Anthrax panic in the papers

Media dilemma: Are the papers fuelling people's fears?

By BBC media correspondent Torin Douglas

Corporal Jones of Dad's Army would be in his element at the moment, rushing round yelling "Don't panic! Don't panic!".

Or, rather, as The Mirror front page put it in huge letters - "PANIC".

The anthrax scare has brought the tabloid papers out in a hot flush and it's not clear at first whether The Mirror's one-word headline was a statement of what was happening or an instruction to its readers.

In reporting the genuine fears of suspect parcels that have spread around the world, how far are the media fuelling and exacerbating people's alarm?

Its leading article eventually made the position clear: "The world is in a panic but it should not be." But only after three pages of alarming (some would say alarmist) articles, headlines and pictures - and alongside a colour photograph of a gruesome anthrax flesh burn.

The anthrax scare presents a classic media dilemma, for broadcasters as much as the press. In reporting the genuine fears of suspect parcels that have spread around the world, how far are the media fuelling and exacerbating people's alarm?

No-one (not even the Downing Street communications department) is suggesting that the media should hush up the anthrax incidents. But if terror is the aim, with a consequent disruption to everyday life, the more lurid reports undoubtedly fan the flames.

The Mirror was not alone in hiding its sensible, soothing advice to stay calm under a mound of scary reporting.

Skull and crossbones

"ANTHRAX TERROR GRIPS BRITAIN" screamed the Daily Express front page, alongside a picture of four investigators wearing full protective clothing.

Underneath it spelled out some of yesterday's incidents: "London Stock Exchange: 13 in hospital for tests, Liverpool Post Office: 400 are evacuated as powder is found, St Andrews University: Prince William in mail scare."

Above was a skull and crossbones, heralding the Express's "Anthrax Advice Guide - what to do if you are worried - see inside."

Scary scene: The Mail shows postal workers in decontamination suits

Under the double-page headline "Britain on red alert for anthrax horror" the guide took the form of a question-and-answer session. It included the sober advice: "Is there any reason to panic in Britain? No. Over the past three days there have been several scares from Canterbury to Fife - none has been confirmed."

Buried deep in the article alongside were the words: "Police later confirmed both the Stock Exchange and the Liverpool packages did not contain anthrax."

The Daily Star - to its credit - pointed this out clearly on the front page.

It still headlined the panic - "ANTHRAX TERROR SWEEPS BRITAIN" - but tempered the story with the sub-heading "But 'attacks' are false alarm."

The Daily Mail also did its best to moderate the impact of the story.

Sun's restraint

Though it devoted the whole front page to the picture of the men in protective clothing, under the headline "LIVERPOOL POST OFFICE - October 2001", it prefaced this with a smaller heading: "Absolutely NO British cases of anthrax confirmed. The Government appeals for calm. But this was the scene yesterday in one city."

Of the tabloids, only The Sun resisted putting the anthrax scare on its front page, preferring a picture of the US gunship being sent to Afghanistan.

Inside, it headlined the anthrax story "PANIC STATIONS", but its opening sentence made it clear that the Post Office scare was a false alarm.

One can only imagine how the papers will react if anthrax really is discovered in Britain.