Jersey Strong, Right?: A Communications Analysis of New Jersey’s Post-Hurricane Sandy Tourism Recovery

Abstract

Hurricane Sandy, also known as Superstorm Sandy, slammed into the New Jersey coastline in late October 2012. The power and destructiveness of the storm distinguished it as the worst in the state’s recorded history. New Jersey officials faced a monumental task of rebuilding their state while also facing serious threats to the state’s most-valuable industry—tourism at the Jersey Shore. This case study analyzes the ways New Jersey was able to recover a summer tourism season in the face of incredible obstacles, both natural and manmade. The case offers students of crisis management illustrations of how years’ worth of strategic communications efforts were concentrated into just a few months of marketing, advertising, and public relations work resulting in a record-breaking 2013 summer tourism season.