Facebook + Weather Alerts?
Facebook + Weather Alerts?
  • Natasha Willhite, US Correspondent of Korea IT Tim
  • 승인 2011.06.01 08:12
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Minnesota, USA -May 31, 2011- Undoubtedly, many people are turning to Facebook for everything from social interaction to sharing of news links. We seem to be able to do everything all on one page except for when it comes to urgent news like weather alerts. It is about the time of the year when most of the natural disasters strike and it becomes most evident as people on Facebook get into the habit of posting their first-hand experiences as the weather happens or shortly thereafter. Although Facebook is not in the 'news business', it may consider setting up a feature with the National Weather Service (NWS) that could alert users of any dangerous conditions in their mists.

 

We know that Facebook knows everything about us from our location - even when we choose not to disclose this information in our profiles - all the way to our likes and dislikes. Perhaps it is afraid of scaring off users if it actually contacts them based on the 'most recent activity location'. However, it could be a wise move for it because many people reach for their phones when bad weather hits and accessing a weather website is not as easy as clicking on the Facebook mobile app that is already there. Let's face it; most of us do not have a weather app on our phones because we do not think of severe weather every day.

 

The weather alerts would not need to be dramatic; the alerts from the NWS could easily be forwarded as a private message or even just a wall post. If it is in the eyes of the public on a wall post, it could prompt the friends and family of anyone who was last detected in an area that could be in danger. If this person was not already alerted, a concerned person is able to make a quick call to see if that person is still in that location and somewhere away from danger. It could enhance that 'social' aspect of Facebook by ensuring that people are keeping any eye on each other.

We keep seeing everyone use Facebook post-disaster for search of missing persons or found items, so why does Facebook not take it a step further so that people can use it as the bad weather hits It is understandable that the post-disaster pages are ran by people who are not Facebook employees, but it also does not need to put much personal effort by having the alerts coming directly from the NWS rather than itself.

Facebook is not only means to socialize but to inform others. Undoubtedly it keeps trying to stay out of the 'serious' matters since it does not want to stray from its original company vision. On the other hand, maybe it contemplated having a service like this but could not convince the NWS to get on board. Time can only tell if we put enough pressure on adding this feature.

Currently weather alerts can be sent out as text messages if people subscribe to that option from a weather service. It is not as likely for people to do this as it costs money to have these alerts sent. With the amount of time that we spend on Facebook, it could be just as easy for us to see these alerts and respond quickly by seeking shelter.



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