Disaster blog guide : improving information transmission of blogs in natural disasters.

Abstract

Blogging is a social networking tool used to give readers the most recent update of an individual’s life. When natural disasters occur, it is not surprising that blogs are the first to have informational updates on the disaster, making them ideal communication channels.

This paper focuses on developing a blog guide useful for helping bloggers transmit crucial disaster information quickly and accurately. A sample of 60 blogs with disaster-related information from the Manila Flooding (2009), Sichuan Earthquake (2008) and Indian Ocean Tsunami (2004) is examined for themes of how blogs are used currently during natural disasters, namely for: “Call for Rescue”, “Situation Advisory”, “Donations Related”, “News Updates” and “Personal Accounts”.

A communication framework combined with an analysis on the basic informational needs during a disaster is used to develop a blog guide catered towards disasters. 3 sample blog posts with the themes “Call for Rescue” and “Situation Advisory” were then evaluated based on this guide and recommendations were made to enhance communication of information.

In general, the Disaster Blog Guide has proven effective in testing disaster blog posts as it was able to detect deficiencies and was able to point out suitable recommendations.