The Good in Social Networking

I've always had reservations about social networking sites and the spread of social media. While I use Facebook, Twitter and I blog (obviously) and I enjoy them most of the time, I think many people use these sites for the wrong reason or they go overboard. I'm not interested in all the mundane details of people's lives and I think folks over-share to the point that there isn't a real sense of privacy anymore.

But this past week has shown the tremendous power of social networking and how much good can come out of it. The devastating earthquake in Haiti has captured the world's attention. Word spread quickly about how bad the quake hit and the state of chaos in the country. Donations have poured in from around the world and the drive for donations has been so successful because of the use of social networking, media and technology.

With various charities setting up a direct text-to-donate system (including the American Red Cross), donating was easier than it's ever been. I think this system was a great idea and something we'll definitely see in the future, but the initiatives were really successful because of people spreading the word about them through Twitter and Facebook. The texting donation drive was publicized on TV, radio, etc., but the information was (and still is) all over social networking sites. Various reports put the total money raised at $10 million; pretty amazing when you think a lot of it has been done in $5 and $10 increments.

In the past year, we have seen the power of social networking in spreading information and news (like the Iran election riots), and we can now see what an effective fundraiser these sites can be. It's heartening to see Facebook used to raise money for disaster aid instead of updating users on what one just had for lunch.

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