#Londonsburning: Integrating Geographic, Topical and Social Information during Crisis

Abstract

Social media, such as microblogging, is a potentially powerful medium through which the city and its citizens can connect, particularly during times of crisis or extreme events. Yet neither the city nor its citizens are monolithic entities. We propose methods to integrate geographic, topical, and social information and behavior to improve situational understanding throughout the city, and enable more effective public and official response. We demonstrate this approach using Twitter data from the 2011 London riots.