Risk & Crisis Management in Tourism Sector:

Recovery from Crisis

in the OIC Member Countries

response period is completed and the recovery period is under way. In such instances, the

reporting of the recovery programme tends to be less extensive because there is less visually

exciting material. The images shown at the time of the incident are, therefore, not effectively

counter-balanced in the travelling public’s mind.

The expansion of user-generated content on social media such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter,

Instagram and TripAdvisor has changed the nature of communications by democratising the

propagation of messages and images. The ability to communicate immediate reports, including

graphic images, represents both a threat and an opportunity for destinations, particularly during

and after a crisis. The threat is the risk of sensationalist reporting that exaggerates the scale of

the problem supported by scenes of devastation and human suffering and the associated risk of

‘fake news’. The opportunity is to respond rapidly with positive material on the limitations of

the problem and the actions in place to assist those affected and make the necessary repairs to

bring the sector back to normal functioning in the affected area. However, the distinction

between ‘traditional’ media and newer forms is no longer as stark as it was: for instance Belair-

Gagnon (2015) reports that the emergence of social media and the need to manage its material

has led to a ‘new media logic’ in which journalists conversant with social media are now central

to the newsroom, resulting in the integration of far more forms of media than previously as well

as a more interactive relationship with the audience.

Government and private sector organisations are becoming adept at using all channels to promote

positive messages during the recovery period. After the 2015 earthquake, Nepal used a digital

campaign on social media to help it recover. A study of this campaign by Ketter (2016) concluded

that using Facebook enabled the country to counter the largely negative focus of coverage by the

news media. Using social media targeting 'prosumers' - consumers who create and share social

media content quickly and easily - spread the word quickly and influenced a wide range of

audiences. Facebook was particularly useful because it is widely available; it allows multi-way

communication, with comment by and conversation between users; it provides links to external

media, thereby leveraging news and public relations stories; and it is low-cost and fast. This

campaignwas very successful in that it was inexpensive but achievedhigh impact. As a consequence

of its well-designed and targeted post-crisis strategy, Nepal's tourism bounced back rapidly with a

24% rise of arrivals in 2016 to 730,000.

Social media was also an important tool for the countries of West Africa affected by the Ebola

disease outbreak of 2013/14. Mizrachi and Fuchs (2016) analysed 200 posts made on TripAdvisor

and found that responses fell into three categories:

Positive thinking and encouragement, offering advice on protection techniques, estimating

risk levels and counselling against believing the sensational media hype, with the overall

tone being relaxing, comforting and positive;

Knowledge development and preparation, suggesting searching for information about the

disease from official sources and focussing on pre-trip preparation, with the tone being

moderately positive with some expressing neutral opinions; and