The Vancouver riots and public engagement

One of the more fascinating examples of public engagement I’ve seen in a long time has just unraveled on the streets of Vancouver, and I can’t help but watch this story unfold in fascination- both from the point of view of a concerned citizen, as well as a professional communicator.

If you missed the news, the Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup to the Boston Bruins last night in a crushing 4-0 defeat for Vancouver. The city was electric with excitement beforehand and hundreds of thousands of fans took to the streets to watch the game and begin the celebrations. Everyone was sure “this was our year” to win it, but alas it was not meant to be. Boston beat Vancouver fair and square, and they played a great game.

Then something happened. Riots broke out in the streets. If you missed that news, well, it spread across news networks in a matter of minutes and in just a few hours, it spread across the globe (CBC BC, Telegraph UK, NY Times, Google Search for more.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, what’s interesting is not the fact that the news spread quickly, or globally, or even the fact the riot happened. It’s that this event is a perfect example of how modern public engagement works.

When we talk to our clients about what public engagement means, we find that there is often a misconception that “public engagement” simply means “social media.” It’s not. It’s a paradigm shift in the way stakeholders interact with one another, sped along by the realities of digital technologies.

So as citizens at home watched the TV in horror at what was immediately recognized as a global tarnishing of our image, viewers saw the Vancouver Police Department on one side and the so-called hockey “fans” (herein referred to as “rioters”) on the other side. The media recorded everything from the ground and air, broadcasting live.

Now a closer look at the scene showed that the Police documented everything with cameras too, and the majority of people on the scene were actually bystanders recording images with cameras, phones and video cams. This is the multiple stakeholder reality where everyone is a player with a unique point of view, and authority is quite literally turned on its head. This was also citizen journalism at its finest hour, and the VPD conducted themselves admirably.

The public- from those at home, to those documenting in the streets, to the perpetrators themselves- flooded social media networks to report and discuss the event as it unfolded, sharing content and stating their values on the issue, amplifying the story beyond traditional media.

Then, in what I can only describe as one of the greatest examples of community self-correction I’ve ever seen, concerned citizens across Vancouver banded together to rectify the situation and ensure the world knew this was not what Vancouver was about.

Within hours there were dozens of Tumblr feeds, Facebook pages (see also here, and here, and here) and Twitter accounts sharing photos of the crimes taking place with the hopes of identifying and catching the perpetrators. Facebook event listings were created to clean up the city with thousands of RSVPs, and by morning, Vancouverites were sweeping and cleaning together, writing apologies and thank-yous on the boarded-up windows of smashed businesses, sharing content ofcitizens who tried to stop the rioters, and even some talk of organizing a parade to show their pride and congratulate the Bruins on their victory.

The Vancouver Police Department then engaged with the community, issued a statement promoting an email “hot line” (robbery@vpd.ca) seeded via citizen advocacy groups, and provided instructions on how to share content online and report evidence of crimes. To date, more than 100 people have now been arrested from the riot, including at least one person who boasted about his activities on Facebook and then was subsequently arrested as a result.

The media then started reporting on these activities and shone a light on the clean-up efforts taking place across the city (see here also).

Now when I say this is a fantastic example of Public Engagement, I say that because this event so clearly shows how PE is not just about “people using social media.” It’s about the interaction between multiple agents who are all stakeholders, and while social media definitely sped this one along, it transcended that space and made its way through traditional media, new media, and even the streets.

In this brave new world of public engagement, communities are agents with real power that cannot be ignored, and when groups of like-minded people band together to work with authorities and other agents, the outcome is more powerful than any traditional PR campaign or top-down driven initiative can be.

The very definition of community is a group of people who share common values, and while Vancouverites watched in horror as the city went up in flames, those who shared the common values of good sportsmanship and citizenry connected online to correct the issue and save the City’s reputation.

To the noble citizens of Vancouver, you found the true meaning of community last night. It was one great PE play, and  citizen journalism at its finest hour. Well done and thank you.