The horrible event that occurred a few days ago at Fort Hood has been on everyone’s mind. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of the families, soldiers, and the entire Fort Hood community in this horrific event. May God give them the strength and courage to overcome this.
When I first heard about this tragedy, it was not from the traditional news announcement or hearing about it from another person – it was from looking at seeing one of my friends on Facebook posting it as part of their status update. I immediately went online to find out more information, and learned about the terrible event. People were getting their information from online sources, particularly social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook. Just moments after the incident occurred at Fort Hood, a Facebook group was created titled “Prayers for Fort Hood” where thousands immediately joined and offered their deepest sympathies and condolences to the victims and their families. The Army and professionals involved had to work both with the traditional media in getting the information out in a timely manner, but they also had to make sure that they were addressing the issues and questions being raised online as well.
The military over the last several months have been debating on whether or not incorporating social media into their program and with their soldiers is a good thing. Some are against their soldiers using it (the Marines) while there are advocates of it (Navy). The Marines recently made the ban earlier this year, while the Navy has come out with several reports that state how the military and other federal agencies can use it proactively in addressing potential issues and crises that may arise for them. In terms of the neutral stance of social media and military use, Rayford Vaughn, a professor of computer science and engineering at Mississippi State University, said that there is indeed a time and place for social media use in the military and other government held positions:
“Denial of all use of social networks by DOD would lead to the loss of use of an important communication mechanism. It makes sense to me to use social networks to reach constituency groups for official business — veterans, wounded warriors, recruiting — but not for personal use during the duty day on government machines.”
In the light of this terrible event, social media has connected thousands of people around the world to discuss, communicate, and react to the news of this incident. From posting their feelings and reactions to this crisis to offering their words of support and sympathy to those affected – it has truly brought the global community together in unity. The power of connecting online and sharing information is enormous – and we as public relations professionals and crisis communicators need to recognize that. The Department of Defense is going to be evaluating what they will do in terms of social media in a few months, and it will be interesting to see if this event will impact where they go from here.
These are just a few of my thoughts on the subject. I hope that you all are having a great day.
Best Wishes,
Karen
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