By: Dr. Kumar Raka, Editor-ICN
NEW DELHI: Two gunmen separately attacked mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, killing dozens of people on March 14, 2019. One of the attackers appears to have livestreamed his actions on Facebook, forcing the company to answer for its role in the tragedy. The original live video of last week’s Christchurch attacks was viewed 4,000 times before it was removed, Facebook has said. The inability to control and moderate social media platforms was highlighted at this time of crisis in New Zealand.
On 14 March at 8:49 pm New Zealand Police tweeted “Police is aware there is extremely distressing footage relating to the incident in Christchurch circulating online. We would strongly urge that the link not be shared. We are working to have any footage removed”. Violent video making its way onto social media platforms is nothing new. The latest video only highlights how little social media companies have done to address inappropriate content on their sites.
In the wake of the shooting, several world leaders have called on social media companies to take more responsibility for the extremist material posted on their platforms. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said social networks were “the publisher not just the postman”, in reference to their potential liability for the material shared on them. The spread of the video could inspire copycats, said CNN legal enforcement analyst Steve Moore, a retired supervisory special agent for the FBI. “What I would tell the public is this: Do you want to help terrorists? Because if you do, sharing this video is exactly how you do it,” Moore said. “Do not share the video or you are part of this,” he added.
Amidst the spread of hatred, violence and racism across the continents on various digital media platforms, the heroic actions and crisis communications skills of Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of NZ, prevented further spread of communal violence and racist hatred and successfully restored the grace and pride of a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic nation. On March 15, Prime Minister Jacinda Arden opened an official book of condolences in Parliament’s Grand Hall flanked by two New Zealand flags and alongside a small bouquet of red roses, dressed in black and referring to the victims she said “THEY ARE US”. The Prime Minister’s message read, “On behalf of all New Zealanders we grieve, together we are one, they are us”. Devoid of blusters, shorn of rhetoric, filled with compassion and empathy, these three words become the totemic rallying point for the CRISIS COMUNICATION in the throes of coping with the worst terrorist attack in the modern history and worst crisis situation after 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
On Tuesday, addressing her first speech to nation’s parliament after the terrorist act Ms Arden urged that the gunman should be denied the publicity he was seeking and pledged in parliament that she would never utter the name of the attacker and urged her nation also to make gunman “Nameless”. “He is a terrorist, he is a criminal, he is an extremist. But he will when I speak, be nameless. He may have sought notoriety, but we in New Zealand will give him nothing, Not even his name”, she said. She urged people to talk about the victims rather than the attacker. In choosing to not even dignify the attacker with a name and shifting the focus of entire nation to the victims and their mourning families, Ms. Prime Minister set a benchmark of exemplary crisis communication. The communication was clear that it is more important to be compassionate rather than bloodthirsty. Her crisis communications have been markedly different from those of many other world leaders. She has been measured but warm, sought to be the solace for a grieving nation, expressed her sympathy and sorrow for those affected without resorting to vows of revenge and violence.
While her crisis communication has been inclusive, rich in diversity and humane, her actions left no one in any doubt what she feels about terrorist and terror. Her actions have been decisive, uncompromising and full of resolve. Within 48 hours of the attack she pushed for tougher gun laws, something American politicians, put in similar situations could learn a great deal from. “As a cabinet, we were absolutely unified and very clear. The terrorist attack in Christchurch on Friday was the worst act of terrorism on our shores,” Ardern said. “It has exposed a range of weaknesses in New Zealand’s gun laws. The clear lesson from history around the world is that to make our community safe, the time to act is now.” The grace, dignity and purposefulness with which Ms Ardern has dealt with this terrible crisis situation have made her both an exemplar crisis handler and communicator. All components of an effective crisis communication empathy and care with authenticity, dedication and commitment, competence and expertise, honesty, openness and resiliency, timely release of crucial information and statements, and effective handling new and social media under her sovereignty are sharply visible in both her actions and communication.
About the author
Dr. Kumar Raka is a Disaster & Emergency Management professional. He has played a key role in raising, equipping and modernizing, training and capacity building of NDRF; has served as former Planning Specialist & Head, Disaster Management, Noida Authority wherein he is the only world record holder from the country in the field of disaster preparedness. He is a Social Scientist, alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Tel Aviv University, Israel.
