Cross-Media Analysis for Communication during Natural Disasters

Gerhard Backfried, Johannes Göllner, Gerald Quirchmayr, Karin Rainer, Gert Kienast, Georg Thallinger, Christian Schmidt, Mark Pfeiffer, Christian Meurers, Andreas Peer

Abstract: In this paper we describe the role of media in the context of natural disasters. Traditional media have a long history in covering disasters and will continue to be a major provider of information in the future. In recent years, however there has been a significant change: information about natural disasters has increasingly been disseminated on a large scale on social media platforms. These media are typically faster but may be less reliable. They provide additional and complementary angles on events and, combined with traditional media, provide a wider spectrum of coverage. We argue that cross-media information combined with multi-lingual data provides huge opportunities for first-responders and decision makers to gain improved situational awareness allowing for improved disaster relief, support, mitigation and resilience measures.