With the creation of such social media sites as Facebook and Twitter, as well as advancements in the capabilities of major sites and search engines such as Youtube and Google, it is astounding to see just how much the concept of social media has built up over the last few years (so much so that we naturally take it for granted!). The fact is, we live in a world so consumed by speed and technology that it changes the way we, as a global society, face standard, typical, extraordinary, and outstanding situations altogether.
The reason, of course, that I bring up this topic is because of the outstanding and extremely devastating circumstances occurring in the North Eastern Region of Japan. Following the earthquake, it’s amazing how many citizens are able to stay in touch with their loved ones through Facebook and especially Twitter! Hearing from the news reports, people on the streets of Tokyo, unable to contact their families through phone are fortunately more successful over their other social media channels.
Moreover, within seconds of the earthquake, news of the event (via channels excluding news reports) already reached the opposite end of the world. Youtube videos were posted within the hour, 1 million tweets were coming out of Japan every hour – essentially, it seems to me as if the world has never been more informed about a natural disaster (or disaster of any kind) than at this moment.
Beyond that note, also within an hour of the disaster, Facebook events and pages organizing relief efforts all over the world were immediately set into action, collecting hundreds of supporters or “likes”/”attendees” within minutes.
People often blame technologically advanced devices such as iPhones, Blackberries, or Smart Phones for their incessant tendencies to distract their users, and they may not be wrong to do so; however, in times of need, they can certainly make an incredible and almost unprecedented difference.
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