Today marks the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the US, and people from around the world are turning to social media and online resources to commemorate the event and honour the victims.
For the first time, the New York Police Department has launched a social media campaign to memorialise the police officers killed in the line of duty on that day. Using its official @NYPDnews Twitter handle, the NYPD has been tweeting the name and rank of each officer, with each tweet linking to a Facebook page with a photo and details about each officer. The campaign is also using the hashtag #neverforget.
Another campaign gaining momentum through social media is the 9/11 Day movement, which encourages people to remember through positive action.
“We created this observance soon after 9/11 to provide a positive way to forever remember and pay tribute to the 9/11 victims, honour those that rose in service in response to the attacks, and remind people of the importance of working more closely together in peace to improve our world,” says the official 9/11 Day site.
digital quilt, which can be viewed and shared here.
The National September 11 Memorial and Museum has also set up a livestream for the 9/11 Anniversary Ceremony at Ground Zero. Last year, the same organisation developed a 9/11 memorial app on Facebook, which allows users to automatically update their profile photos, or dedicate a status update in remembrance of the victims.
An iPad application, “The 9/11 Memorial: Past, Present and Future”, was also released last year for the 10-year anniversary, and is now available for $0.99. The app documents the construction of the Twin Towers in the 1950s, the day of the attack and the creation of the National 9/11 Museum.
One of the most comprehensive online resources for the 9/11 anniversary, is the 9/11 Television News Archive compiled by the non-profit Internet Archive project. The archive allows users to explore 3 000 hours of international TV news coverage from 20 channels over seven days (11 - 17 September) with selected analysis by scholars.
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