3 Earthquake Takeaways for Government & Social Media
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This afternoon there was a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that had it’s epicenter in VA.
We felt it here in the office and within moments of it happening, I checked Twitter. What did I find? Multiple people that I follow had already said they felt it in DC and elsewhere. This was before the mainstream news websites would have had any information on it – well before the newspaper for tomorrow has come out.
I also quickly checked the USGS’ website to see if they had any information on it and they sure did!
So what can governments learn from this? (I get some of this from Steve Ressler’s point in this post on GovLoop, “What Tools Government Needs in an Earthquake“)
Here’s some ideas:
Be where THEY are!
- You need to be in places that you will be heard quickly. These need to be outlets where your citizens are and regularly frequent for news and official (or unofficial information). If they don’t hear your message, the rest pointless. Whether that is Twitter, Facebook, through an email list, or someplace else where people go for breaking news.
Be Official!
- People are talking about it – whether you are or not. And they may have inaccurate information. You need to be out there with correct and trustworthy information.
Be Fast!
- Like I said, I found out info about the earthquake within moments of it happening – from sources who didn’t know what the earthquakes’ magnitude was, if there might be an aftershock, etc. You have to be quick to get information out there. The USGS was pretty fast. They had data about the earthquake available almost instantly on their website and they Tweeted about it on Twitter within minutes of it.
More Observations…
- Jeffry Levy (@levyj413 on Twitter) has an interesting observation about the USGS Tweets on Twitter.
- “USGS crowd sources earthquake reports“
USGS crowd sources earthquake reports
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Gov't & Technology, News & Events
Open Government Links of the Week – July 15, 2011
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“[CIO] Vivek Kundra’s Tips for Smarter Government”
- “Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra delivered [these] during testimony before a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee [on Thursday]“
“Tips on Improving Government Websites”
- On Tuesday, the White House held a video Q & A about Improving Federal Websites. BUT, there are takeaways and ideas that LOCAL governments and state agencies can gain from this discussion – see the notes below the archived video in the post…
Open Government on a Global Level:
“As part of the Open Government Partnership, Transparency & Accountability Initiative recently published a new report on current best practices and the practical steps for opening government.”
- “Transparency & Accountability Initiative welcomes launch of Open Government Partnership” (HT Alex Howard)
“The Transparency & Accountability Initiative welcomes the launch of Open Government Partnership (OGP), a new multilateral initiative that aims to promote more open and accountable government, with the ultimate goals of empowering citizens, countering corruption, promoting economic efficiencies, harnessing innovation, and improving the delivery of services”
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Open Government Links of the Week – June 17, 2011
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“Open data: top tips on transparency for local authorities”
- This includes 6 tips…
- The 1st of which is: “Make a start… accept that it’s not as complicated as you might think. Even on a very limited budget you’ll be surprised at what can be achieved and the difference it could make to the people in your community”
“Guide: Wiki’s for Government”
“Beta: The future of government websites”
- “Launching a website in “beta” used to be a way to test functionality before releasing a more polished product for public consumption, but according to some federal technologists…”
“City commission adopts phone attendance provision”
- What would be beneficial about this (or would it possibly be a negative step)? Hear what some have to say…
“White House Establishes Government Accountability and Transparency Board”
“The Network Effect: Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter & Tumblr Reach New Heights in May” (comScore)
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