title: The Minimization of Public Health Risks in Newspapers after Hurricane Katrina.
abstract: During natural disasters, mass media facilitate the timely provision of accurate information about health risks to the public. This study informs our understanding of such public health discourse utilizing content-analysis of 235 newspaper articles in four major metropolitan newspapers published in the five weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf coast in August 2005. These data reveal a small and diminishing number of articles included public health information over time, detailed the hurricane impact on affected communities, and used reliable health sources. The implications for future research from a public health and media relations perspective are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Presidential Graduate Research Assistant in Health Communication, Saint Louis University School of Public Health, 3545 Lafayette Ave, Saint Louis, MO 63104, santoshvijaykumar@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Elisia L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: Santosh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vijaykumar
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wray
authors.forename: Ajlina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Karamehic