Social media has been lauded as one of the 21st century’s greatest inventions, changing the way we now interact with the media and one another. It can be defined as interactive Internet-based applications in which users are able to interact with one another through the creation and sharing of content (Obar & Wildman, 2015). There are no restrictions on joining social media platforms, increasing the diversity of users and thus content shared. Social media also allows users to access online information easily at any time. Content can be shared with others in real-time and distributed quickly. Users can also sieve through the large volume of information with ease through the search function and chronological arrangement of content. (Allaire, 2016). As such, the unique characteristics of social media makes it the seemingly perfect candidate to fill the information dearth after a natural disaster (Huang, Chan & Hyder, 2010). In recent years, social media has indeed gained a growing presence in disaster recovery as seen in the 2011 Japan Earthquake when Twitter played a crucial role in coordinating the distribution of water and electricity supplies in Tsukuba City (Kaigo, 2012).
Yet is it truly so? While there is much social media can offer, the above-mentioned characteristics of social media are also damning in proving its ineffectiveness in mitigating natural disasters. The slack entry requirements result in large volumes of unverified information, increasing confusion in a time of chaotic and thus delaying recovery. Furthermore, social media is not as accessible as portrayed since accessibility to social media is also affected by other socio-economic factors which result in a digital divide and worsening inequalities. Social media is restricted by the need for a functional telecommunications system and power source as well. These reasons thus render social media as an ineffective tool in mitigating natural disasters.
1. Accuracy of information on social media
The lack of authoritative gatekeepers makes it extremely challenging to ensure the accuracy of the information shared online (Lindsay, 2011). The emergence of social media as a tool for information dissemination post-disaster has created an increasingly decentralized system of information production in which social media is used as a platform for the collection and distribution of information by users (Houston et al., 2014). Lindsay also asserts that the absence of gatekeepers may provide opportunities for the spread of not only unverified information but also malicious rumours such as scams(Lindsay, 2011). Such rumours and misinformation will result in more chaos, delaying the recovery. This is further supported by Obar and Wildman who point out that the anonymous function of social media reduces the reliability of the information (Obar & Wildman, 2015).
Due to the absence of a credible filter, users are exposed to exponential volumes of unverified information available on social media after natural disasters (Tomer, Goldberg & Adini, 2015). This can be very damaging as seen during the 2011 Japan Earthquake when the rapid spread of misinformation and rumours via social media resulted in a prolonged shortage of necessities such as drinking water and gasoline fuel as people started hoarding them despite the Japanese disaster headquarters negating the rumours of biochemical hazards (Kaigo, 2012). The lack of verification of information spread by social media is arguably the main cause of the unnecessary shortage and panic caused. The spread of misinformation and rumours is amplified even further due to social media’s wide outreach, exacerbating the confusion and panic and thus worsening the situation instead of aiding disaster recovery (Allaire, 2016).
2. The Digital Divide
Many proponents of social media claim that social media acts as an socio-economic equalizing force due to the ease of access to social media (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, 2013). Anyone can create an account and thus make full use of the benefits offered by social media such as its widespread outreach and speed (Lindsay, 2011). Recovery can thus be quickened through the use of social media, regardless of the user’s initial socio-economic status.
However, this notion is challenged by Madianou who contends that due to their higher level of access to social media and greater proficiency with social media, users who are better-off financially are able to better take advantage of social media as a tool for recovery activities such as fundraising, job searching and rebuilding but users with lower income are not only less likely to reap the benefits of social media fully but may also engage in risky online behavior such as gambling (Madianou, 2015). This has led to the creation of the digital divide which refers the gap between parties at different socio-economic levels in terms of access to information and communication technologies (ICT) and use of the Internet (OECD, 2001). As such, the digital divide causes differentiated rates of recovery which is highly stratified by socio-economic classes (Madianou, 2015).
The Digital in 2017 Global Overview report shows that the 10 countries with the greatest social media penetration generally follows the trend of their HDI ranking as well (We Are Social, 2017). This indicates an association between the wealth of the country and the level of proficiency with social media, further supporting Madianou’s argument. Studies also corroborated that well-educated individuals were more likely to pursue online activities that actively improved their lifestyles such as searching for financial or political information (Hargittai & Hinnant, 2008).
The digital divide can hence cause a second-order disaster which is defined as a humanly perpetuated disaster post-crisis with impacts that can surpass that of the initial disaster (Adams, 2013). As observed by Madianou, the 2013 Typhoon Haiyan demonstrated the harmful impacts social media can cause post-disaster. The 10-month study conducted found that low income participants’ living conditions post-disasters experienced little change, indicating a delay in recovery, while wealthier participants were recovering well and even doing better than they were pre-disaster due to the different types and levels of social media activity the different groups of participants engaged in (Madianou, 2015).
As such, social media acts as a pyrrhic recovery tool which can result in the worsening socio-economic inequalities due to the digital divide between the wealthy and poor instead of acting as an equalizer.
3. Technological limitations of social media
Social media, while useful in disaster recovery efforts, is ultimately still limited technologically as it requires a functional telecommunications system and a reliable power source. One of the biggest draws of social media as a tool post-disaster is its portability as it can be accessed on any computing device (Houston et al., 2014). However, these mobile devices also run on a limited power supply (Laituri & Kodrich, 2008). Lindsay further corroborates this by pointing out that in 2011, many Hurricane Irene victims experienced power outages which lasted more than 2 days which far exceeds the 12-h battery lives of the average smartphone and tablets depending on usage (Lindsay, 2011). As such overreliance on social media post-disaster could cause more problems instead.
Moreover, critical infrastructure is very much needed to support not only the use of social media in disaster recovery efforts but also other recovery services such as emergency medical aid and thus plays a (The World Bank, 2010). However, such infrastructure is commonly damaged during disasters, resulting in a reduced capacity to perform its function at a time when information is in high demand due to the uncertainty caused by the disaster (Shklovski, Burke, Kiesler & Kraut, 2010).
Furthermore, critical infrastructure is susceptible to the domino effect as seen during Hurricane Sandy in 2012 when the collapse of a power supply system hindered rescue efforts due to the heavy reliance on ICT in USA. Kadri agues that the increased interdependence of different infrastructure sectors resulted in a dangerous vulnerability of the national system as a whole to disasters. Without resilient critical infrastructure to support social media, users are also unable to be utilize it as an effective tool (Kadri, Birregah & Châtelet, 2014). Social media is hence irrelevant without functional critical infrastructure to support it as a disaster recovery tool.
Conclusion
While social media at present cannot be deemed as a satisfactorily effective disaster recovery tool, it does hold much potential which can be fully realized through the implementation of an official framework for post-disaster information dissemination which can help sieve out inaccurate information. Future technological advancements may also lead to the increased battery life of mobile computing devices which will edify social media as a recovery tool.
Though social media does offer a short term solution to disaster recovery, often the most effective disaster recovery plans involve more long-term solutions such as educating people on post-disaster management. Each natural disaster presents its own unique set of problems to different countries, making it impossible to provide a cure-all solution. Governments must step up to evaluate the situation and take appropriate action with the tools available to them in order to mitigate natural disasters effectively.
References:
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