Special Event Communication in the Age of Terrorism

Special events have come to take an increasingly viable role in the United States of America. This thesis examines special events communication in the wake of September 11, 2001 (9-11-01), terrorist attacks on the U.S. utilizing the assistance of the International Festivals and Event Association (IFEA). The project involved two phases. In the first phase, members of the IFEA were surveyed concerning their perceptions of communication prior to and following the 9-11-01, terrorist attacks. In the second phase, the convention program of the IFEA was content analyzed with a view toward examining the communication-related programs available to special event professionals.

The paper is organized around a discussion of relevant literature, research methods employed in the study, results of the project, and a discussion of the results. Taken together, the results suggest that special even professionals need more information from constituents following the 9-11-01, attacks in order to perform their job well. Interestingly, the need for more communication-related programs available at professional association meetings.