Most
impressive are Ushadid and Crowdmap developed in Africa that facilitate reports
of individual citizens and visualize them on a map. But also Google Person
Finder should be mentioned, a bulletin board using open software that can be
integrated in any website, and the Red Cross Family Links Webpage. These are
means for crowdsourcing.
For
organizations crisis communication has not become easier, as expectations are
rising and they will have to use multiple channels to address a diversity of
publics. Integrated communication is needed, utilizing traditional and social
media, next to working with communities and intermediaries. Much preparation is
needed to have hidden sites ready for various scenarios, that when they are needed
can be launched fast via social media spreading the link to these websites or
other open sites with information on preparedness, such as www. ready.gov.
Organizations
can cooperate during an emergency, using the same hashtag or even twitter
account to update information. People can be asked as eye-witnesses to upload damage
pictures on Flickr, or to help clean up the neighbourhood after an incident as has
happened in London after the riots. Spontaneous actions vary from linking the
Facebook page on a crisis situation to one’s own, to participation in donation
contests in Twitter.
Of course,
there are also challenges. Monitoring what’s happening during crises in the
social media is one of these challenges. Feed provided from social networks and
Twitter has to be analysed, e.g. using dashboards like Seesmic and
Addict-O-matic, or Europe Media monitor. There is still a lot to learn and
investigate!
