Report No. 048-12

TO: Chair and Members of the Board of Health
FROM: Graham L. Pollett, MD, FRCPC, Medical Officer of Health
DATE:   2012 March 22

Media Summary Report – July 2011 to December 2011

Recommendation

It is recommended that Report No. 048-12 re Media Summary Report – July 2011 to December 2011 be received for information

There were 869 media reports in the second half of 2011 noting the Health Unit’s involvement and activities in the community. This represents a significant increase (32%) over the number of media reports in the second half of 2010 (594 stories), but not as much coverage as in the second half of 2009, when there were 1,115 MLHU-related stories. It should be noted however, that media coverage in the second half of 2009 was unusually high due to significant coverage of the H1N1 Pandemic. The total number of media reports for 2011 was 1,516, which represents a 22% increase over 2010 (1,188), and a 12 decrease over the coverage the Health Unit received in 2009 (1,728).

There were several stories that received a lot of attention from reporters and news editors across the region. The top story of 2011 was the impact of Influenza in this community. Influenza coverage in the first half of the year focused on the combination of a stubborn flu strain and low vaccination rates which led to increased illness, absenteeism, hospitalizations and deaths. In the second half of the year, there was interest in the HealthUnit’s community-based influenza vaccination clinics and expectations for the upcoming flu season. There were also several stories about the Health Unit’s recommendations around smoking in outdoor public places, West Nile Virus and in particular the mosquito situation in Parkhill, and the bedbug education program.

Radio reports were the main source of information in London, citing the Health Unit 479 times; followed by 196 print media stories and 166 TV news stories; there were also 26 talk show appearances.

In all, 37.4% of stories were initiated by the media themselves, while, slightly less than 30.2% of media coverage was part of program promotion, 22% of stories came as a result of news releases;, while Board of Healthreports accounted for slightly more than 10.4% of stories. As a result, there were on average just over 4.7 media stories about the Health Unit per day in the second half of 2011. For a detailed overview, please refer to the attached Media Summary Report (Appendix A(PDF 82.2KB)). 

This report was prepared by Mr. Dan Flaherty, Manager, Communications.

Graham L. Pollett, MD, FRCPC

Medical Officer of Health

This report addresses Policy #9-40 Media Relations, as outlined in the MLHU Administration Policy Manual.