- The first Florida Natural Disaster and Journalism Summit was held at the University of Florida Hilton Conference Center in Gainesville on a Tuesday.
- The summit focused on enhancing community communication and trust building during natural disasters like hurricanes, involving journalists and nonprofit leaders.
- Presentations included topics such as climate impacts, social media misinformation, and lessons from Hurricane Helene in North Carolina in 2024.
- The event included panels, workshops, breakout sessions, and discussions promoting a community-centered approach to disaster journalism.
Journalists from across Florida convened at the University of Florida Hilton Conference Center in Gainesville on Tuesday for the first Florida Natural Disaster and Journalism Summit.
Presented by the University of Florida College of Journalism, Press Forward North Florida, Press Forward Tampa Bay and Press Forward South Florida, this statewide meeting, which also included various nonprofit leaders, focused on how journalists can strengthen their community communication during natural disasters such as hurricanes.
“We want to make sure that as we are reporting on disasters, that we continue to make sure that the community is front and center, that we are walking alongside our community,” Nikisha Williams, chief operating officer (CFO) of The Miami Foundation and member of Press Forward South Florida, said while giving welcoming remarks.
Antoine Haywood, assistant professor in the UF College of Journalism and Communications, shared a similar perspective in an interview with Mainstreet.
“One thing that’s important to us is this trust building that can begin to be actually mended on the ground level between local communicators and communities,” he said. “And so, what we’re trying to figure out is what opportunities do we have, or where do we need to do more work to enhance how we’re connected with communities and how information is circulating – information that is accurate, information that people can trust and rely on.”
The summit was broken into two days, with a welcome reception taking place on Monday night at The Wooly in Gainesville. On Tuesday, there was a mix of panels, presentations, workshops and participant-led discussions.
The presentations were moderated by experts from UF and Press Forward and also included speakers representing various colleges, organizations and media outlets. Some of the topics for the presentations included “Climate and the New Power of Storms” and “The Information Storm: Social Media and the Misinformation Effect.”
There was also a presentation titled “Lessons from North Carolina,” where journalists from western North Carolina had the chance to reflect on serving their communities before, during and after Hurricane Helene in 2024.
North Carolina was among the several states impacted by Helene in September 2024. The western portion of North Carolina, in particular, saw significant damage because of strong wind gusts, flooding and landslides across the southern Appalachians, according to a report by WRAL News.
Speakers listed for the Lessons from North Carolina presentation included Laura Lee, NC Local; Jason Sandford, Ashvegas; Jose Sandoval, Blue Ridge Public Radio; and Patricia Serrano, Enlace Latino NC.
Haywood served as a speaker for a separate presentation related to community mapping.
“That’s looking at what exists in your community in terms of like print publications or digital publications, right?” he said. “Where are they getting their information? And then, who would maybe be influential people? Then also thinking about who might be left out of the messaging. What is the tone of the messaging that is coming out and circulating?”
The last three hours of the summit, leading up to the closing session, featured breakout sessions. This was also when the participant-led discussions took place.
Haywood said the breakout sessions went deeper into topics like trust building.
When asked what he hoped journalists would get out of the summit, Haywood said if they hadn’t already, shift to a mindset that is more “community-centered.”
“… Really be thinking about shifting from like, ‘OK, I am just somebody who is collecting and then just giving this information to the community, but I’m actually doing this work with the community to find out what they need [and] get actually what they may know, and then I can help vet that about the accuracy and we can work together to communicate good information,” he said.
The summit wrapped up with the closing session from 5 to 5:30 p.m.
Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.