Bangkok: Floods threaten water quality

With the recent floods in Thailand, Bangkok is under water and lots of it. The major issue is portrayed differently in news coverage- The Washington Post focuses on drainage systems and lack of barriers between the the flooded waters and the city capital, Fox News identifies the major problem as increased disease risk from the waste in the floodwaters, and the Wall Street Journal is a mix of the Post and Fox reports. It is evident that these sources believe different components of the flood in Bangkok are the most important to address for their audience. A general overview of the flood issue in Thailand can be found here from the International Federation of Red Cross. Other basic information about the floods can be found at the UN news center, ("Unicef ramps up efforts to help victims in Thailand, and "Ban voices UN solidarity with Thailand after viewing flood hit areas.")

The Washington Post (Floodwaters cover more of Bangkok; no major barriers now lie between water, city center,) presents the flooding issue as a problem because of the lack of barriers between the water and the city, where 9 million people reside. The article, posted on November 5, calls this flooding “the worst in half a century." and mentions the alarming number of deaths (450 so far).

The Post talks about efforts being made to build a flood wall, or a barrier to prevent the water from reaching the main city, but city spokesman Jate Sopitpongstorn is quoted emphasizing the importance of drainage systems as a means of combating the floodwaters. The Post relays that there is uncertainty as to how the drainage system will hold up with such a large amount of water. This article portrays skepticism when stating “Sound predictions are difficult because various government officials, including the Bangkok governor and prime minister, have given often widely different versions of what can city residents can expect.” This can be worrisome to the people in Bangkok in their preparations to deal with the floods and try to survive. Although the Post mentions that the government has ordered families to evacuate in certain regions, different opinions are portrayed on the actual severity of the flood. The Prime Minister (Yingluck Shinawatra is quoted that she is “exhausted, but will never give up,” and “just needs the public to understand.” The Post successfully interviews a few key players in this issue (Prime Minister and city spokesman), but is missing a voice of those heavily impacted by the damages to their homes and communities.

Photo from Huffington Post

Fox News reports about the flooding in Bangkok on November 3, but shines light on trash and sewage increasing the risk of disease. The approach used in this news report is strikingly different from that of the Post. The report opens quoting a Bangkok citizen, a local garbage man, someone dealing first hand with the dangers of living in the flooded waters. Fox names this flood “the worst in more than half a century,” like the Post, but for different reasons. This article focuses on the health threats that will rise after the floods have passed and a spokesman for UNICEF, Mark Thomas, voices the risks of being in the water, especially for children. “"There's a lot of danger around it. You need to keep kids out of the water, and everybody should stay out of the water as much as possible." Fox News lists diseases that can be derived from the polluted waters such as eye infections, diarrhea, mosquito born diseases, skin and fungal infections, respiratory problems etc. A doctor from the World Health Organization, Dr. Maureen Birmingham is quoted. "People get water in their mouths that's contaminated with feces, and all the diseases that can ensue from that -- that's probably the biggest concern." Another doctor from Thailand’s Health Ministry, Dr. Wiwat Wiriyakijja, is quoted in the article and talks about just how dangerous the water is and the bacterial infections that can kill if untreated. The Washington Post interviews people from varying perspectives on the Bangkok flooding- a garbage man living in the floods, two doctors addressing the issue, a UNICEF spokesman helping with sanitation, and a mother Nantana Junsamlee, who has to constantly remind her son to avoid getting water in his mouth while he enjoys swimming around. Overall, Fox News’ approach in attacking the issue from varying viewpoints, unlike Washington Post, provides a holistic picture of what is actually going on in Bangkok. It is thorough and objective news reporting.

In the recent news article presented by the Wall Street Journal ("Floodwater Leaves Bangkok awash in trash",) one of the authors is a Doctor (Dr. Wiwat Wiriyakijja) that was interviewed in the Fox News report. This article, like Fox News, focuses on trash and health risks, but also talks about drainage systems and the flow of water (or lack there of,) like the Washington Post news coverage. The Wall Street Journal article is a mix of the other two news reports on the Bangkok flooding in its presentation of the major issues. The WSJ further delves into the garbage man perspective and talks about the amount of trash produced by 12 million people in the city. A garbage collector, Ms. Jiraporn, provides a similar perspective of the garbage man interviewed in the Fox News report. She says that she doesn’t mind picking up the garbage but that people need to be more responsible. The WSJ presents the citizens as not only victims of the flood, but culprits of the trash piling up and causing polluted waters. This article echoes the death count of 450 that the Post stated, and also mentions possible diseases from the dirty water (diarrhea, dengue fever, leptospirosis), similar to Fox News. Besides the health risks, the WSJ talks about the flow of water towards the city and mentions that city officials are focusing on improving the drainage systems to combat the massive volume of floodwaters. The Wall Street Journal, unlike the other two news sources evaluated, mentions the costs of cleanup from the flood and the strain that this could but on the economy. Similar to the Washington Post news coverage, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is interviewed. Here, she talks about the budget for recovery from the damages and the hopes to improve the management of water flow for preparation in withstanding a future flood in Thailand. A creative tool used in the WSJ reporting is tying in other environmental crisis as comparison, in this case being the tsunami in Japan. By relating the severity of this current issue in Bangkok to that of a past issue, the news report provides a duality that can make the coverage more understandable.

Photo from Child Friendly News

A broadcast news report showed below, by CNN, as well as an article titled "Weeks of woes await sodden Bangkok," address the trash and disease as the major concerns for the Bangkok people and focuses less on the drainage system or water movement. The job of clearing trash has become an issue because of the rising water, and the water has become a major issue for the health of residents and workers. The reporter, Elizabeth Neisloss, is shown in the midst of workers picking up "the toxic mess" in the "rivers of garbage." In this news report of the floods in Bangkok, an official is interviewed urging the people to avoid putting their garbage in the water. According to CNN, the Ministry of Public Health states that more than 1.3 million have been affected by the polluted waters with skin problems etc, but no "outbreaks of serious disease." CNN's broadcast report puts viewers in touch with the scenes of the actual crisis. This component of the CNN news report provides context and visuals, much more effective than reporting on the issue from a broadcast studio.

**Here are a series of photos provided by CNN from Bangkok with an additional article published November 11. This more recent news article provides information about the irrigation systems, how they are holding up, and what the future looks like for Bangkok.

Other informative articles to read about the Bangkok floods from the NY Times are "In Flood, Thai leaders choose between bad and worse," and "Floodwalls keep Bangkok dry but provinces angry." From CNN, "Thai flood crisis: Updated info for tourists," gives the most recent news information on the status of the floods in Bangkok, published November 16. This issue is changing week to week, and has been really interesting to follow, especially in evaluating media coverage.