Dee
01-16-2010, 08:53 AM
Agencies credit Internet, social networks for massive Haitian giving
TORONTO (CP) - Social media like Twitter and Facebook as well as the Internet itself are playing a significant role in the speedy, massive outpouring of pledges and donations from Canadians for Haitian relief, aid agencies said Friday.
The Canadian Red Cross reported commitments of $15.8 million by late Friday afternoon, with some 85 per cent of donations coming from online. Ordinary Canadians, corporations, schools and churches are stepping up to the plate to help the earthquake-torn country, including $525,000 in corporate donations, spokeswoman Katie Kallio said.
Aid agencies said Canadians found out quickly about the tragedy because of the Internet, cellphone pictures and social networks, prompting the immediate deluge of donations.
"It has to do with the new media," said Kieran Green of The Humanitarian Coalition, which is made up of Care Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec and Save the Children.
"The awareness within the first few hours of what (was) happening down there is so much higher because of Twitter, because of Facebook, because of cellphone cameras."
That allowed Canadians to see within hours the extent of the destruction, he added.
"We had messages coming out, Twitters coming out, photos coming out. So the awareness in those first few hours was so much higher so that basically ... the response came out a lot sooner."
The Humanitarian Coalition estimates it has $2.5 million in pledges and donations with another $2 million committed to UNICEF. World Vision had raised $4 million as of late Friday afternoon.
The federal government said it would match any donations made to registered charitable groups for the Haitian disaster from Jan. 12 to Feb. 12, up to a maximum of $50 million.
The Red Cross estimates 45,000 to 50,000 people were killed in Tuesday's cataclysmic earthquake.
Donation traffic was so heavy on the web Thursday that servers for the Humanitarian Coalition crashed several times and the website of the Canadian International Development Agency was down. Doctors Without Borders tweeted that its site was teetering on the brink of collapse.
On Friday, its website was so busy surfers were automatically diverted to a simple donation page. That was likely the best they could do - phone lines for Doctors Without Borders were jammed and calls were automatically forwarded to the fundraising section.
The agency itself used Twitter to keep Canadians updated with constant reports from its workers in Haiti.
Professional reporting from the scene has been virtually instantaneous and continual because of Twitter and Facebook as well, conveying searing images and haunting quotes that cannot help but make people think of donating.
For instance, one Canadian reporter sent the following tweet: "Learned white stripes under people's noses in Haiti is toothpaste to mask the stench - 'There are a lot of dead bodies,' says man."
University of Waterloo Professor Marcel O'Gorman, who specializes in digital media, says keeping up on the tragedy via Twitter and Facebook, then donating, makes people feel validated.
"The greatest use of Twitter is an emergency response system," he said.
"When you have the opportunity to link social networking, and this is when social networking is great, to link it to something in the real world, to feel as if you're making a difference, make an intervention ... that's when it works best. And that's what really satisfies people, when they can validate their online activities by doing something they think is having an impact in the real world."
Provincial governments also announced aid commitments on Friday, with Ontario pledging $1 million to the Canadian Red Cross and Saskatchewan $250,000.
Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach said the province will contribute at least $500,000 for Haiti earthquake relief, adding the province will also consider sending staff to help manage the relief effort.
British Columbia had earlier announced it was contributing $500,000 to the Red Cross effort in Haiti.
Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs said there are some 1,415 Canadians officially listed as missing in Haiti, a number that may be inflated because of communications problems. The government estimates there are some 6,000 Canadians living in the country.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100115/national/haiti_earthquake_cda_aid
TORONTO (CP) - Social media like Twitter and Facebook as well as the Internet itself are playing a significant role in the speedy, massive outpouring of pledges and donations from Canadians for Haitian relief, aid agencies said Friday.
The Canadian Red Cross reported commitments of $15.8 million by late Friday afternoon, with some 85 per cent of donations coming from online. Ordinary Canadians, corporations, schools and churches are stepping up to the plate to help the earthquake-torn country, including $525,000 in corporate donations, spokeswoman Katie Kallio said.
Aid agencies said Canadians found out quickly about the tragedy because of the Internet, cellphone pictures and social networks, prompting the immediate deluge of donations.
"It has to do with the new media," said Kieran Green of The Humanitarian Coalition, which is made up of Care Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec and Save the Children.
"The awareness within the first few hours of what (was) happening down there is so much higher because of Twitter, because of Facebook, because of cellphone cameras."
That allowed Canadians to see within hours the extent of the destruction, he added.
"We had messages coming out, Twitters coming out, photos coming out. So the awareness in those first few hours was so much higher so that basically ... the response came out a lot sooner."
The Humanitarian Coalition estimates it has $2.5 million in pledges and donations with another $2 million committed to UNICEF. World Vision had raised $4 million as of late Friday afternoon.
The federal government said it would match any donations made to registered charitable groups for the Haitian disaster from Jan. 12 to Feb. 12, up to a maximum of $50 million.
The Red Cross estimates 45,000 to 50,000 people were killed in Tuesday's cataclysmic earthquake.
Donation traffic was so heavy on the web Thursday that servers for the Humanitarian Coalition crashed several times and the website of the Canadian International Development Agency was down. Doctors Without Borders tweeted that its site was teetering on the brink of collapse.
On Friday, its website was so busy surfers were automatically diverted to a simple donation page. That was likely the best they could do - phone lines for Doctors Without Borders were jammed and calls were automatically forwarded to the fundraising section.
The agency itself used Twitter to keep Canadians updated with constant reports from its workers in Haiti.
Professional reporting from the scene has been virtually instantaneous and continual because of Twitter and Facebook as well, conveying searing images and haunting quotes that cannot help but make people think of donating.
For instance, one Canadian reporter sent the following tweet: "Learned white stripes under people's noses in Haiti is toothpaste to mask the stench - 'There are a lot of dead bodies,' says man."
University of Waterloo Professor Marcel O'Gorman, who specializes in digital media, says keeping up on the tragedy via Twitter and Facebook, then donating, makes people feel validated.
"The greatest use of Twitter is an emergency response system," he said.
"When you have the opportunity to link social networking, and this is when social networking is great, to link it to something in the real world, to feel as if you're making a difference, make an intervention ... that's when it works best. And that's what really satisfies people, when they can validate their online activities by doing something they think is having an impact in the real world."
Provincial governments also announced aid commitments on Friday, with Ontario pledging $1 million to the Canadian Red Cross and Saskatchewan $250,000.
Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach said the province will contribute at least $500,000 for Haiti earthquake relief, adding the province will also consider sending staff to help manage the relief effort.
British Columbia had earlier announced it was contributing $500,000 to the Red Cross effort in Haiti.
Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs said there are some 1,415 Canadians officially listed as missing in Haiti, a number that may be inflated because of communications problems. The government estimates there are some 6,000 Canadians living in the country.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100115/national/haiti_earthquake_cda_aid