Understanding Communications

• Communication involves people or groups exchanging messages through speaking, writing, gestures, or symbolic forms.
• Turow (2009) defines messages as purposefully organized and meaningful symbols for both sender and receiver.

Types of Communication

• Interpersonal communication is face-to-face between people who know or do not know each other.
• Turow (2009) defines interpersonal communication as two or three individuals interacting using their voices and bodies.
• Mediated interpersonal communication happens when mediated devices enable these forms of communication.
• Small group communication involves messages between two or three people, for example dividing a class into small groups to tackle a task.
• Organizational communication involves sending and receiving messages among individuals within one organization or working environment.

Elements for Message Creation Outlined by Turow (2009)

• Source, Encoding
• Transmitting, Channels
• Decoding, Receiver
• Feedback, Noise Interference

Source

• The origin of the message, whether a person or an organization.

Message

• The core of the communication process, connecting the source to the audience.

Encoding

• The process of translating an idea into a message suitable for transmission.
• Includes composing the message and designing illustrations to convey it.

Transmitting

• The act of sending the message.

Channels

• Technologies enabling the sending or transmitting of a message.
• Examples include the telephone, the Internet, radio, television, and print media.

Decoding

• The receiver translates the source's thoughts and ideas to derive meaning from them.

Receiver

• The individual or organization that gets the message transmitted through the channels.

Feedback

• The response generated by the message sent to the receiver, which can be immediate or delayed.

Noise Interference

• Elements that may interfere with the transmittal process.
• This can be literal or figurative.

Case Study: Typhoon Yolanda Communications Breakdown

• November 8, 2013, Typhoon Yolanda was one of the strongest storms on record.
• Typhoon Yolanda killed an estimated 10,000 people, mostly in Leyte and Samar
• Tacloban bore the brunt of the storm, along with adjacent municipalities
• The city lies in a cove, which made it more vulnerable to storm surge.
• A storm surge caused 6,290 deaths, 1,785 missing, and 28,626 injuries.
• There was a failure to communicate the deadly threat posed by tidal waves, specifically storm surges.
• People did not understand the term "storm surge" or its potential to topple houses and kill people in low-lying areas.
• It was difficult to explain to the public what a storm surge is, and information failed to convey the deadly threat posed by tidal waves.
• "Storm surge" could be translated to other Filipina languages such as "daluyong".

COVID-19 Communication in the Philippines

• On January 30, 2020, the first COVID-19 case was recorded in the Philippines
• Scientists and public health officials scrambled to communicate to the general public on risks
• Two major impediments to the smooth flow of effective public health messages were
  • Proliferation of inaccurate or wrong information.
  • Use of the English language inhibited many from truly comprehending the reasons behind lockdown.
• News agencies moved to redress huge amounts of wrong or inaccurate information peddled on social media sites.
• Fact-checking became a vital function for state-mandated agencies like the Department of Health.
• Academics built a glossary listing commonly used words on the nature of the COVID pandemic, safety protocols and public health regulations.