Social media usage during disasters and social capital : Twitter and the Great East Japan Earthquake
Year: 2012
Type: article
Abstract: This paper investigates the role of social media during mid-level disruptions by natural disasters through examining the case of the city of Tsukuba in Ibaraki prefecture during the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 2011. Tsukuba city was relatively unharmed in comparison to much of the devastation of northeastern Japan, however damage was widespread as Tsukuba lost electricity and water immediately after the initial earthquake. Due to heavy congestion, communications became inaccessible for the first few hours after. Power outages did not allow usage of traditional media other than portable radios, and Internet access through personal computers were also unavailable. In this situation, web-enabled phones and smartphones became the primary devices for media access after the initial March 11, 2011 quake. The municipal government of Tsukuba had been experimenting the usage of Twitter for communicating with the citizens of Tsukuba prior to the earthquake, and this platform played a significant role in disseminating vital information during the disaster. This paper also investigates how social capital may have been prominently formed through this interaction with Twitter during the disaster in Tsukuba.
Author: Kaigo, Muneo
Language: English
Subfield: Communication
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7015320248