Social media blackout splits public

The public is split right down the middle over whether the authorities should enforce a total shutdown of social media sites during civil unrest, according to a study carried out in the aftermath of the recent UK riots.
Home Secretary Theresa May met Twitter, Facebook and BlackBerry yesterday to explore blocking access during emergency situations, in the wake of the mass looting and violence which some claim was fuelled by online messaging services.
It is now thought the Government has pulled back from wanting a shutdown, with insiders claiming the meeting was more about joint collaboration to catch would-be uprisers.
But the study, by integrated marketing agency MBA, claims 50% of the public are in favour of suspending the networks. The research, among 2,000 Britons, also shed light on how millions of consumers used the sites to keep up with events, with 41% of Brits logging on to find out what was happening.
Over a third (34%) of people say they used social media more than any other news source to track developments around the riots, although only a tenth (11%) said they trusted the information being circulated about the riots on social media sites above other news sources.
MBA planning director James Devon said: “It seems the riots have shown social media is rivalling the breaking news of rolling news channels in the same way Sky and BBC News 24 threatened newspapers. It’s all about media speed – getting the news ‘now’ not later.
“Given social media’s rapid integration into modern life, it’s not surprising that many people used these channels ahead of other traditional news sources to keep track of the riots. They were more local, relevant and two-way. There’s no news cycle anymore. It’s a news stream that people can dip in and out of whatever media they use, be it social, online, print or broadcast. They have become their own news editor.
“The fact that trust of information being circulated on social media remains low, reflects public acknowledgment that these tools were also being used to mobilise the looting and spread false rumours. This is also probably why the country is split 50/50 over whether social networks should be shut down during riots. They can organise riots and clean up after them. Be anti-social and very social. What’s certain is social media has become the people’s news network.”