NEW MEDIA: A NEW MEDIUM IS ESCALATING CRISES?

The purpose of the research is to examine how new media can be used to escalate crisis. Through that also, the researcher come out with the 3 objectives such as how do new media and traditional media differ in covering crises?, How new media act as a platform to escalate a crisis? And how can organizations prepare for crises involving new media? In the research, the researches have been used 4 different case studies like the 2008 Edison Chen sex scandal in Hong Kong; and in the USA, New York Taco Bell-KFC rats infestation crisis in 2007; JetBlue Airways crisis in 2007, and the Kryptonite locks crisis in 2004 as their approach, methodology and design to examine how new media can escalate crisis.

Through the first objective, the researchers have been found that the key difference between new media and traditional media is that of gate keeping, the process by which vast array of potential news messages are winnowed, shaped, and prodded into those few that are actually transmitted by the news media. For example, according to Edison Chen scandal, sensitive parts of the pictures were digitally blocked when they were published in newspapers. News coverage was relatively nuanced as readership was targeted at society on the whole. Another key difference between traditional and new media is that of user interactivity. Traditional media are typically one-way communication and do not allow for much participation. Forums and online discussions are an important part of the internet, which bring people together on a common platform, and help them exchange information. Traditional newspapers are bound by space constraints their online counterparts do not face. This is where online newspapers have come to the fore to provide options for readers to comment discuss and e-mail practically every article.

Base on the second objective, the researchers was found that the internet is the key in escalating the crises. A vital element to the internet is that of diffusion, and people have adapted so well to the internet because it is available almost everywhere today. There are relatively low-entry barriers in gaining access to the internet, and this has made it a very accessible realm for all. The speedy escalation of the crises was also cause by using of multimedia which is the information could be communicated only through text and still images can now be told in different ways on diverse platforms. The people can upload online the video that make it all the people in the world could know about that crisis and actually the four case studies found in the YouTube.

According to the last objective of the research, the researcher stated that the organization needs to harness new media and they have to acknowledge the significance of new media in order to battle threats posed by the same medium. Moreover, the corporate communications practice of the organization itself must be distended to encompass both online and offline functions. One key area is the management of web communications which is primarily through the organization’s web site. Besides that, the researchers emphasizes the 4 stages of new media crisis communication model to help organizations view online crisis management as a holistic process.

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syaza Izza bt Shahrul

2009278292