Platforms #paraservir. The digital strategy of the Military Emergency Unit (UME) as a sample of social media potential in emergency situations and civil protection

Abstract

TheMilitaryEmergencyUnit(UME, byitsSpanishacronym)actsincatastrophic andemergencysituationsinnationalandinternationalterritory. The professionalizationof their communication has increasedthe reachandunderstanding oftheir actions. Starting from a qualitative content analysis, we delve into how the unit exposes its content on social media. Three main conclusions can be drawn from the results: a) communication on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is well planned, relies on quality visual and textual elements andhumanizes the professionals who workin the unit; b)the dynamics ofcontent variessubstantiallywhenthereisanemergencyintervention, generatinga permanentstory that helps society to be informed from the fieldofaction itself, andc)the reaction ofusers is highly positive and there are hardly any negative criticisms towards the UME.