Communicating biosecurity

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Communication Studies
• Anthropology

Background:

• Biosecurity discourse has shifted from risk calculation to preparedness, redefining health and security.
• Despite expansion and professionalization, the concept of "communication" within biosecurity remains underexplored.
• Existing notions of communication in biosecurity lack critical re-evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically analyze the evolution of "communication" in biosecurity debates since the 1990s.
• To introduce and apply the concept of "biocommunicability" for cultural modeling of discourse.
• To examine underlying assumptions embedded in biosecurity communication practices.

Main Methods:

• Ethnographic analysis of biosecurity discourse.
• Textual analysis of communication within biosecurity.
• Application of "biocommunicability" as a theoretical framework.

Main Results:

• Biosecurity communication discourse reveals embedded assumptions about subjects, objects, and practices.
• The concept of "biocommunicability" highlights how discourse is produced, circulated, and received.
• Assumptions about communication shape biosecurity and emergency management discussions.

Conclusions:

• The critical examination of "communication" in biosecurity is essential.
• Biocommunicability offers a novel framework for understanding discourse in health security.
• Medical anthropology's neglect of communication's critical inquiry enables unexamined assumptions to persist.