Social media disaster. Big data issues in public communication fields

With the growth and changing nature of the (big) data also the role of social sciences researchers has been enhanced, producing an emerging assemblage of tools and techniques for managing and making sense of all this data. In particular, a web content analysis (WCA) approach could become the basis for the use of techniques that enhance the relational context in which the production of messages and texts puts itself. In the light of these premises, our contribution aims to explore the way in which new research strategies of WCA – in particular the application of a Mixed form that moves back and forth qualitative and quantitative approach – could be useful in the analysis of social media use and functions in the disasters implementation process. As disaster social media frameworks include users such as communities, governments, individuals, organizations, and media outlets, the use of a broader range of techniques in the scientific study of disaster social media effects could facilitate the creation of disaster social media tools in the public communication field.