'Collateral coverage': the media reporting of the Afghani refugee crisis, 2001

Concerned with the on-going refugee crisis in Afghanistan, the paper considers the factors that have instigated media response by examining some general issues arising from the coverage of disasters. And in particular how the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center of September 11th had the result of stimulating renewed media interest in Afghani refugees. Paying special regard to the role of visual images in the reporting of disasters, the paper reviews the narrative strategies adopted by television news. While the central focus of the study is on the BBC Television News special reports, selective comparisons are made with other television broadcast channels Sky News and Euronews. From these examples, the paper identifies three main constituent factors that contribute to the likelihood of effective media coverage of refugee crises. Firstly, in order to attract Western media either the crisis must have some obvious connection with Western concerns or it must be of such magnitude that it is impossible to ignore. Secondly, the story will gain air-time if the nature of the crisis is such that it produces dramatic imagery - pictures with impact. Thirdly, if the style of the media coverage is sufficiently innovative it will stimulate interest in the viewers.