The Potential for Collaboration between Geography and Local Media: Toward Disaster Prevention and Disaster Reporting in Tohoku Region after the Great East Japan Earthquake

Abstract

　Ten years after the Great East Japan Earthquake struck, local newspapers in the Tohoku region, especially in the disaster-affected areas, are still trying to find a way to report on the disaster as they struggle with a declining media presence, a declining population, a stagnant local economy, and the Internet and social networking services.　They are also facing the challenge of “fading away”.　Local media are closely involved in disaster prevention and the rebuilding of disaster-affected areas through journalism, though their role is not always properly discussed or appreciated.　There are examples of collaboration between researchers, including geographers, and the media in many parts of Japan.　In the Tohoku region, there is scope for even greater collaboration between the media and geography who deal with human activities and nature.