Edward D. Miller is a newsroom leadership coach and management consultant to newspapers around the world. He is a former director of ASNE and a founder of the Society for News Design. You can reach him at miller@newsroomleadership.com.
Managing disaster coverage can itself be a disaster. The shock of the event, the disruption of routines and the severe time and resource restraints test all our management skills. The good news is that we’re good at it. When the “big story” hits, people from all quarters of the newsroom react by refocusing effort toward a common goal. But can we do more than react? Can we actually prepared for disaster coverage?
Three axioms are certain to be at work during crisis coverage:
- Whatever can go wrong will.
- Seldom does only one thing go wrong.
- Someone has to be in charge, preferably guided by a practiced plan.
Here are some ideas about what you can plan before disaster strikes:
Resources: You can be sure emergency equipment is in place and in working order: cell phones, laptops, batteries, maps, bottled water, all that stuff you need when working in adverse conditions. The list of emergency supplies to assemble ahead of time is long, but relatively easy to construct.
Less obvious are the journalism resources. For example, suppose a prisoner took someone hostage in your courthouse, the police lock down the building and you have no access. Do you have floor plans of the courthouse in your art department or library? Do you have reliable emergency contacts who will call you in case you can’t get through to them? (Usually reliable and available sources can be anything but in a crisis.)
Make a list of 20 key locations in your market area where an incident would automatically be important news: government buildings, airports, stadiums, civic halls, universities. You won’t be able to list them all, prepare for those you think are most important. Over time, you can expand the list.
Practice: Many newspapers have assembled resources; few have practiced a mock disaster plan. Without practice you won’t know where the flaws are until it’s too late. Set up a small team to put together all the checklists and contingency plans. Then test the plans with a 90-minute disaster drill. If you’re unsure how to do this, ask a Navy veteran, preferably one who’s been on a nuclear submarine, to help think it through.
Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, the allied commander during World War II, was once asked about the value of planning. His response: “In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” Plans always go awry, but if practice is part of the planning, leaders at all levels will know how to adjust the plan to changing circumstances. When the U.S. Army trains units for combat it conducts “After Action Reviews,” evaluations of what was learned and suggestions for improvement. The value of practice for disaster coverage cannot be overstated.
The planning and practice should reflect the differences in disasters. Getting ready for a imminent hurricane is different than preparing for an oil-refinery explosion or hostage situation that may or may not ever happen. One reason Florida newspapers are so adept at hurricane coverage is that they know what to expect and have had a lot of practice. The “surprise” disasters like Columbine and Virginia Tech are more difficult to anticipate, which makes planning and practice even more important.
Emergencies overwhelm the management routines in any newsroom. Knowing this, smart managers will have put into place routines for the extraordinary.