Social media harnessed the support – and donations – of millions after the devastating Haiti earthquake. A viral communication wave that swept Facebook and Twitter generated awareness and prompted donations for the Haiti and Chilean earthquakes earlier this year.

But internet users do not only respond to global emergencies – on a growing scale internet users are tapping social media sites to seek support for political causes and voice consternation over what they see as unfair company practices:

• A Facebook group called “Boycott BP,” it’s urging a worldwide boycott of all BP brands and services, has drawn more than 500.000 fans. This site is urging followers to protest not just BP gas stations, but also “Wild Bean Cafe,” a coffee shop concept BP runs in Europe, South Africa and Australia. BP’s name is no where near that Wild Bean cafe logo, but organizers are doing their best to make sure that the cafe line goes down with its parent company
• An anonymously managed Twitter account – BP Public Relations (@BPGlobalPR) – that makes glib comments, purportedly on BP’s behalf, has more than 140.000 followers. BP’s legit Twitter feed @BP_America has drawn fewer than 12,000 followers
• At the BP station on Houston and Lafayette in New York City a flash mob was arranged through Facebook
• A US-based web design company launched an “Oil Spill Firefox Plugin,” which blacks out all web mentions of BP with oil spill blobs
• Intel was attacked by activists opposed to minerals mining in the Congo inundated Intel’s Facebook page. They wanted Intel to pledge its support for a congressional bill that would restrict the import of “conflict minerals” that contribute to fighting in the war-torn country
• Human rights group Amnesty International  launched a social media campaign on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and through bloggers, designed to raise money for a full page ad buy attacking oil company Shell in a UK national newspaper
• Nestlé, maker of Kit Kat, was attacked by Greenpeace for using palm oil from companies that where trashing Indonesian rainforests, threatening the livelihoods of local people and pushing orang-utans towards extinction. Greenpeace prepared a frontal assault with prepared assets such as off-brand logos, detrimental videos, and called for their Twitter followers to attack Nestle’s Facebook page
• Hewlett-Packard, which released a web camera that supposedly track people’s faces – always keeping them centered on screen – got slammed when a buyer posted a video claiming that the product doesn’t recognize African American faces. The video, posted under the title “HP Computers Are Racist”
• United Airlines repeatedly refused to listen and take corrective action after damaging the guitars of Dave Carroll. He eventually wrote a song in response, that has been viewed than 8,4 mill. times  on Youtub and had untold damage to United. Now known as the “United Breaks Guitars” phenomenon
• Facebook groups and fan pages attacking Timer Warner: “Time Warner Cable Sucks”, “Boycott Time Warner” and “Time Warner Sucks”
• Fashion Ministry (“Fashionministeriet”) succumbed after bloggers wrote about overcharges and poor business ethics. Now the online shop is closed

Short URL & Title:
Web users turn to social media sites to channel anger and frustration — http://www.torbenrick.eu/t/r/tri

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