Session 17 1

Application of Communications Principles to

Four Phases of Emergency Management

Session 17 Slide Deck

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Session 17 2

Session Objectives17.1 Review the four phases of emergency

management and discuss the nine communications principles.

17.2 Discuss communicating mitigation messages.

17.3 Discuss emergency preparedness communications.

17.4 Discuss communicating during a disaster response.

17.5 Discuss communicating during the disaster recovery phase.

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Four Phases of Emergency Management

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Response

Mitigation

Preparedness Recovery

Source: FEMA, http://training.fema.gov/emiweb/downloads/is10_unit3.doc

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Communications Principles• Focus on the needs of your customers.

• Make a commitment to effective communications.

• Make communications an integral part of all planning and operations.

• Be transparent in your communications.

• Ensure that your information is accurate.

• Release information in a timely manner.

• Make yourself, your staff and others, where appropriate, available and accessible.

• Create an emotional connection with your audience.

• Build a partnership with the media and the “first informer” community.

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Objective 17.2: Discuss communicating mitigation messages

• Timing of messages – before and after disasters

• Four steps for building a community mitigation program

• Marketing mitigation

• Media partnership

• Components of a mitigation communications strategy

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Building a Hazard Mitigation Program

• Establish a community partnership that involves all members of the community in developing a community-based hazard mitigation plan.

• Identify the community risks (i.e., floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, etc.).

• Identify potential mitigation actions to address these risks and develop a prioritized plan.

• Generate the funding, political and public support needed to implement the plan.

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Marketing Project Impact

• Engage the public.

• Partner with the media.

• Take advantage of policy windows.

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Guidelines for Marketing Project Impact

• Keep the message simple and understandable.

• Stick to the message or point.

• Explain what’s in it for the public.

• Educate the media on mitigation.

• Involve partners.

• You are the message.

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Media Partnership and Marketing Project Impact

• USA Today Op/Ed section

• Parade magazine

• Today Show

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Policy Windows and Marketing Project Impact

• FEMA spokespeople promoted Project Impact.

• An animated video on mitigation steps.

• Pre-prepared press releases.

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Components of a Mitigation Communications Strategy

• Include communications staff. • Archive all information. • Identify audiences and collect data. • Craft messages that will connect.• Employ an array of communications mechanisms including:

– Town hall meetings and workshops – Television, radio, and print interviews – Internet and printed materials – Paid advertising – Public Service Announcements (PSAs) – Grassroots communications – Social networking

• Monitor and Update. Session 17 11Slide 17-

Communicating Preparedness Messages

• Preparing for the next disaster

• Providing warning information

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Communicating Preparedness Messages

• Similar to mitigation messaging.

• Heavily reliant on communicating messages to the general public and to targeted audiences.

• Programs include public awareness and education, training and exercise elements.

• Best implemented at the local level.

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Communicating Preparedness Messages

Tasks include:•Full participation of communications staff in program design and implementation, collection, and presentation of all information.•Identification of target audiences.•Message development.•Use of a broad range of communications mechanisms.•Monitoring and updating communications strategies and tactics.

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Case Study – Red Cross

• Trusted source of information

• Lack of reliable and consistent information

• Local chapters producing their own materials

• Factually inaccurate

• More “don’ts” than “do’s”

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Case Study – Red Cross

• Folklore

• Risk Communications

• Other agencies

• What kind of messages are given here?

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Case Study – Red Cross

• “Talking About Disasters: Guide for Standard Messages”

• Reviewed, vetted, and grounded disaster advice

• Culture of educating educators

• Jointly produced

• Consistent, accurate, and appropriately worded for risk-based communications

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Case Study – Red Cross

• Decline in co-branding

• Variability and inconsistency

• Search engines

• Won’t happen to me

• Growing interest in risk communications

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Elements of an effective disaster warning and evacuation communications

Information Collection

• Recognize importance

• Dedicate staff and resources

• Traditional and new sources of information

• Process information

• Verify information

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• Information Dissemination

• Course of action– Evacuation– Shelter-in-place

• Communicating course of action to the public– Traditional media – television, radio, print– New media (Internet, online news services, bulletin

boards, cell phones, PDAs)

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Elements of effective disaster warning and evacuation communications

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Additional factors for consideration:

• Messengers

• Functional needs populations

• Non-English speakers

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Elements of an effective disaster warning and evacuation communications

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Communicating During the Response Phase

• Timely and accurate information

• Situation reports– What happened – Impact– What is being done

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Communicating During the Response Phase

• Ways to Communicate– Traditional media– First informers– Community-based networks

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• Collect and Analysis Information– Timeliness and accuracy– Traditional partners– First informers and neighborhood networks

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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• Disseminate Information– Goal of disaster communications– Regular media briefings– Involve agency leaders

• This is what we did yesterday.

• This is what we are doing today, and

• This is what we hope to do tomorrow.

• Elected officials• Public Information Officer

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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• Make your response staff available to the media– Discuss actions being taken– Do not discuss actions being taken by others– Media training

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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• Provide media with images and words they need to communicate your information– Images, words, and sound bites– Access to disaster zone– Situation reports– Access to leadership– Facts and statistics– What is being done to help public

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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• Respond to Media Inquiries– Rumors and misinformation– Basic communications principles apply

• Don’t lie

• Don’t talk about what you don’t know

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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Work with the New Media:

• Bloggers

• Bulletin Boards

• Facebook

• YouTube

• Twitter

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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• Monitor the Media– Tape TV and radio programs– Read newspapers– Read and track comments on new media sites– Reach out to correct misinformation and

rumors

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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• Media Training– Leadership– Operations staff– Prior to events– Raise comfort and capabilities of speakers

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Communicating During the Response Phase

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Communicating During the Recovery Phase

• Focus on types of and access to recovery assistance

• Many forms of assistance

• Media interest beginning to wane

• Rumors and misinformation

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• Elements of effective communications in the recovery phase– Information Clearinghouse– Bigger disaster - the larger the number of

organizations involved– A lot of information to share– One-stop shops– Recovery Information Clearinghouse– Pre-disaster planning– Hotline

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Communicating During the Recovery Phase

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• Communicating recovery information– Many media outlets

• Television and radio

• Internet and newspapers

• New Media

• Community communications networks

• Community relations teams

– Monitor media

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Communicating During the Recovery Phase

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