Gone are the days when social networking was just sitting at a computer sending messages. As we move into a real-time environment online communities are soon becoming real-world communities.

This has been quite clearly brought home to me when attending a regular social media event in Bristol called Brrism. What interested me about the event is that it is all organised through social media and is all about social media. I have met some very interesting people there and had some great discussions. What I realised is that coming from an Online PR/Social Media work environment I had a certain way that I viewed and used social media both for myself and my clients. I soon realised that that my methods for using social media were not the only ones. Customisability means everyone uses social media to meet their own specific needs and hence they have completely different perceptions of it.

However, one common theme that keeps coming up is the concept of sharing ideas and community. It is interesting to see how Brrism has developed since its inception last year. There is still a long way to go and I often feel that we are like kids again trying to establish ourselves in a group. New community formation takes time and I know there will be more challenges along the way.

Social media has also been powerful tool for charities. Since the Haiti earthquake charities have successfully utilised social media in getting messages out and forming supportive online communities.

I have mentioned Twestival on this blog before in reference to this as it is an excellent example. Following a successful event last year there is an event on 25 March 2010. The Twestival event will be is global affair where events are to take place in big cities around the world. This year it will be in aid of Concern which is looking to rebuild the education infrastructure in Haiti.

The entire event is organised using social media (namely Twitter) and online communities. It has created real-world impact though these channels.

It is obvious to me that charities are an area where the community and sharing ethos of social media can really come into its element.


If you are in the Bristol area definitely check out Bristwestival which is Bristol's offering. It features live music, a raffle, goodie bags and other wonderful things all in aid of charity. It takes place on 25 March at the Tunnels and tickets cost £5. See below for more details and book tickets here.

The New Year has brought the UK a flurry of snow which has yet again brought everything to a standstill! At the moment I am blogging to you from a snow bunker on the east of Bristol UK and the only communication with outside world is the internet - namely Twitter and this blog.

I have made sure I have enough food and beer to last me another 72 hours. After then I don't know what I will do! AHHH, Outside everything is cold and white!

Anyway I wanted to share with you some snow photos from around Bristol courtesy of my Twitter followers.

Queen Square, Bristol by @SallyanneHowell


A snow-woman by @lisariemers


Blizzard in BS5 by @Souterain

These have really brightened my day in the snow bunker. Keep the communications running. It is all we can do for now!

Whether it is the #Iran Election or your local newspaper it is becoming clear that Social Networking is changing the way people interact. We are now more interconnected than ever but can this have a positive effect?

The internet has lead to an environment where information and stories are freely accessible and it is difficult for large inflexible corporations to control the information flow as they have been accustomed to in the past with conventional media.

Whether it is tips on how fix your car or how a Tokyo street looks like the information is now there at click of a button. Social media has created connections between people and events that never existed before. I hope that this will mean that people will come to understand each other a little better. For businesses it is a new opportunity to understand their market or create a communication structure. For individuals it is about discovering new information and talking to new people they would never had the opportunity to before.

Large Institutions are coming under closer scrutiny as a consequence, either direct or indirect, of social media and new technology. The policing of the G20 in London has widely been criticised as a consequence of footage from mobile phone cameras among other factors. Even the MPs expense fiasco shows that the Government is not immune from such scrutiny. Most recently the unfolding events in Iran have displayed the effectiveness of social media tools in exchanging information.

For charities and other social movements, it is now easier to communicate their message to large numbers of people on a more personal level. High profile campaigns such as Twestival have borne successful results.

There are some who will talk about the darker sides. It is true that there are extremist groups who will use these online tools as a way to recruit and organise themselves. Paedophiles and other deviants will use it to exchange illegal and obscene content.

There is a problem though as such groups generally rely on the fact that their members having a limited view and perception of the world which they control and is not subject to question. This is not the nature of the internet as everything is questioned and is constantly moving all the time.It may be much harder to sell lies to people especially when you are using the internet to do it.

Ultimately internet entities, be they individuals or businesses or even governments, should act authentically and with integrity if they want to succeed. If this is the case the positives effects will be massive and the negative ones neglible.

I hope that these new tools enable us to understand our humanity and get along a little better.

Everyone else was doing it so I thought I would too! Here is a blog post featuring some 'snow photos' from around Bristol. Seems that this was probably the best use of my time as just about everything ceased to function in Bristol today. I have to say that I am surprised how white frozen water could have such an impact up and down the country. Life still goes on even when it is snowing! What must people from Scandanavia, Russia and other cold countries think of us Brits?! Anyway enjoy the photos... :-)




A winter urban scene taken at 3.00 in the morning!













Just outside Bristol after getting caught in a blizzard.













View of the Avon Gorge and the Bristol Suspension bridge












The obligatory 'large snow ball' photo!