[516] ‘MTSU On the Record’ explores crisis communication

MURFREESBORO — A new MTSU course focused on techniques for dispensing information in times of crisis will be the topic on the next “MTSU On the Record” radio program.

Host Gina Logue’s interview with Dr. Cary Greenwood, assistant professor of journalism, will air from 5 to 5:30 p.m. Monday, June 3, and from 8 to 8:30 a.m. Sunday, June 9, on WMOT-FM (89.5 and wmot.org).

Beginning this fall, Greenwood will teach a course in crisis communication from 12:40 to 2:05 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays.

The course will help students learn how to deal with a crisis as a manager and a public relations practitioner.

Greenwood’s first experience in this area occurred shortly after she graduated from the University of Oklahoma in the 1970s. She was reading news at KOMA-AM in Moore, Okla., when tornadoes struck. The basement of the radio station was the tornado shelter for the entire community.

“My job became, as the tornado approached, really, to warn residents and broadcast ‘take cover,’ and they did,” Greenwood said. “They were coming into the station while the engineer and I monitored the news.”

A tornado swept through the area on May 30, 2013, damaging nearly 2,400 homes in both Moore and Oklahoma City, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

To listen to previous programs, go to the “Audio Clips” archives at www.mtsunews.com.

For more information about “MTSU On the Record,” contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800.