| Technology Eases Path to Haiti Charity: Sprint Foundation |
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Written by V. Rodriguez
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Mobile companies, like Sprint which has not only donated tens of thousands of dollars via its philanthropic arm The Sprint Foundation, but have also committed to matching any employee American Red Cross earthquake-relief donation made from Wednesday, Jan. 13, through Sunday, Jan. 31 up to a total of $50,000. They have also offered its customer’s charitable payment solutions by waiving all text-messaging fees for those who send mobile donations to approved short codes and relief organizations participating in the recovery efforts in support of this tragedy. “We have all been impacted by what the people of Haiti have experienced these past days, and our hearts go out to those who have lost family and friends in the disaster,” said Ralph Reid, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility for Sprint. “This support from the Sprint Foundation will allow American Red Cross relief crews to give valuable assistance where it is needed most.” Raising awareness within Haiti relief efforts has also relied heavily on social media. Word-of-mouth buzz provided by sites like Twitter, who reported that in just 24hrs after the quake had four of its top topics related to Haiti relief. From celebrity Twitter users with millions of followers to the average user, all have taken to tweeting the simple message so easily expressed in Twitter's 140 character limit, "You can text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to @RedCross relief efforts in #Haiti," writes international recording artist and humanitarian Ricky Martin, actresses Dania Ramirez and Roselyn Sanchez, among various notable names echoing the Red Cross message. Traditional media outlets like broadcasters turned to Facebook to facilitate real-time news updates. Photo and video postings have allowed for more insight into the damage Haiti has experienced than what we could hear from reporters. Armed with mobile phones, the people of Haiti were able to share these photos with the entire world. The situation in Haiti reminds us of the power technology and social media have in unifying people around a cause and in spreading information effectively on a global scale. Technology’s role within Haiti’s relief efforts has provided a new level of realism which may have even converted the cynics. |
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