  Avian flu. Floods, fires, hurricanes, tsunamis, tornadoes, volcano eruptions, earthquakes and other natural disasters. Agricultural journalists are - and should be - in the thick of things when communities and societies get hit with public health emergencies that involve food and agriculture.  In the midst of crises - local to global - agricultural journalists are hard at work. Some are writing or speaking to producers, processors and others within the food complex.  Some are reporting to the general public through broadcasts, print media, web sites and other means. Others are representing agricultural interest groups, public agencies or research and education organizations, or otherwise helping vital information move. A wild ride.  Public health emergencies create a wild and bumpy ride for reporters and other communicators.  V. Covello, for example, cites these challenges in times of crisis: Inaccurate, contradictory and incomplete information, especially in the initial stages Constantly changing information Breakdowns of normal communications channels Confusion Media under criticism. It is no surprise, then, to find that mass media often get criticized for their performance during public health emergencies. Media have been described in such occasions as either a valuable ally - or an enormous headache. (Doeg, 75)  Problems sometimes trace to the kinds of havoc mentioned above.  For example, in the controversy about food biotechnology, "information published in the media … is often misleading, inaccurate and incomplete." (Ruibal-Mendieta and Lints, 383-384) But criticisms of media performance involve more than reporters dealing with informational disarray.  Here are some other cited shortcomings and challenges to effective coverage of crises by mass media: "In general, the media is interested in the following:  human interest stories, bad news more than good news, people's perspectives, yes or no/safe or unsafe answers, front-page news stories."  (ATSDR, 23) "Misery reporting or dread news attracts audience interest and enhances the marketability of news." (Byrne, 3)  Along that same line, the Belgian dioxin crisis "was portrayed in the media as a drama, a series of conflicts, resignations, bans, recalls, quarantines, arrests, criticisms and other exciting and newsworthy events." (Lok and Powell, 15) Journalists tend to "act as a pack.  They have an instinct that makes them dangerous to those with something to hide or a miracle for organizations that want to promote something." (Ruff and Aziz, 45) Driven by deadlines.  "One reason for inaccuracy and misrepresentation is often unappreciated by those outside the news and current affairs business - namely, the pressure to complete stories by tight deadlines."  (Ruff and Aziz, 47-49) Journalists may not be finely tuned to the risks of such emergencies.  A survey among U. S. journalists showed that less than 10 percent considered as "important" such issues as food/nutrition, risk, cross-border environmental health, biological hazards or dioxin. (West, Lewis and Greenberg, 305) Attitudes of journalists toward technology may be growing more negative, as indicated by results of studies of German press coverage over three decades.  (Kepplinger, 215)  The tone of media coverage during emergencies related to science and technology may reflect this orientation. News media "want to sell papers, ads, etc." and they "know what sells." (Sergeant, 8) News reporters may have limited technical background. (Sergeant, 8) Other voices in the debate about media effectiveness call for broader perspective.  Colin Doeg noted, for example, that "whenever there is a food scare or a crisis, the media frequently are blamed for exaggerating the matter, taking it out of context or even distorting the facts.  However, all too frequently, the blame should be placed at the door of those who are not prepared to help a reporter obtain a clear picture of an issue within the necessary deadline." (Doeg, 91) Vitally important.  In the face of challenges facing them, the mass media can be vitally important during public health emergencies.  They can gather relevant information and report it as quickly, clearly and accurately as possible to those who can use it.  In so doing, they provide great service and leadership at such times: Helping bring progress out of chaos, order out of confusion Helping identify needs - and resources to meet them Creating or re-establishing connections where none exist Helping assess risks and options for managing them Mobilizing assistance Probing beneath the surface of matters, sorting out the "spin" and the underground agendas that may be at work Helping bring strength and consolation out of suffering, hope out of despair Special challenges and opportunities of agricultural journalists.  From one perspective, good agricultural journalism is basically good journalism. However, agricultural journalists bring unique credentials to the task of covering public health emergencies that involve food and agriculture.  For example: They understand the complex food enterprise, so can often help put a crisis within larger, useful perspective. They often are familiar with the scientific and technological concepts involved in health emergencies related to food and agriculture. They have information contacts that may be especially valuable during a crisis. They have special know-how to provide leadership in creating or adapting emergency channels for communicating with various audiences when crises disrupt traditional channels. At the same time, agricultural journalists face some special questions and challenges in covering public health emergencies.  Among them: As specialist reporters related to agriculture, what posture will they take in relating a crisis to the various interests it touches (for example, the general public, producers, agricultural marketers, food industry, public agencies and agricultural research organizations)?Will the agricultural journalists be advocates for specific sectors?General critics or defenders? Neutral observers, honest brokers? Focused mainly on human interest aspects? Investigative? More than general journalists, specialist journalists often the feel the weight and discomfort of expectations around them. How, for example, can agricultural journalists avoid stepping on the toes of readers/listeners/viewers, commodity and producer groups and marketer/advertisers who expect supportive coverage during a crisis? In getting at the heart of public emergencies, how can agricultural journalists avoid offending what may be a limited number of valued information sources: agricultural scientists, government officials, leaders and others? In the face of possible crises related to food and agriculture, should the agricultural journalist communicate ahead of them or wait to cover them if and as they strike? If advance coverage is desirable, what types and approaches are likely to be most effective? How can the agricultural journalist prepare, in advance, to work effectively in times of such emergencies? If a communicator works within an interest group related to food and agriculture, what approaches should the communicator use in working with mass media - and within his or her own organization - to deal with public health threats and emergencies? These are some of the questions to be addressed in this special IFAJ series during the months ahead. Can you help provide tips and advice, based on your experiences and observations in reporting on agriculture-related crisis?  Please share them with IFAJ members and others by sending them to Jim Evans, University of Illinois, at evansj@uiuc.edu. Also, alert him to any references you might suggest. They will be appreciated. Want to follow up on references mentioned?  You can gain access to many of them online at the Web addresses shown.  Contact the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center at docctr@aces.uiuc.edu about others that interest you. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR).  2005.  "A primer on health risk communication principles and practices."  U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D. C.  Posted at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HEC/primer.html Byrne, D.  2003.  "Irrational fears or legitimate concerns - risk perception in perspective."  Speech at Risk Perception: Science, Public Debate and Policy Making Conference, Brussels, December 4-5, 2003. Posted at: http://ec.europa.eu/food/risk_perception/speech_presentations_en.htm Covello, V. 1995.  Risk communication paper cited (page 11) in S. E. Grant and D. Powell, "Crisis response and communication planning manual." 2000.  Prepared for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Public Affairs, Ontario,             Canada. Doeg, C. 2005. Crisis management in the food and drinks industry: a practical approach.  Second edition.  New York: Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.  Kepplinger, Hans Mathias. 1994.  "Historical notes on German press coverage of technology." Risk: Health, Safety and Environment, 5, 213-218. Posted at: www.fplc.edu/risk/vol5/summer/keppling.htm Lok, C. and Powell, D. 2000.  "The Belgian dioxin crisis of the summer of 1999: a case study in crisis communications and management."  Technical Report 13, Department of Food Science, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada. Posted at: www.foodsafetynetwork.ca/articles/316/belgian_dioxin_crisis_risk_comm.pdf Ruff, P., and Aziz, K.  2003.  Managing communications in a crisis. Hampshire,England: Gower Publishing Limited. Ruibal-Mendieta, N. L., and Lints, F. A. 1998.  "Novel and transgenic food crops: overview of scientific versus public perception."  Transgenic Research, 7, 379-386. Sergeant, A.  2003.  "Cultural models and risk perception." Speech at Risk Perception: Science, Public Debate and Policy Making Conference, Brussels, December 4-5, 2003.  Posted at: http://ec.europa.eu/food/risk_perception/sp/sergeant.pdf West, B., Lewis, J., and Greenberg, M...  2001.  "Journalists' views of the environment: issues and challenges." Risk: Health, Safety and Environment, 12, 3-4, 299-310. Posted at: http://www.piercelaw.edu/Risk/Vol12/Vol12No3-4/299-310.pdf Check on other resources in the Center. These and many other resources about risk and crisis communications are in the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, an international resource and service from the University of Illinois.  The collection is searchable online at http://web.aces.uiuc.edu/agcomdb/docctr.html.  Ask for searching assistance if you need it. TOP