The News Flow Paradox

It seems the closer you are to a disaster the longer it takes for the news to get to you. A ferry sinks in the Philippines and my parents in Germany are the first to tell me about it. The current disaster in Japan is again a perfect example to defy the logic of "near" is "close".

Friday
I was oblivious to any news of the disaster until my sister from Germany sent me a worrying text message. That was at around 3:30pm (Manila time) and I was headed for a meeting. She must have heard the news in the morning radio show. Germany is 6 hours behind Philippine time.

I immediately texted a Manila-based friend forwarding my sister's text reading “I just heard about the earthquake and tsunami! Hope you are okay!” Earthquake? Tsunami?? Here in the Philippines??? My sister obviously assumed I was already informed and therefore dropped 'in Japan'. My friend testified: business as usual in Makati.

The people I met had heard and seen pictures and videos of the 9.0 earthquake and the tsunami wave flattening whole cities in northern Japan. I finally got my verbal news update!

Saturday
Early Saturday morning I was finally able to browse the Internet for news. I watched videos on youtube of waves washing away cars, houses, boats, and people. I clicked away on endless articles on CNN.com, blogs, and links. The expected death toll was at 1,000 then.

Before I left Manila for the weekend I updated my Facebook status confirming: I'm okay and there is no immediate threat for the West coast of the Philippines. A tsunami warning had been issued for the East coast, triggering a flood of e-mails and text messages from family and friends in Germany.

At the hotel outside Manila, TV was my main source of information. The last update I registered before calling it a night was the overheating of the nuclear reactors and the possible threat of a melt down.

Sunday
Upon waking up I read another alarming text message from my sister. One of the reactors did blow up and the plume might affect the Philippines. I switched on the TV and saw steam escaping a torn reactor building. I made my way to the hotel lobby to find a newspaper. While chewing on my breakfast I read some articles explaining in more detail what exactly happened and what the risks are.

It wasn't until Sunday night, internet access, and Wikipedia that I fully understood about the physics of a melt down, containment chambers, and the doses of health damaging and 'acceptable' radiation. Isn't it incredible how fast a lay(wo)man can gain at least some technical understanding to put news into better perspective? I just love the Internet! I just wished it were more positive news to research on…