California Wildfires: Importance of Local & Web 2.0

Last week’s California wildfires really demonstrated the power of local online and Web 2.0 in telling a story. Web users rushed to their local media sites for first-hand coverage of the fires and sought information that was directly relevant to them. In making extensive use of Web 2.0 applications, local media sites offered Web users valuable, comprehensive coverage.Sites complemented their traditional reporting with Web applications such as Google Maps, blogs, forums, and user-generated content. SignonSanDiego.com, the Web site for the San Diego Union-Tribune, added fire radio to its online music station, SignOn Radio; offered a Google Maps mashup that included fire perimeters, active fires, photos, videos, burned structures, and allowed users to zoom into specific ZIP codes; and created a YouTube channel with fire video.

Local stations made extensive use of Google Maps. KPBS’ Google Map showed fire perimeters, evacuation centers, road closings, and fires contained. CBS8.com featured homes burned down by neighborhood, while NBCSanDiego.com, 10News.com, and KNBC.com (IB customer sites), featured live streaming video, user-submitted photos, blogs, and resource guides.
Web users also turned to social networking sites to connect with others. As of October 29, Facebook had more than 100 groups formed to support those affected by the fires and MySpace had over 11,000 posts related to the fires. A search on Flickr revealed more than 26,000 results for California fire pictures, while various others created Google Maps mashups including fire animations and smoke plume growth animations, while NASA provided breathtaking images from space of the fires.

So what are the implications on storytelling in this age of Web2.0? Where is it going and what does the future hold? For starters, this means “traditional” reporting must be complemented with user-generated content to give a comprehensive story. Web users expect first-hand accounts and the ability to contribute these accounts so they can connect with others, share experiences, and receive critical information. What implications do you see for the future?