Citizen Journalism Through Mobile Communication An Approach for Crisis Communication

India is a multi-cultural country where different religions, signs, symbols and languages are practiced by the masses from varied demographic backgrounds. People communicate and exchange their thoughts which are based on their beliefs, attitudes and perceptions. Within this background the life moves on and communication takes place in an unsystematic and a diffused fashion. The information which is generated evolves and re-orients itself with each passing day. This procedure is full of barriers, communication gaps and prejudiced thinking patterns. The message is at times distorted and as it travels from media vehicles to opinion leaders and then to followers it gets a new meaning altogether. With the advent of new media technologies this message is exchanged at a much faster rate and it travels across national and international boundaries on a click of a button. This pattern of dissemination of news and information is also undefined and generally it flows from on community to another via group communication. As a society evolves it often faces situations of crisis and emergency. These situations can be dynamic, unexpected events that may involve a significant threat, on-going uncertainty, and can be a danger to life and property. India being a secular and the biggest democracy has also witnessed similar situations in the past. There have been riots, communal violence and situations of emergency declared by the government. Mobile being a common man's possession is the most powerful& easily accessible device to communicate at times of emergency and risk. Mobile phone is the appropriate tool to facilitate the exchange of risk-relevant and safety information during an emergency situation. Mobile phone can not only help in controlling the impact of message and false news it can also be useful to implement immediate and effective actions to lessen harm. It can also be useful for consensus-building, collaborative decision-making, and interactions with potentially affected communities. Depending on the intensity of the circumstances during a crisis, decision-making, risk perceptions, and information processing styles are often modified; thus, it is even more important than usual to not only get the information right, but also get the right information into concise, focused messages. Knowing how, when, and where to deliver the message may be the difference between keeping the public safe and to protect them form a crisis. This paper would attempt to discuss the participatory approach of communication through mobile phones which citizens can adopt at times of crisis. It will also try to integrate the concept of community communication through mobile phone in times of crisis. It will also look at normative concepts and will look at the points to be used by the stake holders, community leaders, opinion leaders and citizen journalists to control the crisis through participatory mobile communication.