Public lecture about risk and crisis communication

Risk and crisis communication has - by experts and scholars - traditionally been built on models of consensus. Even if such communication has not always been as effective as desired, the general assumption has been that it takes place in a friendly environment. This is no longer the case. Societies are becoming increasingly polarized and saturated with disinformation and propaganda, which also affects risk and crisis communication. In short: actors - both domestic and foreign - are not always interested in effective risk and crisis communication. For various reasons, they may seek to undermine efforts to mitigate risks and crises. This talk will focus on different aspects of this challenge and explore possible ways to address it.

Bengt Johansson is a Professor at the Department of Journalism, Media, and Communication, University of Gothenburg. His research concerns risk and crisis communication, the long-term effects of media on societal beliefs, political advertising, political scandals, and the media coverage of elections. Among his latest publications are the edited volume "Communicating a pandemic: Crisis management and Covid-19 in the Nordic countries" (Nordicom), Crisis "Communication and Trust in the Multi-public Society" (Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency) and Political Crises in the Handbook of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research (Wiley).