‘Countering rumours is a big struggle’: Journos talk about the challenges of disaster reporting

Photo credit: Anna Isaac

Journalists often come under criticism while covering disaster-hit areas. Indeed the line of questioning – especially the “aapko-kaisa-lag-raha-hai? question – adopted by some can appear to be inane and insensitive.

While the brickbats come fast and easy, there’s little appreciation of the effort that goes into disaster reporting.

We spoke to three journalists who reported on the recent floods in Tamil Nadu to understand the difficulties they face while covering natural disasters. Pheba Mathew, correspondent at The News Minute, Shabbir Ahmed, principal correspondent at Times Now, Chennai, and Anna Isaac, principal correspondent at CNN-IBN, share their experiences and give us a peek inside the world of disaster reporting.

Edited excerpts:

What is the situation like now in Chennai?

Shabbir Ahmed: The situation in the city is much better. But on the outskirts of Chennai, it’s still grim. It will take at least 10 days for the water to recede. The threat of water-borne diseases and other issues looms large. The only issue that comes to mind after seeing people suffer is that the civic bodies could have planned it better. Chennai is expanding by the day and water bodies are being converted into residential areas. This mindless expansion and converting water bodies into residential areas should stop. This disaster is a wake-up call.

Anna Isaac: Things are improving in several areas across Chennai and Tamil Nadu. This is because there has been no rain since Monday. Officials have been able to get more work underway. They’re working round the clock in collaboration with NDRF [National Disaster Response Force], the army, the navy and the SDRF [State Disaster Response Fund]. Most of the major rescue operations are over. However, the task at hand now involves clearing several inundated areas.

Pheba Mathew: The condition is much better now since the rains have stopped. But many areas are still flooded with rainwater.

Yesterday, all the IT [information technology] firms were shut in the city and many were flooded with water. But a few of the firms have re-opened and the city is moving towards normalcy.

How do you go about covering a disaster like this? Tell us a bit about how the coverage is planned and executed in the newsroom as well as on ground?

Shabbir Ahmed: In my 12 years of experience, I have covered disasters including the Tsunami and what I have learnt is that you cannot predict nature. My advice will be to keep a close tab on the situation because you never know how it could develop. For instance, during the 2004 tsunami, Chennai was first in focus but the worst-affected area was Nagapattinam, 300 kilometers away from Chennai. Yesterday, we were reporting in Chennai, but the actual story was unfolding in Kancheepuram, where several areas were submerged and people were crying for help. Help in any form is assured for the people of Chennai. But what about the people who are living in rural areas? As a journalist if you don’t report about their woes, do you think relief will reach them on time?

I handle a team of three and after talking to officials, I decided on covering the worst-affected area and headed towards Kancheepuram. My teammates were taking care of the city and reporting from places that were inundated and I was reporting from Kancheepuram, highlighting the other side of the story.

The simple trick is to keep a tab on the movement of the disaster management forces and it will lead you to the real story. Disaster management forces, in this case two columns of the army, were asked to be deployed in Kancheepuram and I was there on the spot when the Indian Army rescued people. So, whenever the army is deployed, it’s understood that the situation is out of control and the civil administration is unable to handle it. Being in constant touch with the newsroom is important and you have to be in the right place when you are covering disasters.

Anna Isaac: This is honestly not my domain. But CNN-IBN has been emphasising on covering the south. The channel started off with covering the onset of the north-east monsoon in October, when other channels hadn’t even reported it. We went on to cover the depression last Monday and since last Friday, we have had four teams on the ground. Other channels only caught up with this on Monday and Tuesday when the rains had stopped.

Pheba Mathew: First, you get information from various people about the conditions in the city. One needs to have all the information about how dangerous a particular place can get and accordingly plan where to go and how long to be there.

As a journalist, what are the challenges you face while reporting on something like this?

Shabbir Ahmed: The biggest challenge now is the misinformation that’s being spread on several platforms like Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp. Verifying unverified information is a time consuming exercise. We live in the WhatsApp era and everyone is a reporter now. Cut, copy and paste is too easy and everyone is doing it. It’s really sad that even journalists fall prey to such misinformation. A journalist’s first duty is to verify, verify and verify before passing on information, no matter how big or small the information is.

Anna Isaac: There are numerous. Logistics is one. It’s not just about the reporter and the cameramen. There are so many involved in beaming those pictures, like the driver, engineer and other assistants whose homes and families have also been affected and who have to travel in the rain and floods to get to office or on-site. On the ground, my cameraman Saravanan was injured during Diwali and yet came out with a bandage on his arm wrapped in a glove to cover the floods. I have wounds on my feet from standing in the water for too long. Much of the water that’s on the ground isn’t just rain water. It’s garbage and sewage, and standing in those waters the entire day has all of us worried that we could contract something. There’s also been a lot of rumour and fear mongering happening. Figuring what’s true is one of the biggest challenges. As a reporter you want to convey the reality without spreading panic.

Pheba Mathew: The biggest challenge is commuting from one place to another. You do not get any kind of transportation. From cabs to public transport, everything is shut. Cab drivers were not ready to go to the flooded areas in the city. They often over-charge in such cases.
At times, the contaminated water is also a problem. For reporting, you tend to stay out long, which can cause health problems.

How do you make sure you don’t come across as insensitive or come in the way of rescue operations?

Shabbir Ahmed: We are there to report a story and not to become a story. In every situation of covering natural calamities, I have made sure that I don’t come in the way of rescue operations. In the urge to do things first and get exclusives, you can’t lose your balance as a journalist and moreover as a human being. When you understand the ground situation, you can never be insensitive. There have been situations where people want to talk to you regarding their sufferings, but as a TV channel I can’t carry all their views, so I talk to them politely and listen to them even though I have to concentrate on 100 other things.

Anna Isaac: I try not to be too intrusive, especially in situations that involve deaths. It differs from case to case. Some families want to talk because it’s cathartic for them and they believe their tragedy will help someone else or at least help draw attention to their plight. If grieving families don’t want to come on camera, we don’t air them. I try as much as I can to convey what this disaster means for families like them.

CNN IBN has also focused on getting officials like the Chennai corporation commissioner directly accessible to the people. The channel did three calls-ins yesterday with the commissioner who patiently answered questions posed by residents in the city.

Pheba Mathew: I always make sure I don’t interrupt any kind of rescue operations as human lives are more important than a story. But I always try to talk to residents and take pictures without disturbing any kind of rescue operations.

How is the government responding? Any details on the rescue operations?

Shabbir Ahmed: First of all, all the tall claims that were made by the government and corporations have crumbled. They were caught unaware and they didn’t know what to do. It took a while for the TN government to understand that the situation is getting out of control. Having said that, whatever Tamil Nadu has witnessed over the past few days is something unprecedented. It’s after about 25 years that people are seeing rivers like Palar and Arani flood. Initially, the government thought that it’s only the Cuddlore district that was the worst-affected. Then, the second spell began and it was a disaster. Chennai’s drainage system is designed in such a way that it can handle rain up to 12 cm in a day, but this time around Chennai received 24 cm of rain. Adding to that, the lakes and ponds were filling up fast and since most of the water bodies have been converted into residential areas thanks to the real estate boom, it was a disaster waiting to happen and it did.

In TN, the atmosphere is very hostile towards the media. Ministers and officers are not allowed to speak to the media. I feel in situations of a disaster, the government should relax these unwritten rules and help in making official information reach the public.

Anna Isaac: I have been born and brought up in Chennai. Although this city has seen floods before, covering this has been a rude shock. Seeing neighbourhoods in the heart of the city in waist-deep water and NDRF teams rescuing people while I am working sometimes feels like an out-of-body experience. I had gone to Manapakkam yesterday and I didn’t realise at that time that a friend lived there. While I was on the boat with the NDRF team, he waved out and I realised that he was trapped in a sea of water. I managed calling him later and he said they had finally evacuated him.

Pheba: Yesterday, the chief minister visited the flood-affected areas. The army and air force were also called in. The condition is improving. The major problem is the bad sewage system in the city, so it takes a long time to clear all the rainwater.