Press ReleasesInternews Assesses Media Needs after West Sumatra Earthquake
(March 21, 2007) Two days after an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale struck West Sumatra, Indonesia on March 6, Internews sent a team to assess the status of the media in the area where the quake occurred. The earthquake killed 66 people, injured hundreds and severely damaged 10,000 homes and public buildings, displacing more than 6,500 people. The goal of the Internews assessment team was to determine what the media in the region needed in order to recover and to effectively inform their listeners about the emergency and recovery operations. The Internews team found that some stations responded well to the disaster. For example, Internews partner Classy FM in Padang used a back-up generator when the power went off and was able to collect and broadcast accurate information about the possibility of a tsunami and descriptions of the damage and relief efforts. Their efforts helped alleviate panic and rumors. The station received a high number of calls from their listeners during this period. Other local media were less well-equipped to handle the crisis. At one newly established community station in Paninggahan, Internews staff conducted an impromptu training course for the radio personnel, who are mostly young announcers with almost no experience in journalism. They worked with them on methods for managing community radio, ideas for creating emergency programming, and the basic principles of news and talk radio. West Sumatra is considered to be one of the highest-risk earthquake and tsunami regions in Indonesia. Any media response to the latest disaster should also help these communities cope and prepare for future tremors or a tsunami. Local media are ideally positioned to convey messages from authorities and also to broadcast the views of the citizens. In many places, radio is the only form of local media; Solok and Padang Panjang have no local print media. Internews aims to support Classy FM to become the flagship of an emergency response network of stations. As a respected news voice in the community of Padang, Classy already has a great deal of expertise in responding to emergencies, and Internews hopes to enable this station to play a mentoring role for the smaller, less experienced stations. In another disaster mitigation measure, Internews aims to work with the Indian Ocean Tsunami Early Warning Center to develop an emergency broadcasting system that will instantly alert the broadcast media in the event of a tsunami warning. Internews Network's projects in Indonesia are funded by the US Agency for International Development. FOR MORE INFORMATION: Wayne Sharpe, Internews Indonesia Country Director |
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