1. Social Media and Crisis Communication
Assoc. Prof. Axel Bruns
ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation
Queensland University of Technology
Brisbane, Australia
a.bruns@qut.edu.au
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
@snurb_dot_info
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
2. Social Media during Crises
o Various platforms:
o Facebook, Twitter – updates and information
o YouTube, Flickr, Twitpic – first-hand video and photos
o Google Maps, Ushahidi – map-based information mashups
Different tools for different purposes
o Various levels of maturity:
o Uses and use practices still developing
o Different demographic reach
o Technological differences:
o e.g. Facebook: built around personal networks; semi-private;
discussion threads
o e.g. Twitter: open, flat network; public #hashtag conversations;
update stream
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
3. Why Twitter?
o Researching Twitter:
o Significant world-wide social network
o ~200 million users (but how many active?)
o ~2 million users in Australia
o Varied range of uses: from everyday communication to emergency
coordination
o Flat and open network structure:
non-reciprocal following, public profiles by default
o Hashtags as a flexible, ad hoc response mechanism
o Good API for gathering data for research and operational use
How can Twitter be used for crisis information and community
resilience?
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
4. The 2011 Queensland Floods
o Chronology:
o December 2010 to January 2011: unprecedented
rainfall
o Emergency declared for more than 50% of Queensland
o Wivenhoe dam reaches 180% capacity
o December 2010: Flooding in northern Queensland
o January 2011: Floods in southeast Queensland
o 10 January 2011: flash flooding in Toowoomba
o 10 January 2011: ‘inland tsunami’ in the Lockyer Valley
o 11 January 2011: flooding begins in Ipswich
o 12-16 January 2011: major flooding in Brisbane
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
16. The Queensland Floods Community
o Self-organisation:
o Rapid establishment of #qldfloods hashtag
o Ad hoc development of community structures
o Highlighting of leading accounts, vigilant against disruption
o Suspension of petty squabbles (e.g. state politics)
o Innovation and rapid prototyping:
o Adjunct hashtags (#Mythbuster, #bakedrelief)
o Sharing and gathering of online resources
o Additional tools (Google Maps, Ushahidi Maps)
o Emergency services rapidly adopting social media tools
(despite lack of established strategies)
‘Go where they are’ rather than ‘build it and they will come’
See CCI Report: #qldfloods and @QPSMedia: Crisis Communication on
Twitter in the 2011 South East Queensland Floods
(http://cci.edu.au/floodsreport.pdf)
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
17. Major Information Sources Remain Important
@sunriseon7
@couriermail
@612brisbane
@QPSMedia
@abcnews
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
23. Retweet Rates in @QPSMedia Conversations
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
24. Beyond the Queensland Floods
o Further outlook:
o Need to build on #qldfloods experience
o Maintain momentum of @QPSMedia and other lead accounts
o Review what did/didn’t work, improve communication strategies
o Analyse and work with community communication patterns
o Cultivate potential lead users:
o Who (institutions / individuals) was most active / influential?
o How can they be identified as crises unfold?
o Are they the usual suspects (e.g. community leaders), or not?
o How stable are such communication structures?
Will social media use look similar next time around?
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
25. 2010/11 Christchurch Earthquakes
o Series of earthquakes:
o 4 Sep. 2010 – M7.1
o Major structural damage, limited injuries
o 22 Feb. 2011 – M6.3
o Substantial devastation, major casualties
o 13 June 2011 – M6.3
o Major aftershock, further liquefaction
o 23 Dec. 2011 – M5.1-6.0
o Major aftershocks
o Significant use of social media – e.g. Twitter: #eqnz
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
34. #eqnz: Contribution by Different User Groups in Each Event
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
35. #eqnz: Visibility of Leading Accounts in Each Event
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
36. Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake
o Towards better strategies for social media in disasters:
o February 2011 earthquake building on lessons learnt in September
2010
o #eqnz and key Twitter accounts already established
o Several key accounts sharing the load and dividing responsibilities
o More sophisticated use of Twitter by residents and authorities
o Clear shift in attention after the immediate rescue phase:
o Marked differences in list of most @replied/retweeted accounts
o Some tracking of current problems / issues / fears may be possible
o Decline in overall tweet volume / diversification of #hashtags?
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
37. Social Media and Crisis Communication
o Twitter research:
o Develop better tools and metrics for evaluating social media communication
o In-depth analysis of communication patterns reveals how social media are used
o Real-time analytics: highlight key current issues, identify weak signals of crisis
o Monitor and improve effectiveness of social media communication strategies by
emergency services
o Social media uses:
o Inform, share, amplify, support, reassure, organise
o Need to track and work with user community: follow their conventions
(e.g. #eqnz hashtag)
o Two-way communication where feasible – more than broadcast messages
o Provide community with tools to self-organise for resilience
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/