Risk and Emergency Communication

The entry is intended to define the concepts of risk communication and emergency communication. At the same time, it explains the difference not only from a communication point of view but also from a cultural one. Risk and emergency are two sociologically relevant events, and they are culturally constructed. They are events that bring about a socio-cultural change, which, in turn, is triggered by the population’s responses on the basis of the social perception of the events themselves, also conveyed by the different forms of communication. When communicating risk and emergencies, it is essential to educate people about alert and emergency systems. Above all, what they refer to and what kind of message they contain. The “warning communication” must be specific and refer exclusively to the threat to start the first phase of the communication through which it is possible to understand the type of threat and define the communication plan to be implemented later. The use of social media, which is strongly spread in digital society, allows not only rapid dissemination of information but also rapid communication and message selection (speed and content of the message are equally important). Alert and warning systems are very often linked to risk systems, since the risk from natural disasters (eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis) or technological catastrophes (nuclear power plant explosions) follows emergency phases when the phenomenon occurs. The communication processes, in and emergency, must be able to explain, persuade but also confer an assist the political decision-maker and the decision-making process itself through an alert system (especially in the first phase), followed by continuous dissemination through the media that the digital society offers, as well as through the usual systems adopted by government bodies (for example, bulletins and news), specialized research institutions and institutes with information and communication functions. In risk and emergency management, information and communication are to be considered, respectively, a basic element and a means of dissemination and training to educate the population to perceive a risk, to recognise emergencies and the possible impact of the risk. Differences will be expressed and analysed with reference to international examples.