Dustin Enno, a crisis communications expert, has launched an online index called the "Marine Attention Index" that measures public attention to the shipping industry. This index allows maritime companies to evaluate the level of public interest in important maritime news and events.
Data Composition in the Marine Attention Index
The Marine Attention Index combines data from Google searches, Wikipedia page views, social media activity, and coverage from major media outlets into a single daily score. Enno explained this project by stating: "I created this index to answer a simple question with a single number: how much attention is shipping currently attracting?" He also added: "Media monitoring tells you how much has been published about shipping, not how much attention it has garnered."
Read more: Russian Fishing Fleet Spying on Undersea Cables off the Coast of Britain
Historical Milestones and Analyses
This public platform allows users to examine historical spikes in attention, compare incidents, and identify how quickly public interest declines. Incidents such as the grounding of the "Ever Given", the "Waka Shio", and the casualties of the "Dali" have all shown significant increases in public attention. Enno's analysis also reveals very consistent patterns in how interest declines after major maritime incidents.
When the attention curve related to Iran's conflicts this year is adjusted, there are many similarities to what is observed during the grounding of the "Ever Given" and the collapse of the Baltimore Bridge. This index, which Enno had previously used in his commentaries in Splash, is now available as a public and interactive resource, accompanied by monthly analyses.
Currently, the score of this index has reached 69.3, while a score of 50 is considered normal. For comparison, during the first two weeks of the U.S. attacks on Iran in March of this year, this index had surged to a score of 332.3. This index dates back to the beginning of the 2020s, and its highest historical score is attributed to the closure of the Suez Canal by the "Ever Given" in 2021.
Read more: Argentina Requests Ruling from International Court to Halt UK Oil Project in the Falklands · Nanjing Oil Fleet Orders Four New Tankers in Dalian
