The document discusses a research project analyzing the use of Twitter during the 2011 Queensland floods in Australia. It found that #qldfloods tweets provided local information, engaged authorities, shared photos, and created an online community. However, access was uneven and there were challenges like rumors, data issues, and commercial platform limitations. The research combined computational analysis with qualitative examination of Twitter's role as a convergent news and information platform during a disaster.

1. Social Media, Disaster Reporting and Local News Dr. Jean BurgessARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries & Innovation Queensland University of Technology

2. Social Media Research in the CCI ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries & Innovation (national, based at QUT) Project: Media Ecologies & Methodological Innovation Axel Bruns& Jean Burgess (QUT), Kate Crawford & Frances Shaw (Journalism & Media Research Centre (JMRC), NSW) Aims to implement new methods to understand the changing media environment; Focusing on the relationship between social media and traditional media and communication platforms; Combining large-scale computer-assisted techniques with media & cultural studies theoretical frameworks, qualitative research and close textual analysis

3. Social media and convergence Twitter as convergent platform: Social networking (’friending’, ’following’,interpersonal communication) Publishing original content (‘broadcasting’ updates) Large-scale information consumption, sharing and propagation. ‘Global’ commercial platforms; engaged with on a personal, hyperlocal, interest-based basis (increasingly through mobile devices) ‘Flat architecture’ – ‘personal’ accounts of ordinary citizens have the same structural properties as mainstream media, government, business etc. News, information, affect and ideas propagate through multiple network layers: follower/followees; distributed interest/issue publics (via #hashtags)

4. Twitter and the Queensland Floods: #qldfloods tweets 10 Jan. 2011 11 Jan. 2011 12 Jan. 2011 13 Jan. 2011 14 Jan. 2011 15 Jan. 2011

5. Twitter and the Queensland Floods: #qldfloods themes From CCI Report on the use of Twitter in the Queensland floods – Shaw et al. (forthcoming, 2011). Every 20th tweet coded.

6. Local Focus: #qldfloods from Toowoomba to Brisbane Toowoomba vs. Lockyer/Grantham vs. Ipswich vs. Brisbane slide 10 Jan. 2011 11 Jan. 2011 12 Jan. 2011 13 Jan. 2011 14 Jan. 2011 15 Jan. 2011

7. Twitter and the Queensland Floods: #qldfloods posters retweet feeds mainstream media Qld Police

8. Twitter and the Queensland Floods: #qldfloods @replies authorities mainstream media

9. @QPSmedia as Central #qldfloods Information Source

10. #qldfloods Network Map – Most Active Accounts Only(Degree >= 15 / Node size: indegree / node colour: outdegree)

11. (mobile) image sharing 1 in 5 links were to an image-hosting service

12. “Showrooms of furniture floating into the street. #Toowoomba#Qldfloods” --@noveltylady

13. “People are starting to freak out man #qldfloods” -- @sammehmcspam

14. “Swimming pool area - before and after #qldfloods” --@pattycam

15. “Gold Coast Bucket gang helping at Rocklea #qldfloodsPrem_Team” --@TheQldPremier

17. Connectivity between citizens on the ground in local areas and authorities/mainstream media (need better “listening” mechanisms and “trust” settings)

18. Rumours, misinformation, etc (emergent community norms, literacy programs could help)

19. Questions around commercial platforms (datasharing problems, lack of archiving, geofiltering/geoblockingetc)challenges