Below are Critical Incidents Encountered In the Media
- Line of duty death of a colleague
- Serious injury to a co-worker
- Unexpected death of a co-worker
- Working under extremely threatening circumstances (e.g. North Hollywood shootout)
- Exposure to a particularly gruesome incident
- Dismemberment and/or large loss of blood
- Witnessing severely burned victim(s)
- Incidents involving death or serious injury/illness of a young child
- Suicide of a co-worker
- Assaults on self or others while reporting or after leaving the field (e.g. someone who didn’t like your news story on radio or TV)
- Explicit threats of assault on staff
- Being taken hostage
- Working under threatening conditions including WMD such as biological, nuclear, incendiary, chemical, or explosive events
- Prolonged exposure to an ongoing story that has personally impacted you
- Incidents with particularly strong sensory stimuli (e.g. smell of blood)
- Reporting in a mass casualty environment
- Working in a war zone
- Line of duty death such as police officer or firefighter
- Knowing the person or neighborhood that you are reporting in
- Identifying with someone in the news story
- Someone who is similar in age/appearance to you or a loved one
- Multiple fatalities within a short period of time
- Dealing with hysterical and demanding family members
- Dealing with invasive colleagues
- Any incident that has compromised or could comprise one or more person’s ability to function
Note: If you are not certain if you or an employee in your media organization has been exposed to a critical incident, you are encouraged to contact Dr. Brown for a telephone consult. He will help you assess the incident to determine what response might be appropriate.