Who Do You Trust? Comparing People-Centered Communications in Disaster Situations in the United States and China

We use a theoretical sampling approach to investigate and compare communications in two crisis situations – the Sichuan earthquake in China and Hurricane Katrina in the US. We propose to re-conceptualize crisis communications, with the possibility of recognizing non-hierarchical and reciprocal interactions between authorities, traditional and social media, and individuals in crisis planning policy. We bring the issues of political and social trust and disaster information authentication into the overall picture of crisis communications and suggest they serve as mediating factors. Finally, we propose development of an iterative credibility-seeking model during a crisis.