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Facebook, Twitter and Ebola

Joanne Carew
By Joanne Carew, ITWeb Cape-based contributor.
Johannesburg, 12 Nov 2014
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has donated $25 million to fight Ebola.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has donated $25 million to fight Ebola.

The new communication landscape, sparked off by real-time platform Twitter and social networking site Facebook, means real-life events are being framed by online conversation.

Speaking on the first morning of AfricaCom in Cape Town yesterday, Chris Daniels, VP of product for Internet.org at Facebook, and Katie Lampe, Twitter head of sales operations for Europe, Middle East and Africa, highlighted that the dawn of the new communication landscape, which has largely been facilitated by social networks, means that when an event happens it is also framed by a conversation online.

This fact provides these social networks with an opportunity to break down various social, economic, educational and healthcare barriers. Twitter was born mobile. Today, over 80% of usage occurs on mobile devices, stated Lampe. In Africa, Facebook has connected over 100 million people, added Daniels.

With the recent Ebola outbreak in areas across Western Africa, both platforms have used their mobile nature and growing reach across the African continent to become an additional tool to promote general awareness around prevention and symptoms of the disease. They have also connected people and healthcare workers in areas that have been affected by the disease.

Much of the hype around Facebook's participation in the fight against Ebola has focused on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's $25 million donation to the Centres for Disease Control Foundation to fight Ebola. However, Daniels noted the social network is also encouraging Facebook users to make contributions to organisations fighting on the ground and is working with the United Nations Children's Fund to assist with educating Facebook users who are being affected by the spread of this disease.

"Ebola is a global crisis," he said. "Facebook is also providing connectivity to healthcare workers. If we want to solve the Ebola crisis, we need to provide better connectivity and better information to healthcare workers so that they can understand what supplies are needed and where. And we have also provided equipment to further connect them."

Social networks like Facebook and Twitter act as the shortest distance between big brands and social influencers and users on the ground, making social media a perfect platform to facilitate important communication during times of crisis, noted Lampe.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has taken to Twitter to share information and dispel misinformation about Ebola. The group has been tweeting various tips and infographics to inform users about how to reduce the spread of the disease and how to prevent contraction.

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