Communication Challenge for Nuclear Industry in the Era of Fake News and Social Media- Dr. Thakur (CEMRC)
Monday, February 25, 2019, 06:00pm
Contact Rob Watson, ANS-C Chair
COMMUNICATION CHALLENGE FOR NUCLEAR INDUSTRY IN THE ERA OF FAKE NEWS AND SOCIAL MEDIA
Dr. Punam Thakur
Carlsbad Environmental Monitoring & Research Center (CEMRC) - New Mexico State University
The public image of nuclear and waste management industries has attracted its unfair share of malignment over the decades. To some extent, negative public perception challenges for the nuclear industry are primarily a consequence of its own inability to communicate nuclear science effectively with lay people. While effective and trustworthy communication cannot guarantee success; it helps shape public opinion, and for a routinely misperceived project like a nuclear facility, that is paramount. Over the past several decades, the nuclear industry has worked diligently to improve the security and safety aspects of the technology, but it has failed to resolve this negative public perception challenge of the industry.
Fukushima was the first nuclear accident to occur in the world where citizens have access to 24/7 social media outlets. These social media sites were filled with information regarding nuclear energy that were based more on mass rumor and even paranoia than facts. More locally, we have seen this trend following what was a minor external radiation release event at the WIPP in February 14, 2014. Many online news sources were flooded with anti-nuke stories aimed at pushing a fear of radiation, such as inferring an increase in cancer rates among the public from this minor incident; which was exactly the opposite of what was true. Today, when the public gets its news from social media and online sources, people are faced with rapidly changing and contrasting interpretations of the same story, depending on when they accessed the latest news. They are also increasingly vulnerable to fake news, including disinformation deliberately planted and cultivated by the anti-nuclear.
When dealing with a nuclear crisis, failure to recognize the rapidly changing and contrasting media framing, or believing fake news could have very real and catastrophic consequences. Trusted organizations must swiftly take charge and guide the way in which the crisis is framed to keep the public adequately and accurately informed.
Dr. Punam Thakur, a radiochemist, oversees the radiochemistry program of the CEMRC. The CEMERC is an independent monitoring partner of the WIPP.
Location CEMRC, 1400 University Dr., Carlsbad, NM
As always, pizza will be served at 6:00pm and the talk will begin at 6:30pm.