Answer: Social media web sites played (or will play) a large role in reporting upon each event.
The Inauguration of Barack Obama
Whilst at the time of writing Barack Obama has not been inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States, mobile carriers in the US have issued warnings to their customers urging them to restrict how many calls, text messages, photos and web updates they make if they plan to attend the event in Washington D.C.
There are serious worries that the cell network could become overwhelmed, if that happens calls could be dropped and texts/photos sent to friends or the web could be lost.
Needless to say, blogs and social media sites such as Twitter, Flickr and YouTube will still be swimming with photos of President Obama within minutes of the inauguration.
Mumbai Terror Attacks
When terrorists begun a deadly attack on Mumbai in November last year, microblogging site Twitter carried almost real-time updates from people in and around the city.
In some cases these updates were posted before mainstream news channels had a chance to gather even the most basic details about the unfolding events.
For some this proved that user-generated web content had 'come of age' and could begin to compete with TV news channels, especially in the initial stages of a breaking news story.
New York Plane Crash
When a US Airways plane made an emergency landing in the Hudson River last week, social media helped to give a closer and quicker view than traditional media outlets were able to provide.
Janis Krums posted this on his Twitter page just minutes after the plane touched down:
"There's a plane in the Hudson. I'm on the ferry going to pick up the people. Crazy."
He also uploaded this iconic image later used across the globe by major news outlets.
Along with Twitter updates, photos were sent to Filckr and videos uploaded to YouTube. The big advantages these web users have over mainstream news channels are location and timing. They were either on one of the many vessels in the Hudson or lining it's banks as the event unfolded. You could liken it to a news reporter being in the right place at the right time and scooping a big story.
Another emerging social media site NowPublic.com, which refers to its content as "crowd-powered media", featured the story in detail with pictures, facts and interviews with members of the public.
Why not contact Zen Web Solutions to discuss how social media can be a valuable asset when attempting to gain exposure for your brand, products or services?
Call 0845 058 9050 or complete our contact form.