TIMESOFEMERGENCY
Radio has a vital role when natural or man-made disaster
strikes.
Francesca Unsworth
, Director, BBC World Service
Group explains the work her organisation does when lives
are in danger
Action, which I chair, also plays a
key role in humanitarian
emergencies, as well as longer-term
development work. In particular, it
provides training to aid providers
and to community radio stations
which are sometimes listeners’ only
link to the outside world.
LIFELINES
After a disaster, accurate
information can be as important –
and in as short supply – as water,
food or medical care.
Lifeline programming provides
accurate and timely information in
the wake of a disaster, helping
those affected to make choices
about what they do next – whether
they should stay in the area,
whether they can leave, whether
help is coming and when.
We’ve operated during flooding
in India and Myanmar, cyclones in
Bangladesh, and conflict in Gaza, to
name just a few recent examples.
New technology has enabled the
BBC to respond to emergencies in
different and innovative ways,
Accurate
information
is as
important
as water,
food or
medical
care
“
”
uring the Tiananmen
Square student
demonstrations in
1989, a banner was
held high above
the crowd. It said,
simply, ‘Thank You
BBC’. This wasn’t the first nor last
time that our listeners have shown
that they’ve turned to the BBC
World Service in times of crisis and
emergency.
In fact, since its founding in
1932, through World War II, the
Cold War, and the Arab Spring to
the present day, listeners around
the world have relied on the BBC to
bring them accurate, impartial
news and information in both
ordinary and extraordinary times.
From General De Gaulle
broadcasting to the citizens of
occupied France, to Rajiv Ghandi
hearing the news of his mother’s
assassination via a small transistor
radio, to Aung San Suu Kyi
keeping ‘in touch with my people’
through radio during her house
arrest, the BBC World Service has
been a vital part of people’s lives
during crises.
CALL OF DUTY
Now, as then, we’re a global
operation with bureaux across the
world. Often, it is BBC reporters
who find themselves in the midst of
disasters, whether natural or man-
made.
Last year Nepali service
journalists demonstrated real
courage as they continued
reporting and broadcasting
immediately after the devastating
earthquakes. When their building
was deemed unsafe to re-enter
following aftershocks, they set up a
temporary office and held their
editorial meetings outside in the
courtyard.
As the service editor said: “We
realised that the call of duty
prevails over the sense of fear…my
colleagues said they didn’t become
journalists to run away from
situations like this.”
The BBC’s international
development charity, BBC Media
D
RADIO IN
12
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WORLD RADIO DAY 2016
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CELEBRATING RADIO
THE BUSINESS OF RADIO
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CRISIS & EMERGENCY