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• Goals for communicators - Increase audience understanding and inform appropriate action
• Goals for communicators - Build credibility over time
• Core principles of risk communication - Be: Truthful, helpful, clear, proactive, available,
• Truthfulness is one of the long-term determinants of credibility. When people learn about an untruthful statement, it can increase outrage, and reduce credibility at all levels (personal, organization, information, and process credibility). Truthfulness includes not making statements that cannot be substantiated and being prepared to admit what is not yet known. Avoid extreme or indefensible comments.
• Being helpful refers to responding directly to audience concerns using words and other information (diagrams, physical models, math concepts) that are appropriate to the audience. Nontechnical language that avoids jargon, acronyms and complex math is most appropriate for nontechnical audiences.
•  clear: In health or environmental risk controversies, careless use of language can confuse rather than clarify the speaker’s message in the mind of the listener. “Contamination” (e.g., chemicals found at elevated levels in the environment) and “volatile” (referring to chemicals that evaporate easily at room temperature) exemplify words that are very commonly used in reports or conversation about environmental risk, yet provide little clarity of meaning.
• proactive: It can be challenging for organizations to build credibility in the midst of a controversy. Wherever possible, public health organizations should build constructive, long-term relationships with their communities, especially when there are no specific public health controversies.
• available: In the internet age, where information can travel almost instantaneously and there is an abundance of competing information about environmental health risks, people can find answers to their questions very quickly. However, online information is of highly variable quality. Non-technical audiences may not be well equipped to judge the accuracy of information, or to interpret highly complex reports.
• Emerging issues - Population demographics, emerging infectious diseases, climate change effects, terrorism
• 6 Principles of effective crisis and risk communication:

  1. Be first
  2. Be right
  3. Be credible
  4. Express empathy
  5. Promote action
  6. Show respect
• 1. Be First: Crises are time-sensitive. Communicating informationquickly is almost always important. For members of the public, the first source of information often becomes the preferred source
• 2.     Be Right: Accuracy establishes credibility. Information can include    what is known, what is not known, and what is being done to fill in the gaps.
• 3. Be Credible: Honesty and truthfulness should not be compromised during crises.
• 4. Express Empathy: Crises create harm, and the suffering should be acknowledged in words. Addressing what people are feeling, and the challenges they face, builds trust and rapport.
• 5. Promote Action: Giving people meaningful things to do calms anxiety, helps restore order, and promotes a restored sense of control.
• 6. Show Respect: Respectful communication is particularly important when people feel vulnerable. Respectful communication promotes cooperation and rapport.
• •CERC - Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication combines the elements of crisis communication and risk communication as they are used during an emergency response.
• •For communicators, it’s vital to know that every emergency, disaster, or crisis evolves in phases.
• Crisis Communication Lifecycle

  • Precrisis
  • Initial
  • Maintenance
  • Resolution
  • Evaluation
• Precrisis

  Prepare

  Foster alliances

  Develop consensus recommendations

  Test message

  Evaluate plans
• Initial Phase

  Express empathy

  Provide simple risk explanations

  Establish credibility

  Recommend actions

  Commit to stakeholders
• Maintenance

  Further explain risk by population groups

  Provide more background

  Gain support for response

  Empower risk/benefit decision-making

  Capture feedback for analysis
• Resolution

  Educate “primed” public for future crises

  Examine problems

  Gain support for policy and resources

  Promote your organization’s role
• Evaluation

  Capture lessons learned

  Improve plan

  Return to pre-crisis planning
• Communication failures

  1.Mixed messages from multiple experts

  2.Information released late

  3.Not countering rumors and myths in real-time

  4.Public power struggles and confusion
• Communication Boosts

  1.Execute a solid communication plan

  2.Be the first source for information/honest and open

  3.Express empathy early

  4.Show competence and expertise