Social Media and Emergency Management, Research Paper Example

Introduction

The advent of the Internet has provided a platform for new forms of communication and new arenas of connectivity on an unprecedented scale. Social media have utilized that platform to offer users a wide range of communication options, from broad information- and content-based services such as Facebook to media through which users can communicate instantaneously, such as Twitter and Instagram. The opportunities afforded by social media are of particular interest and value in the context of the Emergency Management field, as they can be used in a variety of ways. Examples of how social media can benefit those in the Emergency Management field include their capacity to provide real-time alerts to the public, serve as a platform for communication and coordination among emergency responders and officials, and host general information about disaster preparedness and other aspects of Emergency Management that can be useful to government, private organizations, and members of the public. Because social media have evolved and grown so rapidly, the manner in which they are used in the context of Emergency Management has often lagged behind their general use for the day-to-day purposes of the public. This paper provides a general overview of social media, an examination of how social media have been and continue to be used in the context of Emergency Management, and a discussion about the future of social media as tools for enhancing and expanding on the capacities of those in the field of Emergency Management.

Understanding the Social Media Environment

In its earliest stages, the Internet served primarily as repository of information. This repository may have been more dynamic than, for example, a collection of books in the local library, but it still functioned largely as a storehouse of websites which performed various duties for the sites’ hosts. Websites provided windows into the services offered by business and commercial enterprises, housed records and historical information, hosted links to government agencies, and operated in a variety of other roles. The overarching characteristic of these used was that were primarily one-way lines of communication; Internet users logged onto websites, viewed, read, or listened to the information hosted there, and moved on to the next site. While this is obviously an oversimplification of the myriad ways in which the Internet worked, it does provide a general overview of how many people used the Internet in its infancy.

The development and evolution of social media sites, coupled with the explosion of portable devices that make it possible for users to access the Internet from virtually any location, have fundamentally altered the ways that the Internet is used. Instead of providing a unidirectional stream of information aimed at each user, the Internet is now a transactional medium, serving not just as a platform for information, but as a platform for communication. Internet users now communicate directly with each other, and also engage in dynamic relationships with the hosts of websites and of other tools and technologies available through the Internet. Early social media platforms such as MySpace were, at least in their early stages, still mired in the Internet-as-library model, serving primarily as a storehouse for biographical and personal information placed there by individual account holders. The birth of the social media site Facebook fundamentally reshaped the ways that individuals use social media; the Facebook platform grew out of the somewhat-static model of sites like MySpace into dynamic multi-directional conduit of information that allows users to develop personalized pages while also communicating with other users (Crowe, 2012).

As millions of people flocked to Facebook, social media developers took their cues from the way that the service provided a platform for communication and interaction. Subsequent services such as Twitter –often referred to as a “microblogging” site- have further streamlined the user experience, stripping away many of the trappings of earlier social media platforms, and leaving users with a service that is focused primarily on sending and receiving brief missives. These messages, limited to 140 characters, allow users to do everything from discuss the latest news stories to sharing personal information. Such platforms make it possible for messages to be disseminated far more rapidly than they would otherwise have been in the age of traditional media such as television, radio, and newspapers. They have also made it possible for users to become active participants in the dissemination of news; users are instrumental in determining which stories are deemed important enough to be shared on a wide scale (Crowe, 2012). This has upended the typical roles of traditional media, making users an integral component of the editorial process previously reserved for operators of traditional media.

The definition of social media extends beyond just the services offered by platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. In a sense, the entirety of the Internet has become a social media environment. The information on sites such as Wikipedia, which functions as a sort of digital encyclopedia, is available for users to edit and update. This free access to users means that incorrect or misleading information can be placed on the site; at the same time, the massive number of users of Wikipedia tends to ensure that such erroneous information will be seen and corrected by other users (Chan, 2014). Individual Internet users can also develop and post their own websites, and the presence of blogs (a shortened form of the term “weblog”) has become ubiquitous. News outlets, private companies, government agencies, and other organizations also publish blogs, and many of these sites allow for two-way communication between hosts and users. Other sites allow users to post digital photo albums and other content, share common interests in different subjects, and foster aggregation and information sharing in myriad other ways. Newer social media sites such as Instagram meld the hosting of photographs and message-sending, further blurring the lines between using the Internet as an information repository and as a platform for communication.

Chan (2014) lists the “5 Cs” of social media characteristics: Collectivity, Connectivity, Completeness, and Collaboration. In this framework, social media can be broadly defined, with a variety of services and platforms fitting the general criteria. Each form of social media shares some aspect of these general characteristics, allowing users to share information in a dynamic and interactive process.  These platforms also foment the development of individual user accounts and identities, which serves to highlight the most active users while also making it possible to maintain a measure of anonymity on the web (Crowe, 2012). Users form relationships on these platforms, and the most active users are also often those who become most popular or visible. Such heightened visibility makes it possible for some users to more readily and easily disseminate or share information, a phenomenon which highlights the need for social media users to use discretion and good judgment when determining the value of the information found on the these sites. While social media platforms make it possible to share and receive valuable and important information, they also allow users to share content that is misleading, false, or even dangerous (Crowe, 2012). Social media managers in the Emergency Management field must consider the myriad ways that social media can be used when determining how best to disseminate information and utilize social media as a collaborative tool before, during, and after emergency situations (Wood, 2014).

Social Media in the Context of Emergency Management

There are three general areas in which Emergency Management systems and agents operate: Preparedness, Response, and Recovery (training.fema.gov). Government agencies and other organizations must plan as best as possible for emergencies, such as weather-related events, accidents, terrorist attacks, outbreaks of disease and other potential disasters.  Because the Internet in general, and social media in particular, operate as effective means by which information can be disseminated and communication can be fostered, they serve as invaluable resources for those in the field of Emergency Management. At the most basic level, websites and social media can provide the public with access to needed information for preparedness, response, and recovery, while social media allow emergency officials, first responders, relief and recovery operatives, and members of the public to share information in real time as disasters and emergencies unfold. Just as social media platforms and their uses have evolved at an exponential rate in recent years, so too have the means by which those in the Emergency Management field have utilized their evolving capacities.

Social Media and Emergency Preparedness

The Internet has long been used in the Emergency Management field as a means of hosting information-based websites that provide the public with access to information about emergency preparedness. Government agencies and private relief organizations maintain websites information the public about various aspects of emergency preparedness, from how to prepare for an approaching hurricane to what to do in cases of accidental posing or sudden onset of an illness (County of Morris, N.J., 2014). It has only been for roughly the last decade that the advent and growth of social media has made it possible for the Internet to be used as platform for two-way communication between hosts and users, and for multiple channels of communication to exist between and among users. According to a 2012 report from about social media and its use in the field of Emergency Management, fully 94 percent of all Americans are Internet users, and roughly half of those are Facebook and Twitter users (Su, Wardell, & Torkildsen, 2014), 2012). Such numbers make it clear that those in the Emergency Management field are presented with both responsibilities and opportunities to use social media to heighten preparedness levels for emergencies and to foster communication during and after emergencies.

The abundance of social media platforms and the overwhelming amount of information available on the Internet makes it necessary to consider a myriad of ways that social media can be used for preparedness. Where earlier uses of the Internet for emergency preparedness were primarily limited to static websites that contained general, broad information, current technologies make it possible for social media to provide information that is constantly updated and is further targeted to the specific needs of individuals or groups of users. An example of such a targeted and real-time use are messages sent via social media from hospitals; such messages allow users to see how long wait times are at local emergency rooms or to learn how emergencies that are currently happening are affecting hospitals, police, and other responders (Merchant et al, 2011). In the event of an emergency, these same systems that routinely update the public can also be used by hospital officials and other operatives to determine what impact the emergency is having on local and regional services to better coordinate response efforts (Merchant et al, 2011). Such uses of social media highlight the dynamic nature of the platforms, and demonstrate how preparedness and response efforts can intersect when social media is implemented and effectively used.

As social media has fostered real-time connectivity among millions of users, the lines between emergency preparedness and emergency response have become increasingly blurred; so too have the lines between those who develop and maintaining emergency-response facilities and networks and the members of the public. In a very real sense, the connectivity of the public through social media serves as a viable and useful communication network for those in the field of Emergency Management. No longer must those in Emergency Management wait for television stations or radio stations to broadcast emergency alerts; in the event of an emergency, information about the nature of them emergency and the manner in which the public should respond can be disseminated almost instantaneously. With this in mind, those in the field of Emergency Management must look at the effective use of social media as a fundamental component of emergency-preparedness efforts (McKay, 2014).

Social Media and Emergency Response

The use of social media in responding to emergencies is inherently dynamic and unpredictable; while officials and responders may use social media to disseminate information directly to the public, users of social media will also interact between and among each other in ways that can be helpful to responders. By serving as a real-time public communications network, social media users can share information directly from sites of disasters and emergencies, feeding that information back into the system so that other members of the public and emergency officials and responders can utilize it. In the example of the school shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007, students and school officials on the scene posted real-time updates to Facebook pages and shared sent text messages and pictures to each other as the situation unfolded (Merchant et al, 2011). Such uses of social media provide opportunities for officials, responders, law enforcement agents, and other actors to glean information about the circumstances of disasters and emergencies and shape responses accordingly.

This crowd-sourcing approach to information-gathering and dissemination is one of the fundamental and unique characteristics of social media, and is what makes social media so valuable to the field of Emergency Management. An earthquake in New Zealand in 2011 which caused significant devastation to homes and buildings also had the effect of destroying components of the region’s emergency-response infrastructure (Crowe, 2012). Members of the public who were on hand used cell phones and other technology to help coordinate the movement of responders and the dispersal of needed supplies and other resources (Crowe, 2012). By wielding the power and capabilities of social media, members of the public took an active role in the relief and recovery efforts after the earthquake. Such uses of social media highlight how the technology and the connectivity it fosters can underpin real-time response to emergencies that combine information and the efforts of officials, responders, and the public, into a an effective and dynamic response team.

It is not only social media platforms and the software on which they run that can be useful in the context of Emergency Management. The physical hardware of cell phones and other technology can be swiftly purposed for use during emergencies. Most modern cell phones contain GPS technology which makes it possible to use them in geolocation, a capacity that can be particularly useful during emergencies. Such geolocation technology can help responders who are engaged in efforts to find individuals during emergencies, and can also allow officials and coordinators to monitor the location of those involved in recovery and relief efforts. In the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, survivors trapped under rubble sent messages to Facebook to let people know they were alive, and these messages helped officials coordinate and target their rescue and recovery efforts (Merchant et al, 2011). In the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake a crowd-sourced web platform was developed by members of the public in coordination with officials and volunteer responders; this platform, called Ushahidi, allowed relief efforts to be coordinated in real-time as such efforts were needed.

The Future of Social Media in Emergency Management

The uses of social media in the context of the Emergency Management field will continue to grow and evolve as technology and its uses become more firmly entrenched in everyday life. In just a few short years social media has become ubiquitous, reshaping the ways that people communicate and share information. As more and more of the power of technology moves into the hands of individuals users,. The connectivity and communication networks of earlier generations will become obsolete, and with them the ways that the Emergency Management field has historically operated. Government officials, emergency responders, members of the public, and all other stakeholders must continue to adapt to the technological revolution and evolution that has reshaped all of our lives. Those in the field of Emergency Management have a responsibility to understand how social media can continue to be used in new and more effective ways, and also have endless opportunities to make all those  involved with and active on social media an integral component of this dynamic, evolving field.

References

Chan, J. 2014. The Role of Social Media in Crisis Preparedness, Response and Recovery. [online] Available at: http://www.oecd.org/governance/risk/The%20role%20of%20Social%20media%20in%20crisis%20preparedness,%20response%20and%20recovery.pdf [Accessed: 21 Jan 2014].

County Of Morris, N.J. 2014. MCUrgent | Official Website of Morris County, NJ. [online] Available at: http://www.co.morris.nj.us/mcurgent/socialmedia-mcurgent.asp [Accessed: 21 Jan 2014].

Crowe, A. 2012. Disasters 2.0. Hoboken: CRC Press.

Merchant, R. M., Elmer, S. and Lurie, N. 2011. Integrating social media into emergency-preparedness efforts.New England Journal of Medicine, 365 (4), pp. 289–291.

Su, Y. S., Wardell, C. and Thorkildsen, Z. 2014. Social Media in the Emergency Management Field: 2012 Survey Results. [online] Available at: http://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/SocialMedia_EmergencyManagement.pdf [Accessed: 21 Jan 2014].

Training.fema.gov. 2014. IS-42: Social Media in Emergency Management | FEMA – Emergency Management Institute (EMI) Course. [online] Available at: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/courseOverview.aspx?code=is-42 [Accessed: 21 Jan 2014].

Wood, C. 2014. Social Media and Emergency Management to Collide. [online] Available at: http://www.emergencymgmt.com/training/Social-Media-Emergency-Management.html [Accessed: 21 Jan 2014].