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Natural Hazard Reporting in the UK Press
Author(s) -
WRATHALL JAMES E.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
disasters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.744
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1467-7717
pISSN - 0361-3666
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-7717.1988.tb00665.x
Subject(s) - newspaper , natural disaster , natural hazard , hazard , natural (archaeology) , event (particle physics) , consistency (knowledge bases) , poison control , history , advertising , geography , environmental health , medicine , business , computer science , meteorology , chemistry , physics , organic chemistry , archaeology , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence
Important sources of information concerning world natural hazards are provided by the mass media, especially newspapers. The nature, depth and consistency of the reporting, however, varies considerably depending upon the journalistic approach of the newspaper and on the perceived ‘newsworthiness’ of a disaster. Intensive events are much more likely to receive attention than pervasive hazards but other contributory factors play a part, such as the day, time, severity in terms of damage and loss of life, and location of the event. This paper reflects on the reporting of natural hazards in UK newspapers and is based on an analysis of press cuttings taken over a period of twelve months. The survey indicated that there is a very uneven coverage of world disasters, that location maps are scarce, and that valuable follow‐up reporting is minimal.