De Leon: Dangers and annoyances: Stop the memes, use the means

History has proven that the Philippines certainly has more than its share of dangers. Typhoons, earthquakes, volcano eruptions, landslides and other natural disasters can wreak havoc to anyone at any given time.

However, history does not have to repeat itself. When Mt. Pinatubo erupted nearly three-decades ago, we had nothing but sheer toughness. Fast forward today, we have a device so powerful and it’s called social media.

In times like these, I wish the government would be more unified and organized in providing information and help. And I hope our fellow media outlets too, instead of holding a photo contest for civilians and netizens.

Don’t get me wrong. I love internet humour and I definitely patronize photography, but memes and photo contests about the current situation of Taal Volcano are the last things we want to consume right now.

The use of social media for emergencies and disasters on an organizational level may be conceived of as two broad categories. First, social media can be used somewhat passively to disseminate information and receive user feedback via incoming messages, wall posts, and polls.

A second approach involves the systematic use of social media as an emergency management tool. Systematic usage might include: First, using the medium to conduct emergency communications and issue warnings; Second, using social media to receive victim requests for assistance; Third, monitoring user activities and postings to establish situational awareness; and fourth, using uploaded images to create damage estimates, among others.

And in post crisis phases, social media can be used to send information about recovery, reconstruction and what not.

The list goes on and on...

Stay active until our next chat!

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