New Media Such as Facebook and Twitter

One of our group's proposal was to engage in new media such as Facebook and Twitter to disseminate information and keep the public updated during a bioterrorist attack. upon hindsight. I realised that while we recognised its limitation in mainly addressing only youths, being the most avid uses of new media, we had neglected to consider if using such social network platforms would undermine the severity of bioterrorism due to its informality as a communication channel. A/E

As such, to mitigate this concern, an alternative approach could be to tie in raising awareness on bioterrorism with education in schools. Interactive talks as well as video games that mimic desktop simulation exercises for bioterrorist attacks could be implemented as part of the school curriculum. These strategies make the learning process engaging to maintain youth interest, while ensuring enough seriousness is accorded to eradicate a frivolous attitude to future information received on bioterrorism through new media.

Gi different approach

One drawback of our project is the over-reliance on the government to conquer public fear during any emergency. In all our proposed strategies, the onus lies almost completely on the government to initiate and regulate measures to enhance existing response plans and public preparedness. During a crisis, Singaporeans are likely to stay vigilant and keep alert to warnings and instructions disseminated from official government sources. Yet during peacetime, most are nonchalant. It is difficult to ensure the sustainability and success of any government effort when citizens only remain passive receivers of information. We came to realise the importance of a two-way engagement framework in tackling any national emergency where the involvement of citizens is as important as the governments in combating fear and anxiety. Thus, a possible extension of our project is to implement more community-driven projects on a grassroots level. A positive start can begin with mini-competitions for nationwide anti-bioterrorism

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