A new article from USA Today takes another look at how emergency management officials are using social media. We’ve seen these before, but each one adds new evidence to this simple idea:
If you’re working in emergency management and NOT using social media, you’re hampering your ability to do you job.
This study from the Red Cross showed how much people were using social media (and it’s now pushing 9 months old, so you can bet the numbers are up). If you think twitter and Facebook are mostly used by teenage boys, keep in mind that a survey found that 75% of people tweeting about the massive earthquake in Haiti were were women, with an average age of 40.
What this USA Today article (and others like it) add are specifics for how people are using tools like Twitter and Facebook during emergencies. These accounts only add to the list of things that emergency managers need to keep tabs on during crisis, but the numbers suggest they’re not optional.
“Japan Crisis Showcases Social Media’s Muscle.” (USA Today)