Msnbc.com special report: Japan: After the Wave

Multimedia report exposes the road to recovery that has followed the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan

KESENNUMA, Japan - Msnbc.com has launched Japan: After the Wave, a multimedia report documenting the early stages of recovery on the nation’s northeast coast following March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

The 9.0 magnitude earthquake and devastating tsunami that struck Japan’s northeast coast earlier this spring left 15,000 dead, 8,500 missing and over 100,000 without a home. Now, nearly three months later, Japanese citizens have begun the long struggle to rebuild.

In Japan: After the Wave, msnbc.com reporter Miranda Leitsinger and multimedia producer Jim Seida are providing on-site coverage of relief efforts that are helping Japanese citizens return to normalcy. Focusing on small but meaningful steps that highlight a spirit of perseverance and a determination to rebuild, Leitsinger and Seida also are exploring how the Japanese survivors are faring and what they are doing to aid the recovery process. The special report highlights a father-son duo that has revived the family’s electrical construction business, a woman who runs a nonprofit for disabled children and members of a children’s jazz ensemble.

Reporting initially from Kesennuma and Minamisanriku, two coastal cities that were dealt distinctive blows by this two-part natural disaster, Leitsinger and Seida are presenting first-hand accounts of Japanese citizens that shed light on the unique difficulties they have faced in its wake. The reporting showcases salient themes of struggle and survival in the aftermath of a natural disaster, commonalities that connect Japan and the United States in light of the recent devastating tornadoes in the Midwest.

Comprehensive on-the-ground coverage from Japan is reported through three digital platforms: Facebook, Storify and the World Blog on msnbc.com. The report’s Facebook page -- http://www.facebook.com/worldblog-- invites users to share Leitsinger and Seida’s experience as it unfolds by providing timely updates on who they are speaking to and what they are seeing. Through Storify – http://afterthewave.msnbc.com– consumers can follow the project in a narrative that weaves together the team’s reporting, on-site dispatches with readers’ comments and selected archival material.

Following each day of on-site coverage, full reports that include both text and multimedia are also available on the World Blog at msnbc.com -- http://worldblog.msnbc.com/. By utilizing the navigation links on the series logo, readers can easily sample each experience and consume it in their preferred format.

To learn more about Japan: After the Wave, visit http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/after-the-wave.