Recognize the emotions. Scientists who study risk
say it's important to understand how people perceive risk. Fears
are so high now because of the factors associated with terrorism.
"We are more afraid of risks that kill us in really awful ways
than risks that lead to deaths that are more peaceful," says
David Ropeik of the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis in a column
on MSNBC.com. "We are also more afraid of risks that kill
a lot of us, all at once in one place, than risks that kill us here
and there, over time." Journalists need to address the psychology
of risk in their reporting. How?
- Describe what people can do to reduce their risk of exposure.
- Review measures that experts do not recommend for most people,
and tell why.
- Explain what government and medical authorities are doing to
reduce the risk.
- Report on the frequent disconnect between facts and fears to
give people perspective.
Examine the risk. People need information that
will help them assess they risk they could face in their daily lives.
Provide the facts that will help them put risk in context.
- Tell what you can about the likelihood of exposure in your community.
- Describe how many people this affects, out of how large a population,
and how they are affected.
- Be clear about where a substance has been found, and how much
was found.
Compare risks. Comparing risks can help viewers decide
just how threatening a situation is for them. But be careful. Martha
Walter, Michael Kamrin and Delores Katz, who wrote a handbook
for journalists on risk reporting, say some comparisons are more
useful than others. "The most useful risk comparisons compare
similar risks, compare risks with alternatives, or compare risks with
benefits," they write.
- Compare the risk of death from one biological agent to the risk
of different agents, not to other diseases.
- Don't compare involuntary risk (risk of terrorism) to voluntary,
avoidable risk (risk of smoking).
Consider what is unknown. Avoid the appearance of
certainty where none exists. As Science News correspondent Ivars Peterson
told the science journalism center at the University of Missouri,
"Readers may be better served by hearing more of the process
and uncertainty of science and math."
- Clarify whether you are reporting exact numbers or estimates,
and the confidence level of those estimates.
- Tell what you don't or can't know as well as what you do.
Check these sources for additional information:
Harvard Center
for Risk Analysis
Reporting
on Risk, a FACSNET handbook
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