Abstract
This research paper analyzes the circulation of information between community radio and residents affected by the 2010 Amami floods in order to consider the potential of and issuing regarding the use of community radio as media for use in times of disaster. The case study used relates to Amami FM, a community radio station on the Amami islands, which engaged in continuous disaster broadcasts 24 hours a day while making use of cross media for five days during the flooding on the islands in October 2010. During its broadcasting, the radio station received 717 e-mails from its listeners. The research method used was analysis in chronological order of these 717 e-mails, and interviews of the staff and listeners of Amami FM and of employees of the Amami city government. As a result of this research, it was discovered that the first information on the disaster came from an e-mail with an attached photo sent from a listener and the radio station's broadcast of the disaster triggered further reactions from the islanders. As such, an information cycle between Amami FM, the islanders, and employees of the city government developed as time passed. The research demonstrates the process of the circulation of information between the disaster area and other areas. This paper discusses the potential of community radio as media for use in times of disaster and the conditions required for the realization of this potential. In addition, this paper also reveals how, despite their radio broadcasts only covering a limited area, community radio stations have the potential - through partnerships with television and other forms of mass media, together with the use of technologies such as internet streaming - to serve as a "media hub" that connects people nation-wide, or even world-wide, who are worried about an area struck by a disaster.
