Regardless of the motivation, I have found through my own study of newspaper articles on the tsunami that the media likes to tell stories of survival and hope. Specifically, the newspaper articles that I read almost all emphasized the miracle of a child’s survival, as if this aspect negated all the damage and destruction that was done by the tsunami. This is evident just by reading some of the titles of the articles, which I have reproduced here below:

• “Miracles brighten tragic scene”
• “Meri Yulanda: Miracle, Mystery”
• “Christmas Miracle; Incredible, Girl swept away in tsunami 7 years ago found alive…”
• “Toddler, Dad Reunited — Thanks to Princess”
• “The Miracle Toddler”
• “That’s Their Boy! Parents Reclaim Tsunami Baby”

These are only a few examples of articles whose titles clearly emphasize the miracle of the child’s survival. For the purposes of examining the newspaper coverage in greater detail, I have reproduced one of these articles below:

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Toddler, dad reunited — thanks to princess.¹

A SWEDISH toddler was reunited with his father yesterday, days after being found alone in the tsunami aftermath.

Earlier, with the help of a Thai princess, Hannes Bergstroem, 18 months, was taken by helicopter to hospital for treatment and his photo posted on the internet.

His uncle spotted the photo and claimed him on Tuesday, setting up yesterday’s reunion with Hannes’ father, Marko Karkkainen, at a hospital on the southern Thai island of Phuket where father and son are receiving treatment.

Mr Karkkainen said he had heard reports his son was rescued by a Thai princess. He added: “I have been to Thailand seven times, and this time only confirmed what I know about Thai people . . . they are so generous and caring.”

However, Hannes’s mother, Suzanne Bergstroem, is still missing.

Asked about the unidentified princess who reportedly rescued his son, Karkkainen replied: “She has saved his life, but also my soul because I couldn’t survive if I lost them both.”

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There are a few important things to note about this newspaper article. First of all, the unidentified princess. Other newspaper articles claim that the child, Hannes, was rescued by a German pilot, while other sources do not name the rescuer.² This shows how little the reporters for the tsunami knew about the situation that they were reporting on.  This type of reporting, often labeled ‘Helicopter Journalism,’ is a common critique of the media during the tsunami. D. Schechter (2005), describes ‘Helicopter Journalism’ as “distanced ‘outside-in’ reporting that accesses few, if any, sources in the country itself, does not speak the language, and does not explain much about what is going on.”³

In addition, you can tell from this article that after the story of the boy’s miraculous survival has been told, his mother is mentioned almost as an afterthought. Similarly, in reports of another girl surviving the tsunami, her missing sister is rarely mentioned. The fact that the newspaper reporters downplayed the tragedy, while emphasizing the survival, shows the media’s preference of hopeful news.

The combination of these two elements of the media’s reporting on the tsunami can lead to a slightly skewed perception of the disaster, as there is both a lack of context and a greater focus on the sensational elements of the survival stories.

Above – the destruction caused by the tsunami.⁴