The group’s last publication, Lessons Learned: Social Media and Hurricane Sandy published in May of 2013, identified several technology, process, and policy gaps associated with the use of social media for situational awareness. As a follow up, the VSMWG is now working on a report focusing on the use of social media specifically for situational awareness and decision support. The report will introduce various examples of government agencies and response partners currently using social media for situational awareness, discuss potential applications and associated challenges, provide guidance on the integration of social media within incident command, and identify areas requiring further consideration, research, and development.

For additional information and to access the VSMWG’s previously published reports, visit the Virtual Social Media Working Group Case Study.