Section 1: Media, Crisis, and New Reporting Tools

News is dramatically different today than it was five years ago — from who is reporting it to where it breaks first. Traditional and “citizen” journalists now share the role of reporting need-to-know information to the community. At the same time, the community can forage for news whenever we want it in ways that were never before possible.

Section 1 explores the changing role of media and how these changes impact media relations professionals’ crisis management plans.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

• How the traditional model for crisis communications applies in the new world
• How social media, particularly Twitter, has transformed the way that news and details of a crisis are transmitted
• How the concepts of credibility and trust are changing in the new world
• The three distinct elements of a crisis story: what happened, what does it mean, what will be done to prevent the event in the future
• Why you’re losing as much as half of your audience if you’re relying strictly on mainstream media
• How to make Twitter part of your drills, exercises and crisis management plan