A photograph of the reception area of the Diabetes Centre on Hagley Avenue.
A photograph of a member of the Diabetes Centre team standing in the reception area.
A photograph of the reception area of the Diabetes Centre on Hagley Avenue. One of the roof panels is missing above the hallway.
Photo inside of Reception of Ground Floor of Pegasus Building taken by Angela Dean, 9 June 2011.
Photo inside of Reception of Ground Floor of Pegasus Building taken by Angela Dean, 9 June 2011.
Photo inside of Reception of Ground Floor of Pegasus Building taken by Angela Dean, 9 June 2011.
Photo inside of Reception of Ground Floor of Pegasus Building taken by Angela Dean, 9 June 2011.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Christchurch Earthquake. Patients queue at the 24 hour surgery on Colombo Street. Reception staff member Deborah Cherry on the job".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Christchurch Earthquake. Patients queue at the 24 hour surgery on Colombo Street. Reception staff member Deborah Cherry on the job".
This article discusses the use of radio after major earthquakes in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2010 and 2011. It draws on archival sources to retrospectively research post-quake audiences in the terms people used during and soon after the earthquakes through personal narratives and Twitter. Retrospective narratives of earthquake experiences affirm the value of radio for communicating the scale of disaster and comforting listeners during dislocation from safe home spaces. In the narratives radio is often compared with television, which signifies electricity supply and associated comfort but also visually confirms the city’s destruction. Twitter provides insights into radio use from within the disaster period, but its more global reach facilitates reflection on online and international radio from outside the disaster-affected area. This research demonstrates the value of archival audience research, and finds that the combination of online radio and Twitter enables a new form of participatory disaster spectatorship from afar.