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SOUTHCOM Haiti Relief Effort: Opportunity In the Social Media Space

In the days following the tragic and devastating earthquake in Haiti, US President Barack Obama insisted that the Haitian people would not be "forsaken" or "forgotten," and told Americans "we have to be here for them, their hour of need." Immediately, US SOUTHCOM mobilized a large contingent of personnel to assist in the relief effort. Latin American naysayers, however, including Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, Bolivian President Evo Morales, and Cuba's leader Fidel Castro, insisted that US efforts were an invasion and an occupation. They cited past US intervention in Haiti, and parts of Latin America, as examples of what could happen. At the same time, more moderate voices, like France, wanted the US role in Haiti to be more "defined." In addition, detractors have suggested that US troops on the ground in Haiti are not providing relief, but are rather protecting homes in "high-rent" districts, removing the "foreign press" from the airport, and giving their military priority to land at the Toussaint L'ouverture Airport over humanitarian aid groups. Whether founded or unfounded, criticism is mounting, and while representatives of the various US agencies involved in the relief effort have spoken out against the disparagements, their voices could eventually be drowned out by the colossal amount of negative chatter developing in the ever-expanding social media space. Judging from the amount of unfavorable reactions to what should be viewed as US benevolence in Haiti, it is evident that now is the time for SOUTHCOM and other government agencies to actively engage in social media arenas to better understand, manage, and, where appropriate, challenge these messages.

Abraham Smith

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion or position of Concepts & Strategies, Inc.

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