I was particularly captivated by the shorts that focused on the impact of media – and even social media – on the dissemination of information about the earthquake. After a natural disaster such as an earthquake, many information networks are severed, and there is a need for updates and news on a national scale as well as a personal one. The irony in the situation lies in the accelerated rate of productivity in media as a direct response to a natural disaster that is often portrayed as a purely destructive force. New interpersonal connections are made through networks of information, and new avenues of expression are discovered by those individuals who take on the task of setting up video feeds, updating Twitter, and providing anticipated news.

As I was reading through the various anecdotes, I was reminded of a documentary I saw, Kobe Shinbun no Nanokakan (The Seven Days of the Kobe Daily Newspaper), that follows the work of photojournalist Tomohiko Mitsuyama in the wake of the Kobe Earthquake in 1995. At the time, I appreciated the unconventional recognition of news crews as heroes, for they worked to deliver not only news, but hope. While disaster relief teams are able to provide direct physical aid, news crews analogically provide indirect, emotional and psychological support. To those who are slightly removed from the actual disaster, the feeling of uncertainty regarding loved ones’ whereabouts deserves to be addressed just as much as the physical needs of those affected by the disaster.

Another aspect that caught my interest is the differences in perception and portrayal that lay between the information provided by ordinary citizens and townfolk and that provided by the government and official organizations. The discrepancies raise the following questions: Which of the two is most useful to those affected by disaster? And how can those on the receiving end qualify the accounts and information? The interplay of objectivity and subjectivity also become a pertinent issue. Of course, objective material is appreciated, but the lack of empathy in such objectivity may come off as harsh to the victims and their families. Alternatively, subjective accounts may become unrelatable and the severe bias creates the potential for insertion of ulterior motive.

246: Aftershocks – Stories from the Japan Earthquake itself is a demonstration of the impact of this personalized storytelling and web of information. Its subjectivity is checked by the variety of accounts provided by its contributors, while maintaining the poetry of humanity and personal experience found in each speaker’s words.

Reference: Alive (pg. 12), Bravery (15), Changed (19), Conversation (20)