Tuscaloosa, Ala. – Educators at The University of Alabama will share their expertise in a workshop presented by The Alabama Department of Public Health and the University of Alabama at Birmingham in which community leaders will learn how to effectively interact with media when bioterrorism or an infectious disease outbreak occurs.

The workshop will be the first of 11 offered in the state and will be held at the Belk Activity Center June 3 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. in Tuscaloosa.

When bioterrorism strikes, it is crucial that public health personnel and community leaders communicate effectively with the public, coordinators say. In this workshop, public health spokespersons and community leaders will learn how to effectively communicate with journalists and the public during crises related to bioterrorism.

The one-day workshop will be conducted in each of the 11 public health areas of the state and will provide up to 50 participants at each site with the knowledge and skills required to effectively communicate during crises related to bioterrorism. The 50 participants will consist of Alabama Department of Public Health personnel, church leaders, mayoral office staff, emergency management officials, and other community leaders.

Dr. William Evans, director of the Institute for Communication Research at UA, said upon completion of this workshop participants should be able to: Develop effective messages for dissemination via the media; predict and prepare effective answers to questions that journalists are likely to ask during a bioterrorism event; effectively communicate on-camera; develop a media/communication plan and tailor messages to special needs populations.