Thursday, February 05, 2009

Kentucky mayor's Facebook page keeps residents informed in aftermath of devastating ice storm

When Madisonville, Ky., population 19,000, got slammed with a huge ice storm last week, Mayor Will Cox, left, turned to Facebook to help get information to people in his community. With much of the town without power or phone service, Cox used the social networking site to inform residents about where and when power had been restored, government responses to the crisis, and basic information about community resources.

“Because of my position, the information is good and people know its good. It’s not like I’m Joe Blow blogger,” Cox told Beth Musgrave of the Lexington Herald-Leader. “People know that it’s reliable information.” Cox also used the one local radio station with a generator to communicate with residents, but found Facebook offered a tangible way to measure who received his information. He very quickly added 250 friends to his account. He says that, long after the ice has melted, he will keep using the site for communication: “I’d be crazy not to." (Read more)

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