This week I will be presenting recent work on online communication during crises at the Cultural, Organizational, Political, and Economic Sociology Seminar held by the Department of Sociology at the University of Washington.
Title: Online Communication Dynamics During Natural Hazard Events
Location: February 14th in Savery 409 from 3:30 @ 5pm
Abstract: Informal exchange of information occurs continually throughout daily life. These pre-existing communication patterns are vital during non-routine circumstances such as emergencies and disasters. In recent years, informal communication channels have been transformed by the widespread adoption of social media technologies and mobile devices. Although the potential to exploit this capacity for disaster response is increasingly recognized by practitioners, relatively little is known about the dynamics of informal online communication in response to exogenous hazard events. To address this gap, we employ a longitudinal and comparative approach to examine the dynamics of online communication and information exchange during tornado events in the U.S.