idea for nacd and nss/cds after cave incidents

[BabyDuck]

ok, this has rattled around in my head for a few days. one or both groups may do this already, and if so it would be nice if it were more visible to the world in general.

after an accident (or an 'on purpose'), does someone from nacd and nss/cds in an official capacity contact the journalists and give them a cave diving fact sheet with commentary on the current incident? because i think it would be a fairly easy thing to do to try to get our words on safety and education out in front of the public. a bonus would be if the journalist used this contact to help them fact check so they don't write about oxygen cylinders, etc.

do we do this? what are barriers to it that i'm not seeing?

[Squirrel Girl]

ok, this has rattled around in my head for a few days. one or both groups may do this already, and if so it would be nice if it were more visible to the world in general.

after an accident (or an 'on purpose'), does someone from nacd and nss/cds in an official capacity contact the journalists and give them a cave diving fact sheet with commentary on the current incident? because i think it would be a fairly easy thing to do to try to get our words on safety and education out in front of the public. a bonus would be if the journalist used this contact to help them fact check so they don't write about oxygen cylinders, etc.

do we do this? what are barriers to it that i'm not seeing?

Early facts are often wrong. For example, the Ft Hood killer was killed on site. So the time it takes to analyze the problem may make it "old" news.

[skip]

"...contact the journalists..." is the problem. Who they are or will be happens pretty quickly. Contacting the local news media would mean keeping a rather large database of contact names/locations and acting rather quickly. The nacd and nss/cds are member-driven; it would take a volunteer or a new volunteer committee (maybe something under an existing title like publicity director?). The BoD could approve some such activity, but unless there are members asking and willing to take on the duties, it won't be done.

-skip

[Jack Hammer]

The way to do it would be to have the Sheriff's department, when contacted by media, unofficially mention or refer reporters to a cave agency for more info on gear, setup, training, whatever. Unfortunately, depending on where you are, getting a sheriffs dept to do so might not be that easy. You also risk reporters jumping to conculsions such as, "the XXX cave diving association is responsible for...."

[chilldive]

I'm going to guess that this stuff doesn't rank real high on reporters lists. Another cave diving tragedy occurs, they grab some info, print and move on.

I work for a utility company and we have to deal with the media constantly. They always get the facts wrong. We meet with them on a regular basis, we write up all the facts for them for every news worthy story, we do everything humanly possible to help them write correctly. They still report it wrong. I think the problem is bias. If a reporter thinks cave diving is dangerous and people shouldn't do it, then they will slant the writing no matter what the facts are - same as they do with our utility company, the federal gov't and anything else. I think the days of truly unbiased, report just the facts, types of media are gone. It's all about the hype and the sales. Reporters are also getting much worse about checking things before printing. You see this happening all the time and sure they will print corrections, but who reads those?

Not to say we still shouldn't try. Gotta keep fightin' the good fight and getting the right info out there.

[FW]

"...contact the journalists..." is the problem. Who they are or will be happens pretty quickly. Contacting the local news media would mean keeping a rather large database of contact names/locations and acting rather quickly. The nacd and nss/cds are member-driven; it would take a volunteer or a new volunteer committee (maybe something under an existing title like publicity director?). The BoD could approve some such activity, but unless there are members asking and willing to take on the duties, it won't be done.

-skip

This is the best answer. The reporters want to get the story out NOW, so they are unwilling to wait for "facts".

[MORGAN]

I work for a utility company and we have to deal with the media constantly. They always get the facts wrong. We meet with them on a regular basis, we write up all the facts for them for every news worthy story, we do everything humanly possible to help them write correctly. They still report it wrong.

I spent a number of years as director of an urban EMS system, and my experience with the media is identical to chilldive's. As FW says, they want to get the story out ASAP - they are much more interested in meeting their deadlines than they are in accuracy. We had a full time public information officer who spent a lot of time trying to help them get things right, but they got them wrong anyway.

Mike

[Kelly Jessop]

after an accident (or an 'on purpose'), does someone from nacd and nss/cds in an official capacity contact the journalists and give them a cave diving fact sheet with commentary on the current incident?

I had done that in the past on two occasions,and it was worthless waste of time.

[mwenner]

I think BabyDuck's making a good point. I know the news agencies are trying to get ton's of "exciting" information out there, Skip/Forrest, and the death of a cave diver must seem like a flash in the pan, compared to the Ft. Hood incident. . Based on the news, second articles do appear, and maybe that's the time to move the reader into position. Most people I talk to just don't understand what or why we do what we do. Some of them are divers, or other cave divers, as the articles filter through the diving and non diving communities. NACD or CDS could take more of a position (I know it's another branch) in regard to the certifications required, the ramifications of bad decisions, etc. Wes was just on GMA, and made the point that he had lost 28 friends (and I'm very sad to hear that), and it had nothing to do with recent news. It makes a huge impact on society, and maybe we should consider positioning ourselves a bit differantly. Move the thrill seeker label over a knotch or two, and become more water resource ambassadors, highly competent divers with good decision making policy, team players that support doing things relately right. I'm not hoping for nomination, but, wording a press release is pretty easy, and maybe we're missing something here. I see the news articles, and we're being spun around by our tales/tails. It's obvious cave diving is becoming more popular, as the quarry I dove at last week in KY had ton's of people wearing doubles and reels, and talking cave this and that. I'm also very surprised that someone on a RBR can hop into Eagles Nest (regardless of the certs), and make those types of decisions. We need a good publicist, or a diver who's in the news world. Ideas?

[Ken Hill]

ok, this has rattled around in my head for a few days. one or both groups may do this already, and if so it would be nice if it were more visible to the world in general.

after an accident (or an 'on purpose'), does someone from nacd and nss/cds in an official capacity contact the journalists and give them a cave diving fact sheet with commentary on the current incident? because i think it would be a fairly easy thing to do to try to get our words on safety and education out in front of the public. a bonus would be if the journalist used this contact to help them fact check so they don't write about oxygen cylinders, etc.

do we do this? what are barriers to it that i'm not seeing?

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Good question and yes there is contact with journalists that make inquiry and allow the community to respond to their questions. Below please read in email format an inquiry about the recent incident and my respose. The IUCRR has makes every effort to promote the idea of safe cave diving and the institutions that make training and conservation their prioritites.

In many cases reporters have Googled and learned about our shortcomings and debates and in this instance the reporter chose to quote several within the cave diving community rather than the positive messages about cave diving within the press release.

/Ken

PRESS RELEASE

Mr. Holt,
IUCRR incident reports remain the property of the IUCRR and their use by anyone outside the IUCRR or the law enforcement or public safety agency they were prepared for is unauthorized. You may use the mission statement of the IUCRR for background for your story.

It is my understanding that the victim of yesterday’s incident at Eagles Nest has had no training to dive in an underwater cave and was at a depth and distance beyond the normal recreational limits for basic cave training. While the IUCRR regrets the tragedy, it does not condone any violation of safety rules that safe cave diving demands. These rules have been in existence for nearly forty years and designed to reduce or eliminate events such as the one at Eagles Nest yesterday and double fatality in 2004. Cave diving is proved to be a very safe sport when rules and guidelines are followed and all necessary training has been successfully completed.

As Director of the IUCRR I can tell you the IUCRR is a 501C3 non profit organization made up of highly trained cave divers who volutarily assist law enforcement when called upon to do so. It is comprised of membership from the Cave Diving Section of the National Speleological Society, The National Association for Cave Diving, International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers and Global Underwater Explorers. The organization’s management and policy is determined by cave divers who are active and retired law enforcement officials and cave diving instructors.

The Mission of the IUCRR is to support all Public Safety Agencies in the rescue and/or the recovery of victims in an underwater environment (with an overhead environment such as caves, caverns, mine shafts etc.). The IUCRR has performed recovery services worldwide.

Additionally, of special interest to Floridians, the Cave Diving Section of the National Speleological Society and the National Association for Cave Diving are Florida based non profit organizations that contribute to the study of underwater water resources in Florida and elsewhere. In addition to supporting the IUCRR they finance scientific studies that study the aquafir and underground water resources within the State of Florida and elsewhere.

Thank you for your inquiry,

Kenneth Hill
Director

Bc BoD of the IUCRR
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PRESS INQUIRY

From: WHolt@
To: kenhill@
Subject: reporter inquiry

My name is Tony Holt and I’m a reporter with Hernando Today/The Tampa Tribune.

An inexperienced diver was killed during a dive at Eagle’s Nest yesterday. I’m doing a story and sidebar on it for tomorrow’s paper.

For background, may I use the information I found on your ICURR Web site? I learned there were two divers who died at Eagle’s Nest in 2004.

I can be reached at 352-544-5283 or you can e-mail me at this address. Thanks.

Tony Holt