Since early January, more than 150 cases of measles have been reported in the United States. Measles was declared eradicated in 2000, so the outbreak has raised concerns among health officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, doctors, parents, schools, and the public in general. Thus, this is a major news story in every national and local media outlet.

But this public health issue also isn’t without controversy.

Most of those who came down with the measles were unvaccinated, putting the media spotlight on the anti-vaccination movement and the families who choose not to vaccinate their children.

The seriousness of the health threat and the ensuing controversy have generated a significant increase in broadcast news reports on the topic. Since the outbreak was announced on Jan. 7, there have been more than 50,500 mentions of it on broadcast news, and a surge in discussion about vaccinations. During the first week of January, there were just 678 TV news clips that mentioned vaccinations. But after the outbreak, that number climbed to more than 31,000 by the end of February.

For the CDC and state health officials around the country, keeping up with the proliferating broadcasts and reacting when required is challenging, but very essential to halting the outbreak. Vaccine manufacturers also must be attuned to the conversation so they can manage both financial and reputational risk effectively. Activists have an interest in what’s reported because they want to advance their cause.

The task is complicated not only by the increase in coverage, but also because television is highly influential. This significantly raises the stakes for everyone involved.

The Investor Relations Officer (IRO) is a critical communications link between a publicly traded company and the analysts, investors, and activists who take an interest in the organization. The IRO is responsible for communicating news and earnings as well as educating and engaging each of these stakeholders in an open dialogue.

But IROs also must adhere to Securities and Exchange regulations. One of the best known and most notable is Regulation FD (“RegFD”), which requires that material nonpublic information be broadly communicated to ensure that all stakeholders receive the same information at the same time.

To comply with the law, the IRO must be vigilant in the disclosure of material nonpublic information to analysts and the media. While the regulation applies mainly to comments by directors, executive officers and investor relations personnel, IROs also need to be aware of what other employees say at trade shows, conferences, and to the media.

In addition, after a disclosure or during a crisis, the IRO must keep executives and the company’s board up to date on any reaction, comments, or feedback to news about the company.

Broadcast monitoring plays an important and essential role in helping IROs with these responsibilities. As a best practice, IROs should monitor all commentary by employees, analysts, investors, and activists.