Baseline Knowledge of Islam and Muslims: A Study of Australian Government Crisis Communication Officials

Authors

  • Kate O'Donnell
  • Jacqui Ewart
  • Clair Alston-Knox

Keywords:

Crisis communication, terrorism, violent extremism, Islam, Media Liaison Officers, Australia

Abstract

This study examined the level of knowledge Australian crisis communications officials had about Islam and Muslims. It did so at a time when the Commonwealth Government has warned in the current national security environment that a terrorist attack could be experienced at any time, and where the most serious threat emanated from those holding what the government described as a “deviant” view of Islam. The study identified that Media Liaison Officers (n=72) have low levels of knowledge about this religious faith, and that they were aware of their lack of understanding. These findings raise policy concerns about the extent to which Media Liaison Officers can differentiate between Islam and deviant interpretations of the faith. With the pivotal role that Media Liaison Officers play in crisis communication—including briefing and educating journalists when a terrorist event occurs—these findings present crisis managers with several challenges; including recruitment, training, and ongoing professional development.

Author Biographies

  • Kate O'Donnell

    Dr Kate O'Donnell, BBus, MCCJ(Hons), PhD, is a Principal Research Fellow based at Griffith University. Her primary research is critical infrastructure resilience and the policing of protest. She has enjoyed a career in the public sector spanning some 30 years including as a practitioner-in-residence at Griffith University, and senior roles in transport security, emergency management and Ministerial liaison services.

  • Jacqui Ewart

    Dr Jacqui Ewart, BA, MA, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Journalism based at Griffith University. She was a journalist and media manager for more than a decade and has worked as an academic for the past twenty years. Her research interests including media coverage of disasters and media representations of terrorism, focus on the costs of poor communication.

  • Clair Alston-Knox

    Dr Clair Alston-Knox, BMath(Hons), MSc, PhD, is a research statistician in the Griffith Social and Behavioural Research College. She has worked as an applied statistician in agriculture, environmental, medical and social statistics since graduating in 1992. Her specific methodological interests are in Bayesian statistics, linear models, mixture and clustering models, hierarchical modelling, variable selection and longitudinal analysis.

References

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Published

2023-02-03

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2017)

Section

Research Articles

License

Authors retain copyright in their articles and grant SALUS the right of first publication. The work is simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as appropriate credit is given to the author(s) and the journal, a link to the license is provided, and any changes made are indicated.

How to Cite

Baseline Knowledge of Islam and Muslims: A Study of Australian Government Crisis Communication Officials. (2023). Salus Journal, 5(2), 16-35. https://journals.csu.domains/index.php/salusjournal/article/view/76