Hindrance or Help? A Model for the Involvement of Politicians in Communicating with Publics During Disasters

View/ Open
File version
Version of Record (VoR)
Author(s)
McLean, Hamish
Ewart, Jacqueline
Year published
2015
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Australia has experienced a number of significant natural disasters during the past few
years with politicians increasingly involved in the provision of information to publics
before, during and after disasters. Drawing on data from interviews with senior
executives of Australian emergency management agencies we explore how these
organisations manage the involvement of political actors in the public communication of
disasters. We also investigate how emergency agencies manage their relationships with
their political leaders in the recovery phase. We identify that improvements can be made
to the ways politicians communicate ...
View more >Australia has experienced a number of significant natural disasters during the past few years with politicians increasingly involved in the provision of information to publics before, during and after disasters. Drawing on data from interviews with senior executives of Australian emergency management agencies we explore how these organisations manage the involvement of political actors in the public communication of disasters. We also investigate how emergency agencies manage their relationships with their political leaders in the recovery phase. We identify that improvements can be made to the ways politicians communicate with publics about disasters and we outline a preliminary best practice model for the involvement of politicians in delivering disaster warnings and information in the lead up to and during a disaster, and in the recovery process.
View less >
View more >Australia has experienced a number of significant natural disasters during the past few years with politicians increasingly involved in the provision of information to publics before, during and after disasters. Drawing on data from interviews with senior executives of Australian emergency management agencies we explore how these organisations manage the involvement of political actors in the public communication of disasters. We also investigate how emergency agencies manage their relationships with their political leaders in the recovery phase. We identify that improvements can be made to the ways politicians communicate with publics about disasters and we outline a preliminary best practice model for the involvement of politicians in delivering disaster warnings and information in the lead up to and during a disaster, and in the recovery process.
View less >
Journal Title
International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters
Volume
33
Issue
2
Publisher URI
Copyright Statement
© 2015 International Sociological Association Research Committee on Disasters. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the journal's website for access to the definitive, published version.
Subject
Communication Studies
Business and Management
Other Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services