Hurricane Sandy and Social Media: An Analysis

The influence of social media during natural disasters and national crises was clearly shown in the case of this past fall’s Hurricane Sandy that hit the Northeast. The sheer amount of national social media attention to the storm and its destruction shows how powerful platforms like Twitter really can be. 

Meteorologists around the country were able to keep people updated on the local status of the storm, allowing them time to prepare in case of emergency. There were certainly some insensitive tweets, from hopeful high school and college students wanting school to be cancelled to “prank tweets” showing doctored photos of Armageddon-like images of the New York City skyline and stores offering special celebratory discounts in honor of the storm. 

These received scorn and backlash from many, including victims whose homes and livelihoods were destroyed by the dangerous storm.  This just goes to show how important it is for not only individuals, but especially companies and corporations to pay attention to current events and think with sensitivity before acting online.

Still, amid the misplaced “excitement” as people awaited the arrival of the storm, not realizing just how destructive it would be for many, there are also stories of hope and community that stem from social media usage during a time of need. I enjoyed seeing tweets in the days after the storm of people traveling to rebuild the affected areas, and Facebook pages to raise money for those in need were abounding in the wake of the destruction. In a time when phone lines and communication in general were hard to come by, social media was sometimes the primary method of communication between friends, family and neighbors affected by the storm. Through Facebook pages, people were able to keep tabs on the status of their damaged property as locals kept updating with photos and video, as noted in this article from the New Jersey Star-Ledger. There was also much talk and debate about the New York City Marathon cancellation in the wake of the storm, as many runners showed up to help with relief efforts in lieu of running. 

Without channels like Facebook and Twitter, we as a nation may not have understood the impact of this weather tragedy. I sometimes wonder how we would have reacted to major tragedies in the past, like Columbine and 9/11, had social media been around. The far-reaching, instantaneous properties of social media show how worthy these platforms can be as communication tools in times of emergency. Despite the occasional hoaxes and insensitive comments, the benefits of social media in times of crisis are clear.  

Eric Mower Speaker Series: Deb Henretta of P&G

I attended the first speaker event of the Spring 2013 Eric Mower Advertising Forum tonight. The featured guest was Deb Henretta, group president of Procter and Gamble's Beauty Care division. She gave an engaging talk about the twists and turns of her career path, touching on the specifics of her experiences with different notable brands at Procter and Gamble and giving students advice on how to embrace change, find your passion and become a leader in the workforce. 

I enjoyed Deb’s honest approach; she talked earnestly about her life as a mom and a wife first, then a business leader. She emphasized the idea of "juggling as part of the journey," learning to balance all aspects of life day by day. Her story matched up well with various videos and advertisements she showed to give the audience a sense of just what Procter and Gamble is all about. Their business really goes beyond the products and packaging, as they work to achieve their overarching goal of helping people and making them feel better (as their tagline, “touching lives, improving life” communicates). 

Hearing Henretta’s stories of the multitude of career changes she underwent – many “good news, bad news” situations that encompassed impressive promotions that also meant uprooting her life and family  to live on other continents across the globe – was inspiring. She stressed that change is constant, and that while it can be good, it can also be challenging; it takes courage to be a leader of change in the communications industry. 

It was surreal to hear and see some of the examples of Deb’s work, some of which have become so commonplace on our TV screens over the years. For example, she was in charge of revitalizing the Pampers brand of diapers, and she worked with a team to develop the product line of different diapers for varying “stages” of development (from newborn to toddler), which seems so natural to us as consumers now. At the time, though, her proposal was revolutionary, and she stressed the importance of perseverance and thinking outside the box in the workplace to sell your ideas to management who may be reluctant at first. 

Henretta’s visit gave me a new perspective at the power of packaged goods; she is currently working with the Secret deodorant brand to develop a digital “Mean Stinks” campaign to stop teenage girls from bullying. The campaign has already received mainstream media attention, as the brand encourages young girls to “be nice behind someone’s back” and make video confessions to apologize to people they have hurt in the past. She has also worked in Asia on a social responsibility campaign that involved food, water and energy security and sustainability issues; through the “live, learn and thrive” program, she has helped P&G provide life-saving water purification tablets to third-world countries around the globe. While our society is often chastised for putting too much emphasis on beauty ideals and packaged material goods, I learned from Deb that by keeping brands relevant and paying attention to current issues, this field can truly make a change for the better by improving – and even saving – lives. 

She advised to turn your passion into power, follow your heart, and look for ways to make a difference in the world by embracing and leading change. Henretta concluded the talk with one of her favorite quotations from Winston Churchill: “The pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; the optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

Guest Speaker Reaction: Christy Perry, Newhouse Web Content Manager

I really enjoyed Christy’s guest lecture on Tuesday. While I am pretty well versed in social media, I use it more for personal and social reasons, therefore often overlooking the professional aspects of it. I never realized just how many benefits and risks there are for brands who take part in social media and do or do not engage their audience.

Platforms like Twitter are so useful for relationship building in the digital world, and I know from personal experience that one’s perception of a company can be affected (positively or negatively) based on their social media response. I am a major Wegmans lover, so when I received actual responses in the past after tweeting about their products or about my shopping experience, it simply cemented my trust in their brand and strengthened my loyalty.

One point Christie made that I feel is crucial is to avoid duplicating exact information across various platforms. I follow the Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts of my friends and favorite brands (from sports teams to TV shows to clothing stores), so seeing the same picture with an identical message three times gets a bit annoying after awhile. I like the idea of sharing the same gist of the message, but in a different way – perhaps by using a video link in one post and a photo or short message in another.

Christy’s 10 rules for social media use reminded me to be careful about my own social media presence and any work I do for companies in the future online. The one that truly stuck out to me involves relevance. Seeing the top social media “fails” of the year reinforced the importance of being sensitive to current events and issues, and not just saying something without thinking twice. This applies to personal accounts – it is just another reminder not to tell my followers what I’m doing, where and why at every moment – and also to corporate social media usage, as companies make sure to limit irrelevant or poorly timed messages in times of national tragedy. While it is important to be transparent content-wise and consistent time-wise, one must always consider quality over quantity and think twice before hitting the “share” button!  

My life as an SU student: social media's impact

As a college student, I am an avid social media user. I have accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Instagram, Pinterest and Linkedin, and I use YouTube very often. I can barely remember a time when social media was not the immediate "go-to source" for the latest news and current events, or simply the primary procrastination tool used by young adults.  These various outlets undoubtedly have benefits, as major news has broken on Twitter time and time again and networking has taken the Internet by storm both socially (through Facebook) and professionally (through LinkedIn).

For me, there is a delicate balance between spending just enough time on social media and too much time there. Though tweets can be used scholastically and professionally and Pinterest can be used as an organizational tool that fosters productivity, I find myself all too often overwhelmed by the number of distractions that are just a smart phone or computer screen away at all times.

The impact of social media on my life as an SU student has been both positive and negative. These channels have allowed me to connect with friends, classmates, professors and even guest speakers and visiting professionals while providing a platform for me to share thoughts, opinions, photos, and even specific details – like my whereabouts and the details of my resume – with my virtual network. I have become much more interested and engaged in news and current events during my time at Newhouse through the use of Twitter, and have paid close attention to the dos and don’ts of crafting my personal online brand in order to put my best foot forward both socially and professionally. As a passionate sports fan and sport management student, social media (especially Twitter) has made it easy to stay up-to-date with information like scores, in-game updates, fan opinions and predictions, and rumors and reports by journalists, bloggers and fellow fans. I have also been able to get a better sense of the personalities of my favorite media professionals, athletes, celebrities and bloggers by sifting through their daily updates and photos, and have had the chance to communicate directly with them – something that would be unlikely to happen "in real life."

However, my once-rare tendency to procrastinate or get distracted while trying to work on assignments or read has definitely become more of an issue due to social media. The 24/7 news cycle on Twitter, endless supply of do-it-yourself project ideas on Pinterest and constant stream of activity on my Facebook and Instagram feeds are all simultaneously blessings and curses. I am thankful for the instant availability of breaking news updates, plethora of new opportunities to share my thoughts, and possibilities to reach wider audiences, but sometimes I just wish there was a master “off switch” so I could enjoy more frequent face-to-face conversations or read a book outside in the sunshine in peace  without the temptation of tweeting a picture of it to my followers!