Open AccessSocial Media for Enhancing Civil Society and Disaster Relief: Usage by Local Municipalities in Japan
Author(s) -
Muneo Kaigo,
Leslie Tkach-Kawasaki
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
ejournal of edemocracy and open government
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.135
H-Index - 1
ISSN - 2075-9517
DOI - 10.29379/jedem.v7i1.371
Subject(s) - civil society , social media , public relations , political science , business , public administration , politics , law
This main focus of this article is a case study that analyzes social media usage by a local municipality in Japan, and on the possibilities and problems of complementary communication channels such as social networking services for promoting civil society activities and linking civil society organizations. We examine how in the past, Japanese municipalities have been using social media and social networking services for enhancing civil society and how social networking services are a potential tool that can provide vital information and connect citizens, municipal governments and civil society. This article focuses on the first phase of the Tsukuba Civic Activities Cyber-Square [Tsukuba Shimin Katsudō no Hiroba] on Facebook Experiment in 2012 and how it functioned during and after the May 6, 2012 Tsukuba city tornado disaster for the subsequent relief and support activities during May 2012.