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"Heather Bourbeau finds that in a crisis, media professionals and humanitarian aid providers negotiate a delicate balance between thorough and consistent coverage, and coverage that sensationalizes a crisis and leads to hysteria, misery, and fatigue. In "F" Bourbeau compares the media coverage of th ... more

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How Media Portrayals of Suffering Influence Willingness to Help: The Role of Solvability Frames

Lauren Kogen, Susanna Dilliplane

Journal of Media Psychology, volume 31 (2017), pp. 92-102

"When we hear stories of distant humanitarian crises, we often feel sympathy for victims, but may stop short of taking action to help. Past research indicates that media portrayals of distant suffering can promote helping behavior by eliciting sympathy, while those that prompt a more rational respon ... more

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Inventory of Digital Technologies for Resilience in Asia-Pacific
Quick Overview

FHI 360;Rockefeller Foundation (2017), 103 pp.

"This inventory was developed by FHI 360, with grant funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, to support resilience practitioners and the broader development community to identify digital technologies that have the potential to enhance resilience outcomes, particularly in Asia. It was primarily popu ... more

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Radio Distribution Module South Sudan. Part I: Context, Part II: Case Studies

Arcata, Calif.: Internews;USAID (2017), 56 pp.

"This Radio Distribution Module contains the collective knowledge of the Internews South Sudan team gained over three years’ experience conducting radio distributions within the United Nations Protection of Civilians sites (PoCs) and surrounding communities [...] “Part I. Context” describes th ... more

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Radio Distribution Module South Sudan. Part III: How to Guide

Arcata, Calif.: Internews;USAID (2017), 55 pp.

"[This] guide provides a detailed, step-by-step methodology for conducting a radio distribution, based on Internews’ experience in four HIS project locations: Malakal, Juba (UN House), Bentiu and Bor. The practical application of the guide will be particularly relevant for NGOs, UN agencies, CSOs, ... more

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Lost in Translation: The Misinformed Journey of Migrants Across Italy

Rose Foran, Anahi Ayala Iacucci

Internews (2017), 22 pp.

"In April 2017, an Internews team conducted a rapid assessment on information needs among refugees and migrants in Italy, visiting formal reception facilities (hotspot, CAS, CARA) in Lampedusa, Agrigento, Catania, and informal centers in Ventimiglia and Rome [...] Lost in Translation examines the cr ... more

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Improving Data on Missing Migrants

Frank Laczko, Ann Singleton, Julia Black (eds.)

Geneva: International Organization for Migration (IOM) (2017), xiv, 117 pp.

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Humanitarian Radio Module: South Sudan. Part I: Context, Part II: Case Studies

Arcata, Calif.: Internews (2017), 55 pp.

"Part I: Context” describes the information and media landscape in South Sudan and the value of Humanitarian Radio as a tool for communicating with communities in a broad range of humanitarian scenarios. It also discusses how Humanitarian Radio promotes accountability and transparency for humanita ... more

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Humanitarian Radio Module: South Sudan. Part III: How to Guide
Key Guidance

Arcata, Calif.: Internews (2017), 66 pp.

"This guide illustrates a step-by-step process of how to develop your own Humanitarian Radio station. Every crisis is different and the needs of the people affected are unique; therefore the information included here is meant as a guide, flexible enough to adapt to the individual needs of your commu ... more

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Periodismo y comunicación de riesgos de desastres

Lima: Calandria (2017), 66 slides

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Media, Gender and the Reporting of Emergencies: A Booklet for Journalists and Professionals Dealing with Flood Reporting

Brankica Jankovic, Milan Srdic, Višnja Bacanovic

Belgrade: OSCE (2017), 54 pp.

"This booklet first presents as a case study an overview and analysis of the actual reporting during the May 2014 flood in Serbia from the gender perspective. This part contains examples of gender stereotypical portrayal of men and women, but also the lack of visibility of female contribution to the ... more

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How to Use Social Media to Better Engage People Affected by Crisis: A Brief Guide for Those Using Social Media in Humanitarian Organizations

Timo Lüge

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC);International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC);Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) (2017), 24 pp.

"This brief guide provides practical tips and advice on how to use social media effectively to engage with, and be accountable to, affected people. It is primarily for staff who are responsible for the official social media channels in their organization. Related topics, such as social media marketi ... more

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Communicating Risk in Public Health Emergencies: A WHO Guideline for Emergency Risk Communication (ERC) Policy and Practice

World Health Organization (WHO) (2017), xi, 57 pp.

"The recommendations in these guidelines provide overarching, evidence-based guidance on how risk communication should be practised in an emergency. The recommendations also guide countries on building capacity for communicating risk during health emergencies. Specific step-by-step instructions are ... more

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Suffering in Silence: The 10 Most Under-Reported Humanitarian Crises of 2016

Care International (2017), 19 pp.

"Media attention and fundraising for humanitarian causes are closely intertwined. Watching people suffering on TV prompts many of us to engage and donate – this is widely known as “the CNN effect.” Journalists need independent access to report from the ground. This might explain why the humani ... more

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Evaluation of the East Africa and Indian Ocean Islands Beneficiary Communications Program

Hans Kuntner

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) (2017), 25 pp.

"Beneficiary Communication is a program which emphasizes the use of communication equipment in passing relevant, timely and accurate lifesaving information to communities. The program supports an environment of transparency and accountability through creation of feedback mechanism. It is about provi ... ding practical, useful information at the right time, listening to people’s needs and opinions and using this information to improve the programming and operations of Partner national society (PNS), National Society (NS) and International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). Beneficiary Communication program utilizes technology like SMS, Radio, Mobile Cinema, Posters, Sound tracks, Wall painting or traditional channels like drama and community meetings to pass lifesaving information to communities. The impacts listed in this report cannot be solely attributed to the use of beneficiary communication tools. The impact is the contribution of the tools to the realization of the results of the projects in which the tools were mainstreamed. Indeed, the results of the programs in which beneficiary communication tools was mainstreamed are the impact of the use of tools by proxy. The levels of knowledge of the beneficiaries with regards to causes of malnutrition and prevention of diseases which are caused by unhygienic conditions such as cholera have increased tremendously. This is evident from the results obtained through the pre and post mobile cinema evaluation on the above mentioned thematic areas, from the sites where the Red Cross Societies have implemented projects aimed at addressing malnutrition and hygiene. The activities of the beneficiary communication program were well received by the target communities in all the five countries. The communities appreciated the mobile cinema and drama perhaps due to ease of learning from audio visual or observation. The putting to practice the knowledge gained in various thematic areas is another way of determining how well the beneficiaries have received beneficiary communication activities. A random check of households by personnel in-charge of community health in Rwanda revealed that nine in ten beneficiaries put to practice the knowledge they acquired from the mobile cinema shows. The use of audio visuals and drama in local languages in all the countries sampled has proved to be an effective way of training both literate and illiterate members of the society. This is because both illiterate and literate members of the community simply learn through listening and observation." (Executive summary) more

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When Food is Cooking Up a Storm: Proven Recipes for Risk Communication

Parma (IT): European Food Safety Authority (efsa) (2017), 67 pp.

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Sierra Leone Mudslide Response 2017: Using Digital Platforms to Place Affected Populations at the Heart of the Response. A Case Study

UNICEF (2017), 7 pp.

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Information Needs Assessment: Cox’s Bazar - Bangladesh

Anahi Ayala Iacucci, Rafiq Copeland, Zain Mahmood, Alison Campbell, Brian Hanley, Phyza Jameel

Arcata, Calif.; London: Internews (2017), 56 pp.

"There is no accessible media in the Rohingya language, leaving the Rohingya population of well over a million, now spread between Myanmar and Bangladesh, reliant on information only available in languages other than their own [...] This assessment, conducted in the Cox’s Bazar region of Banglades ... more

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Framework for Data Sharing in Practice. Summary Report, Part II

Copenhagen: Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA);Protection Information Management (PIM) (2017), 4 pp.

"A Framework for Data Sharing in Practice, Part II, is a collective outcome document from two meetings held in 2017, one in New York in May and a follow-up in Copenhagen in December. The meetings were held with support from OCHA’s Centre for Humanitarian Data. The objective of these meetings was t ... more

Inventory of Digital Technologies for Resilience in Asia-Pacific Quick Overview

Humanitarian Radio Module: South Sudan. Part III: How to Guide Key Guidance

Inventory of Digital Technologies for Resilience in Asia-Pacific
Quick Overview

Humanitarian Radio Module: South Sudan. Part III: How to Guide
Key Guidance